59 Oscar Wilde Quotes Celebrating Life and Love

Pretty much anyone and everyone knows the name Oscar Wilde.

But do you actually know the man behind the words that millions love?

Discover some thoughtful words in the form of Oscar Wilde quotes about life and love to open your mind and heart.

Oscar Wilde was an author, poet and playwright who is well-known for his iconic works as well as his brilliant wit and colorful life.

Some of his most famous works include ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ and ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray‘, which gained him much of his notoriety.

A dramatic leader in promoting the Aestheticism movement, Wilde advocated freedom from moral restraint and the limitations of society.

His works present a critique of social norms and was ahead of his time.

Although he was imprisoned and died in poverty, Wilde remains a lasting icon.

He inspires us to follow our hearts and live life to the fullest.

We might make many mistakes throughout our lives, but it’s precisely those mistakes that move us to learn.

In honor of an important literary figure, below is our collection of inspirational, wise, and thoughtful Oscar Wilde quotes and sayings.

Enjoy!

Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration.

Explore our complete collection of motivational quotes here.

Oscar Wilde Quotes Celebrating Life and Love

1. “Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live.” ― Oscar Wilde

2. “To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance.”― Oscar Wilde

3. “Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.” ― Oscar Wilde

4. “Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.”― Oscar Wilde

5. “Experience is one thing you can’t get for nothing.”― Oscar Wilde

6. “You don’t love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or for their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear.”― Oscar Wilde

7. “It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious.” ― Oscar Wilde

8. “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” ― Oscar Wilde

9. “The only thing to do with good advice is to pass it on. It is never of any use to oneself.” ― Oscar Wilde

10. “How can a woman be expected to be happy with a man who insists on treating her as if she were a perfectly normal human being” ― Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde quotes that will open your mind and heart

11. “You can never be overdressed or overeducated.” ― Oscar Wilde

12. “Live! Live the wonderful life that is in you! Let nothing be lost upon you. Be always searching for new sensations. Be afraid of nothing.” ― Oscar Wilde

13. “Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.” ― Oscar Wilde

14. “It is better to have a permanent income than to be fascinating.” ― Oscar Wilde

15. “There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”― Oscar Wilde

16. “No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist.” ― Oscar Wilde

17. “Ordinary riches can be stolen, real riches cannot. In your soul are infinitely precious things that cannot be taken from you.” ― Oscar Wilde

18. “Life is not complex. We are complex. Life is simple, and the simple thing is the right thing.”― Oscar Wilde

19. “The old believe everything, the middle-aged suspect everything, the young know everything.” ― Oscar Wilde

20. “To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” ― Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde quotes that will ignite your passion within

21. “Nothing can cure the soul but the senses, just as nothing can cure the senses but the soul.” ― Oscar Wilde

22. “Never love anyone who treats you like you’re ordinary.” ― Oscar Wilde

23. “One of the many lessons that one learns in prison is, that things are what they are and will be what they will be.” ― Oscar Wilde

24. “The truth is rarely pure and never simple.” ― Oscar Wilde

25. “I choose my friends for their good looks, my acquaintances for their good characters, and my enemies for their intellects. A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies.” ― Oscar Wilde

26. “If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.” ― Oscar Wilde

27. “A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it.” ― Oscar Wilde

28. “An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.” ― Oscar Wilde

29. “Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.” ― Oscar Wilde

30. “A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.” ― Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde quotes that will change your view on life

31. “Crying is for plain women. Pretty women go shopping.”― Oscar Wilde

32. “I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train.”― Oscar Wilde

33. “We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” ― Oscar Wilde

34. “Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.” ― Oscar Wilde

35. “A good friend will always stab you in the front.” ― Oscar Wilde

36. “Beauty is the only thing that time cannot harm. Philosophies fall away like sand, creeds follow one another, but what is beautiful is a joy for all seasons, a possession for all eternity.” ― Oscar Wilde

37. “It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.” ― Oscar Wilde

38. “No woman should ever be quite accurate about her age. It looks so calculating.” ― Oscar Wilde

39. “With freedom, flowers, books, and the moon, who could not be perfectly happy?” ― Oscar Wilde

40. “The aim of life is self-development. To realize one’s nature perfectly – that is what each of us is here for.” ― Oscar Wilde

Thought-provoking Oscar Wilde quotes

41. “Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.” ― Oscar Wilde

42. “The mystery of love is greater than the mystery of death.”― Oscar Wilde

43. “The nicest feeling in the world is to do a good deed anonymously-and have somebody find out.” ― Oscar Wilde

44. “Anybody can sympathize with the sufferings of a friend, but it requires a very fine nature to sympathize with a friend’s success.”― Oscar Wilde

45. “Women are meant to be loved, not to be understood.”― Oscar Wilde

46. “I don’t like compliments, and I don’t see why a man should think he is pleasing a woman enormously when he says to her a whole heap of things that he doesn’t mean.” ― Oscar Wilde

47. “Morality is simply the attitude we adopt towards people we personally dislike.” ― Oscar Wilde

48. “We live in an age when unnecessary things are our only necessities.” ― Oscar Wilde

49. “The reason we all like to think so well of others is that we are all afraid for ourselves. The basis of optimism is sheer terror.”― Oscar Wilde

50. “I don’t want to be at the mercy of my emotions. I want to use them, to enjoy them, and to dominate them.” ― Oscar Wilde

More Oscar Wilde quotes and sayings

51. “I’m a man of simple tastes. I’m always satisfied with the best.” – Oscar Wilde

52. “I can now recreate life in a way that was hidden from me, before.’A dream of form in days of thought.” – Oscar Wilde

53. “Life cannot be written; life can only be lived.” – Oscar Wilde

54. “Life is too short to be taken seriously.” – Oscar Wilde

55. “Life is far too important a thing ever to talk seriously about.” – Oscar Wilde

56. “Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead. The consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth and a richness to life that nothing else can bring.” – Oscar Wilde

57. “Life is never fair, and perhaps it is a good thing for most of us that it is not.” – Oscar Wilde

58. “It takes great courage to see the world in all its tainted glory, and still to love it. And even more courage to see it in the one you love.” – Oscar Wilde

59. “There is always something ridiculous about the emotions of people whom one has ceased to love.” – Oscar Wilde

Which of these Oscar Wilde quotes is your favorite?

Oscar Wilde is an important literary figure who was devoted to Aestheticism in both his life and his art.

He will always be remembered for his great literary work as well as flamboyant lifestyle.

The things Wilde said conveyed his way of thinking.

Hopefully, his words have inspired you to live your life to the fullest, regardless of circumstance.

Did you enjoy these Oscar Wilde quotes?

Which of the quotes resonated with you best?

Let us know in the comment section below.

We would love to hear all about it.