The Happy Prince and Other Stories

　　如果妳想要一朵紅玫瑰，妳得藉著月光，從歌聲中將玫瑰創造出來，然後用心中的鮮血染成紅色的玫瑰。也就是說，妳唱歌給我聽，並且將胸膛貼近我的刺株；妳必須為我唱一整夜，然後刺會穿透妳的心，而妳的生命之血會流進我的莖脈變成我的......
　　
　　王爾德一生執著於藝術與美，因此他用巧妙的構思、豐富的想像、瑰麗的文字、唯美的音符、深遠的寓意，將憂傷的情感一一注入，貫穿著他對「美」的崇高情感，也擴大了童話故事的格局。

　　*中文簡介取自中譯本<<快樂王子>>由立村文化出版

　　The richness of Oscar Wilde's way with words and ideas is given full range in this sparkling collection of short stories written between 1887 and 1891.

　　From the comic tales of The Canterville Ghost and Lord Arthur Savile's Crime to the marvelous fairy stories and fantasies of The Selfish Giant, The Happy Prince and The Star Child, we are treated to the extravagance and dexterity of Wilde's exceptional wit, in stories that will appeal to both adults and children.

　　Beautifully illustrated by Wilde's fellow decadent and aestheticist, the inimitable Aubrey Beardsley, this Macmillan Collector's Library edition of The Happy Prince & Other Stories also features an afterword by author David Stuart Davies.

　　Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

奧斯卡．王爾德（Oscar Wilde,1854~1900）
　　
　　生於愛爾蘭的都柏林，父親為 外科醫生，母親為作家。王爾德為作家、詩人，文藝評論者，十九世紀末英國唯美主義運動的代表人物。和蕭伯納同為當時英國的才子。文風瑰麗，作風獨特，喜用 似是而非卻蘊含機鋒的言論。其戲劇、詩作、小說留給後人許多慣用語，而他過人的機智和誇張絢爛的生活方式也為後人津津樂道。
　　
　　曾就 讀都柏林的三聖大學、牛津的馬達蘭大學。求學期間以詩作〈拉溫納〉而贏得紐迪蓋獎（Newdigate Prize）。王爾德才氣縱橫、機智過人、魅力十足，行事標新立異、不受世俗規範，立刻成為文學界名人。首部詩集在1881年出版。1888年出版了孩童 故事書《快樂王子》（The Happy Prince and Other Stories）。1891年出版唯一的小說《格雷的畫像》。
　　
　 　1890年之後，王爾德陸續寫出機智耀眼的喜劇，作品有：《溫夫人的扇子》（1892年）、《微不足道的女人》（1893年）、《理想丈夫》（1895 年）與傑作《不可兒戲》（1895年）。最後一部劇本《莎樂美》是以法文寫作，俟此劇被譯成英文後，才得以在英國出版。1895年因同性戀行為而入獄，被 判入獄兩年，並判處勞役，這場牢獄之災讓王爾德身心交瘁，宣告破產。出獄後，定居法國，隱姓埋名；居住法國期間，寫出最為聞名的詩作〈里丁監獄之歌〉，詩 中揭露英國獄中不人道的待遇。1900年，在法國病逝，臨死前改信天主教。他在獄中寫給阿弗列特的信件於1905年出版，書名為《獄中信》。

　　Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin in 1854. He studied there, at Trinity College, and then at Oxford, where he founded the cult of aestheticism. He published several books of stories, and one novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, in 1891. He had many successes as a playwright, first with Lady Windermere's Fan in 1892, and all his plays were performed in London between 1892 and 1895. A dazzling wit and flamboyant figure, Wilde's career was cut short after his homosexuality was exposed, and he was sentenced to two years' imprisonment in 1895. Released in 1897, he fled to France where he died a broken man in 1900.