Synopsis
An essay arguing socialism's true purpose is to free individuals from poverty and property so they can develop their full individuality.
Core passage idea
Paraphrase · Public domainSocialism is valuable because by abolishing private property and want it would free people from drudgery, letting each person fully realize their own individuality.
It fuses socialism with radical individualism, judging economic arrangements by whether they liberate the human personality.
To avoid a bubble
Pair with John Stuart Mill, On Liberty.
Reading note
Read it as a witty, paradoxical essay; Wilde's socialism is utopian and anti-authoritarian, more about freedom than about policy.
Best paired with
John Stuart Mill, On Liberty