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We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.

Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan, 1892

Literature

The story behind the card

Lord Darlington says this in Act III of Lady Windermere's Fan, the first of Oscar Wilde's society comedies, which opened in London on 20 February 1892. Men gathered in his rooms at night are joking about women and virtue; when his friend Dumby says they are all good except one, Darlington answers with this line. Teased for being romantic, he admits he loves a woman who is not free. He means Lady Windermere, who is hiding in the same room. The Irish writer Wilde (1854–1900) was famous for such sayings.

Türkçe oku
Hepimiz bataktayız, ama kimimiz yıldızlara bakıyor.
Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere'in Yelpazesi, 1892

Lord Darlington bu sözü, Oscar Wilde'ın sosyete komedilerinin ilki olan Lady Windermere'in Yelpazesi'nin üçüncü perdesinde söyler. Oyun ilk kez 20 Şubat 1892'de Londra'da sahnelendi. Gece geç saatte Darlington'ın evinde toplanan erkekler kadınlar ve erdem üzerine şakalaşmaktadır. Arkadaşı Dumby, biri dışında hepsinin iyi insanlar olduğunu söyleyince Darlington bu cevabı verir. Romantikliğiyle dalga geçilince de özgür olmayan bir kadına âşık olduğunu itiraf eder. Sözünü ettiği Lady Windermere'dir ve o sırada aynı odada saklanmaktadır. İrlandalı yazar Wilde (1854-1900) böyle esprili sözleriyle ünlüdür.

Sources and further reading

Background reading: Oscar Wilde
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