Frith was a traditionalist who made known his aversion to modern-art developments in a couple of autobiographies – "My Autobiography and Reminiscences" (1887) and "Further Reminiscences" (1888) – and other writings. He was also an inveterate enemy of the Pre-Raphaelites and of the Aesthetic Movement, which he satirised in his painting "A Private View at the Royal Academy" (1883), in which Oscar Wilde is depicted discoursing on art while Frith's friends look on disapprovingly. Fellow traditionalist Frederic Leighton is featured in the painting, which also portrays painter John Everett Millais and novelist Anthony Trollope.