The Mother of All ‘Dear John Letters’
What you get when you break the heart of a world-class writer
Unfortunately, nearly everyone knows what a ‘Dear John’ letter is. And for those who haven’t yet had the pleasure, it’s when a lover breaks up with you in a letter.
Of course, these days, it can be done by text, email or even a video, and seldom by snail mail. But you get the idea. It’s still a tragic thing, which often shows the author's state of mind at the time the letter was composed. Some writers are doing the heartbreaking, while others are reacting to an unspoken act, as when a lover begins ‘ghosting’ you.
There have been some famous Dear John letters throughout history … and to some rather famous people. Ernest Hemingway received a letter from his lover, Agnes von Kurowsky, a nurse he fell in love with during his convalescence in Italy after World War I. He was nineteen at the time, and the breakup impacted his life, with some scholars believing the breakup may have been the catalyst that made him into the great writer he would later become.
Yet the Mother of All Dear John Letters has to be the one written by none other than the novelist, playwright and poet Oscar Wilde.
What makes his missive such a standout?
