The Ballad of Reading Gaol

By: Oscar Wilde

Narrated by: Roy Macready

"The Ballad of Reading Gaol" was written by Oscar Wilde in France, where he was in exile after his release from Reading Gaol. Wilde had been imprisoned and sentenced to two years hard labor. A hanging took place while Wilde was incarcerated, and the poem is the narrative of the execution.

Public Domain (P)2016 Spiders' House Audio/Roy Macready

I Imagine The Cell

Even in disrepair, where no creativity could be humanely possible, I would understand why he published this piece long after his release. I felt there was someone who didn’t wish to spite the foul atmosphere, but highlight the deaths they witnessed, the lost hope. The lines ‘And was wondering if the man had done…A great or little thing’ and ‘The coward does it with a kiss, The brave man with a sword’…I thought twice about these lines. I pictured someone who didn’t name the pain of living in these circumstances, but umbrellaed over it. I sympathize with this poem, and truly would not want, as someone who supports humane treatment and rehabilitation of incarcerated individuals, wants someone to break. To constantly keep hyper-vigilance is such a dehumanizing experience. And to think he died younger than my own eldest brother, and for a crime that was purely motivated by hate, not justice. I am truly considering an attempt to memorize it.