A couple of my
favorite lines from Wilde’s response to the attack on his sexuality include
“there is nothing unnatural about it” and “it is that deep, spiritual affection
that is as pure as it is perfect”. It is clear that because of the time period, Wilde was unable to say, for his own reputation and safety, that he was in love with another man. Therefore, while I didn't love the fact that he stuck to the argument that his relationship was acceptable because of the age of the two men and the pure nature of the relationship, it is understood that this was practically required of him. It is also therefore impressive that he was able to say so eloquently that this kind of relationship was perfectly fine without criminalizing himself.
Wilde's rhetorical strategies include his comparisons to other well regarded figures such as Shakespeare and Michelangelo, his explanation of this relationship in a way that could make someone who hasn't had this kind of affection with a man feel jealous of it's pure, deep, intellectual nature, and his attention to detail of his wording as to avoid any sexual references. It is known that at Wilde's time, homosexuality was "so much misunderstood", and therefore constantly criminalized, ridiculed, and mocked. Honestly, I think Wilde's response was brilliantly strong, yet not overbearingly so, so that he could avoid being punished for the relationship he had. Although Wilde couldn't explicitly say he supported the love between people of the same sex, Wilde surely helped pave the way for future activism in support of homosexual love. We <3 Wilde.
1.27.14, Toni Calabrese-Thomas
Your reading makes sense to me. He certainly could not admit to sodomy and gross indecency with another man. Neither was he willing to be branded a sodomite. He had to find a way to say without saying while claiming the higher moral ground. If his sin was "unspeakable" then defending himself from the accusation of having committed it required, perhaps, a certain measure of ineffability.
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