“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.” — Oscar Wilde · Intentions, 1891
“The only way to behave to a woman is to make love to her, if she is pretty, and to someone else, if she is plain.” — Oscar Wilde · The Importance of Being Earnest, 1895
“A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.” — Oscar Wilde · The Soul of Man Under Socialism, 1891
“With freedom, books, flowers, and the moon, who could not be happy?” — Oscar Wilde · attributed, widely documented
“The books one reads in childhood, and perhaps most of all the bad and good bad books, create in one's mind a sort of false map of the world.” — Oscar Wilde · De Profundis, 1905
“Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.” — Oscar Wilde · Lady Windermere's Fan, 1892
“The soul is born old but grows young. That is the comedy of life. And the body is born young and grows old. That is life's tragedy.” — Oscar Wilde · A Woman of No Importance, 1893