De Profundis

De Profundis is Oscar Wilde’s powerful prison letter, written during his imprisonment in Reading Gaol and later published in 1905. Addressed to Lord Alfred Douglas, it blends personal grief, reflection, accusation, spiritual searching, and artistic insight. The work shows a far more intimate and serious side of Wilde, tracing how suffering, loss, and humiliation reshaped his understanding of love, art, and the self. It is often read as both a literary confession and a philosophical meditation on pain and redemption.