Oscar Wilde: The Importance of Being Irish

This is the first biography of Oscar Wilde that explores how his Irish background had a major impact on his life and writings. Davis Coakley makes valuable connections between Wilde's early years in Ireland and his later works. He looks at Wilde's upbringing in Dublin, his school years at Portora Royal School, Enniskillen, and his student days at Trinity College, Dublin. When Wilde left Trinity for Oxford, he already had most of the characteristics that would later distinguish him in London.