Abstract

Fairy tales are often used by authors to impart their moral values and principles. This is commonly done through the portrayal of their main characters, including their personalities, actions, and the consequences of their actions. In some cases, authors use death as a moral lesson due to its connotation as a form of punishment for a character’s misdeed. However, Oscar Wilde’s fairy tales contradict the conventional aspect of death in classic fairy tales. His main characters experienced death or physical disfigurement in the end despite their actions which readers would perceive as good or morally permissible. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the theme of morality in Wilde’s selected fairy tales through a Deontology Ethical approach. This study addressed the relationship between the personalities and actions of Wilde’s selected characters, as well as the consequences of their actions. Furthermore, using Kantian Ethics, the study evaluated the moral permissibility of the characters’ maxims underlying their actions. The findings showed that the personalities of Wilde’s characters could be categorised into those who adhere to or oppose Kant’s definition of personality based on their actions. The study also highlighted the varying deaths that Wilde’s characters faced in the end. Additionally, the analysis suggests that the reasons behind the actions of Wilde’s characters could be categorised into “for duty” and “for other means”. At the end of this study, readers would be introduced to a different moral theory in understanding a character without justifying it based on the simple “right versus wrong” principle.

Highlights

  • While fairy tales are neither virtuous nor primary examples of the way of moral life, they tend to help young readers to conceptualize the world around them

  • In the first part of the analysis, this study examines the relation of the main characters' personalities in Wilde's fairy tales and the actions committed in the stories

  • This study aims to discuss the theme of morality in Oscar Wilde's selected fairy tales through Kantian Ethics

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Summary

INTRODUCTION

While fairy tales are neither virtuous nor primary examples of the way of moral life, they tend to help young readers to conceptualize the world around them. The selected tales are “The Happy Prince” (1888), “The Nightingale and the Rose” (1888), “The Selfish Giant” (1888), “The Devoted Friend” (1888), and “The Birthday of the Infanta” (1891) In these stories, the main characters commit specific actions that readers would perceive as morally good. In the first part of the analysis, this study examines the relation of the main characters' personalities in Wilde's fairy tales and the actions committed in the stories. In the second part of the analysis, this study discusses the consequences of the actions committed by the main characters of Wilde's selected short stories, whether those actions are done voluntarily or not as a response to others Their motivations and intentions to commit an act to leave an impact. In the third part of the analysis, this study intends to justify the reasons behind the main characters' actions of Wilde's selected short stories based on Kant's principle of the Good Will. Refer to Appendix 1.0 for the Conceptual Framework

RESULT & DISCUSSION
CONCLUSION
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