愛爾蘭─英國劇作家王爾德(Oscar Wilde)一直是英國文壇爭議性極強的人物。他玩世不恭的生活態度與他和年輕戀人，艾佛列‧道格拉斯(Lord Alfred Douglas)的老少配同性戀情誼更引起維多利亞社會上的喧然大波。因為他如此與當時社會格格不入的行事態度，讓他在文學史上一直屬於倍受爭議的問題人物。也因此，各學派批評家對王爾德的文學地位也有截然不同的詮釋。本論文無意為王爾德的歷史地位作定位或褒貶，而是經由王爾德美學的觀點切入，探討王爾德一生中對美的追求與其美學觀點的改變。期望藉著審視王爾德的美學觀來分析他的生活觀、政治觀與社會觀，進而對其人格，與他和當代社會之間的互動有更深刻的理解。

本文首先探究王爾德的美學思想來源。他上承西方思想家康德(Kant)、尼采(Nietzsche)、約翰羅思金(John Ruskin)、華特佩特(Walter Pater)，與法國頹廢派作家包德雷爾(Baudelaire)、高提爾(Gautier)、因斯曼(Huysmans)合為一氣，更接受了東方道家莊子思想，融合成一個具有個人主義的美學源流。在此架構上，王爾德建立起他的第一套美學系統：逾越美學(transgressive aesthetic)。他以美為出發點，用諷刺手法對傳統維多利亞時代的價值觀展開批判。雖然此反叛式美學為王爾德帶來短暫的輝煌，但在王爾德的同性戀身分曝光後他的寫作生命即迅速地畫下一個凸兀的句點。入獄後的王爾德，在心靈上與身體上均受到痛苦的煎熬，也因此對於「美」的理解有了巨大的變化。王爾德轉變反叛的本質成為宗教式的美學。他運用自己的心靈解讀，詮釋耶穌基督的故事，因而建立了一套迴異於正統基督教教義的個人主義宗教美學，其最高境界是能超越所有外在限制的自我理解。在他晚期的作品裡，這種超越美學成為他評斷美的中心。

經由上述對王爾德美學的分析之後發現，他的不斷成長、不斷變化，與其獨立思考的精神乃是他多年來仍能吸引眾多讀者與評論家的主因。王爾德代表的已不是他個人，而是一種信任自己、力求獨立的美感與精神。

British-Irish playwright, Oscar Wilde, has always been a controversial character in English literature. Both his dandified life style and his homosexual love for Lord Alfred Douglas caused a stir in Victorian society. Because of his non-traditional style, his status in the history of literature is still in dispute. Different critics have evaluated Wilde from different research approaches with varied results. This thesis does not aim to fix Wilde’s literary position or to pass judgment on him; rather, this thesis will aim to analyze Wilde’s aesthetic perspective and to understand Wilde through his idea of beauty. By examining Wilde’s aesthetics, his perspectives on life, politics and society will become clear as will his character.
This thesis will begin with Wilde’s aesthetic heritage. Wilde inherited ideas from the Western philosophers, Kant, Nietzsche, John Ruskin, and Walter Pater; he connected his aesthetic to those advocated by the French Decadents, Baudelaire, Gautier, and Huysmans. In addition, Wilde absorbed Eastern philosophy, including Taoism, and especially Chuang-Tzu’s philosophy. These philosophies have the similar spirit of individualism upon which Wilde develops his first aesthetic system, the transgressive aesthetic. He puts beauty before everything else and utilizes a dandified life style and an ironic approach to attack traditional Victorian values. Though this rebellious aesthetic style brings Wilde brief success, his homosexual identity quickly draws him down. After prison, Wilde’s realization of beauty changes significantly. Through his own interpretation of Jesus Christ’s story, Wilde builds a religious aesthetic whose explanation of the Bible is quite different from that of orthodox Christianity. In Wilde’s religious aesthetics, the highest achievement is the transcendental soul that enables one to be free from exterior limitations.
Through the analysis of Wilde’s aesthetic, we will conclude it is Wilde’s continuous growth and his independent thought that attract readers and critics. Oscar Wilde represents not merely himself, but also a beautiful spirit that trusts oneself and treasures the uniqueness of all people.

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