De Profundis (letter) Theatre in London. It was revived in 2008. An abridged version was set for speaking pianist by composer Frederic Rzewski. Extracts were set to music for chorus and orchestra in 2012 by the British composer Matthew King. De Profundis (letter) De Profundis (Latin: "from the depths") is a letter written by Oscar Wilde during his imprisonment in Reading Gaol, to "Bosie" (Lord Alfred Douglas). In its first half Wilde recounts their previous relationship and extravagant lifestyle which eventually led to Wilde's conviction and imprisonment for gross indecency. He indicts both Lord Alfred's vanity and his own weakness in acceding to
Lord Alfred Douglas true, but that there was also some public interest in having made the charge publicly. Edward Carson, Queensberry's lawyer, accordingly portrayed Wilde as a vicious older man who habitually preyed upon naive young boys and, with extravagant gifts and promises of a glamorous lifestyle, seduced them into a life of homosexuality. Several highly suggestive erotic letters that Wilde had written to Douglas were introduced into evidence; Wilde claimed they were works of art. Wilde was closely questioned about the homoerotic themes in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and in "The Chameleon", a single-issue magazine published by Douglas to which Wilde