Salome

Salome is Oscar Wildes most experimentaland controversialplay. In its own time, the play, written in French, was described by a reviewer as an arrangement in blood and ferocity, morbid, bizarre, repulsive. None, however, could deny the importance of Wildes creation. Contemporary audiences and reviewers variously regarded Salome as the symbol of a thrilling modernity, a challenge to patriarchy, a confession of desire, a sign of moral decay, a new form of art, and a revolt against the restraints of Victorian society. Less well known than Wildes beloved comedies, Salome is as enduringly modern and relevant.

This edition uses the English translation done by Wildes lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, and overseen and corrected by Wilde himself. Appendices detail the plays sources and provide extensive materials on its contemporary reception and dramatic productions.