“I hate vulgar realism in literature. The man who would call a spade a spade should be compelled to use one.”

“The man who could call a spade a spade should be compelled to use one.”

“When I see a spade I call it a spade.I'm glad to say I have never seen a spade!”

“Cecily. This is no time for wearing the shallow mask of manners. When I see a spade I call it a spade.Gwendolen. [Satirically.] I am glad to say that I have never seen a spade. It is obvious that our social spheres have been widely different.”

“The harmony of soul and body - how much that is! We in our madness have separated the two, and have invented a realism that is vulgar, and ideality that is void.”

“One should absorb the colour of life, but one should never remember its details. Details are always vulgar.”

“One should never trust a woman who tells one her real age. A woman who would tell one that would tell one anything.”