I must learn how to be happy. — Oscar Wilde · Smartyfair

I must learn how to be happy.

Oscar Wilde1854–1900 · writer · 1800s Ireland & EnglandOscar Wilde was an Irish writer famous for his witty plays, clever sayings, and his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray.9 quotes

Source foundWisdom1800s

In plain words

Being happy is something a person can learn.

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Where these words come from

How sure this is: 85% sureThese words were traced back to where they first appeared. That source is listed below.
What turned up: De Profundis (written 1897, published 1905); Project Gutenberg #921, primary text confirmed; leading word 'Then' dropped for standalone use.
Work: De Profundis
Occasion: 1897
Sources checked: gutenberg.orgChecked using claude-sonnet-5, 21 August 2026Project Gutenberg edition of De Profundis; confirmed exact sentence, originally 'Then I must learn how to be happy.'

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More from Oscar Wilde

To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.

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

Oscar Wilde 'Know thyself' was written over the portal of the antique world. Over the portal of the new world, 'Be thyself' shall be written.

Oscar Wilde I have many beautiful flowers, but the children are the most beautiful flowers of all.

Oscar Wilde The good ended happily, and the bad unhappily. That is what Fiction means.

Oscar Wilde The artist is the creator of beautiful things.

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Socrates Wonder is the feeling of a philosopher, and philosophy begins in wonder.