This review provides insight into Joseph Bristow’s thorough and comprehensive study of the contextual background, documentary evidence and aftermath of the 1895 notorious court processes that catalysed Oscar Wilde’s downfall. It shows how this monumental volume, published in 2022 in the Yale Law Library Series in Legal History and Reference, carries out a detailed and revealing analysis placing special emphasis on the socio-political backdrop and juridical frame of reference connected with Wilde’s “gross indecency” case. In an admirable conjunction of meticulous research and incisiveness, Bristow’s inquiry never loses sight of Wilde’s personal ordeal while throwing light on wider collective dynamics and the multiple forces that were then at work, including political manoeuvres. Importantly, Bristow’s book also shores up extant critical bibliography through an impressive, previously unexplored body of archival material.
Questa recensione delinea una panoramica inerente all'accurato studio di Joseph Bristow sul contesto, le prove documentarie e le conseguenze dei noti processi che, nel 1895, segnarono la tragica caduta di Oscar Wilde. Viene evidenziato come questo volume monumentale, pubblicato nel 2022 nella Yale Law Library Series in Legal History and Reference, conduca un’analisi dettagliata che rivolge particolare attenzione allo sfondo socio-politico e al quadro giuridico di riferimento connessi al caso wildiano di “gross indecency”. In una fine combinazione di ricerca meticolosa e acume critico, l’indagine di Bristow non perde mai di vista il vissuto personale di Wilde e, al contempo, guarda a dinamiche collettive più ampie e alle molteplici forze allora in gioco, incluse le manovre politiche. Il volume integra inoltre la bibliografia critica esistente con un corpus considerevole di materiale archivistico finora inesplorato.
Review of Joseph Bristow, “Oscar Wilde on Trial: The Criminal Proceedings, from Arrest to Imprisonment”, New Haven and London, Yale UP, 2022 (ISBN: 978-0-300-22272-2)
Giovannelli Laura
2025-01-01
Abstract
This review provides insight into Joseph Bristow’s thorough and comprehensive study of the contextual background, documentary evidence and aftermath of the 1895 notorious court processes that catalysed Oscar Wilde’s downfall. It shows how this monumental volume, published in 2022 in the Yale Law Library Series in Legal History and Reference, carries out a detailed and revealing analysis placing special emphasis on the socio-political backdrop and juridical frame of reference connected with Wilde’s “gross indecency” case. In an admirable conjunction of meticulous research and incisiveness, Bristow’s inquiry never loses sight of Wilde’s personal ordeal while throwing light on wider collective dynamics and the multiple forces that were then at work, including political manoeuvres. Importantly, Bristow’s book also shores up extant critical bibliography through an impressive, previously unexplored body of archival material.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
