‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ is considered to be Oscar Wilde’s masterpiece written in 1895. His work here involves mistaken identity, satire (social/class rankings), incredible wit and much more. It is theorised that this script was written in slight reflection of Wilde’s own life; he himself led a double life due to his sexuality.…
Arguably the most remarkable quotation of Wilde's writing comes from here, when Gwendolen casually states that "in matters of grave importance, style, not sincerity is the vital thing". The tone of this saying would have been amusing, being brushed off casually as it came from a deluded character. However, the undertone remains important- that in life nothing is important but "style", as long as the presentation is correctly executed then sincerity and meaning is useless. This perfectly reflects Gwendolen's actions- she rejects Jack and consequently leads to Cecily's rejection of Algernon because she was mislead about something as unimportant as a name. In turn, she refuses to speak with either male in a stereotypically indignant fashion- yet welcomes Jack back with open arms.…
Wilde view of Victorian society is illustrated through his wit and humor embedded in the characters’ dialogues. For example, Jack and Algernon live double lives as lowlifes of society that they, nonetheless, admire due to their alter ego’s carefree nature. When both Jack and Algernon become their alternate personas, it illustrates their desire to escape and cover up their past, in order to become Ernest. The ironic…
There are many possible endings for the play, but if I were to write the ending, I would have changed it so that, Romeo comes back and fights Paris and kills him. The fight takes so long that by the time Romeo reaches Juliet, she is about to wake up. When Romeo sees Juliet, he runs and goes hug her. Then Romeo looks at Juliet shockingly and sees the vile in her hand and asks her what had happened. Then Juliet looks at Romeo in a strange way and asks him if he had gotten the letter he had been sent. Then Romeo says that he hadn’t received any letter. Juliet then explains the plan that she had made with Friar and then they hug and kiss each other and cry in joy that they are both well and fine. Romeo then tells Juliet about killing Paris and they both agree that there’s no possible way that the Montegues and the Capulets will ever become friends and that there is no way that Romeo will be allowed to stay in the city anymore. So they decide to run away together. They both flee to Mantua and live there happily ever after. They get four kids, two boys and two girls.…
The Importance of Being Earnest, composed by Oscar Wilde is a comedic screenplay set in the nineteenth century. Although the theme of the screenplay is comedic, the script does discuss some of the common issues that occurred during that time. Oscar Wilde portrays the concept of marriage, earnestness and …. Throughout his script.…
Wilde uses tragic comedy in his satire. The main plot of the story is that Jack needs to find his parents in order to marry Gwendolyn. Jack however has been living another life in the country as Uncle Jack to his adopted father's granddaughter (Cecily). Jacks plans are interrupted when he tells his friend Algernon about his city and country lives. The story begins with a serious tone, Jack wanting to marry Gwendolyn and searching for his parents. This play is a tragic comedy because there is a great chance that it will end in a catastrophe. Algernon has taken interest in…
The play also uses hyperbole to make its point. Every character in it is exaggerated. The characters Jack and Algernon are both willing to change their names to Earnest just because the women they love say that they will only love a man named Earnest. This is an example of how much emphasis Wilde believes that society places on love and how important it is to us.…
Thus, it can be argued that in The Importance of Being Earnest, the double life led by the protagonists [Jack and Algernon] corresponds to Wilde 's personal life of a fake marriage disguising his…
Wilde’s Advocacy for Change in Victorian Culture People have the tendency to judge situations and matters according to how society judges the same situation. Oscar Wilde, the playwright of The Importance of Being Earnest, takes these preconceptions in and inverts the practices that we perceive to be true in order to advocate social and political change. By emphasizing these discrepancies in marriage and the social aristocracy, Wilde satirizes Victorian traditions and ultimately advocates change. The Characters in The Importance of Being Earnest melodramatize unlikely matters concerning society and class, which illustrate Wilde’s advocacy for change in these areas of Victorian culture.…
In the importance of being earnest Oscar Wilde inverts conventional gender assumptions, and accepted norms. He was one of the first writers of the 19th century to move away from melodramatic plays and adopt a sense of realism to his writing. He uses comedy to be able to lightheartedly mock and critique power structures of Victorian England.…
It can be argued that Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays (2000) explores in depth the idea of satire on the hypocrisy of ‘polite’ British society. Wilde uses dramatic language to amplify the satirical nature of the play; by using irony and satire he is able to mock the polite Victorian etiquette. The play is set in middle class Victorian London, and was written in 1895. Wilde was renowned for being a dandy and somewhat of an extravert, and so the fact he wrote ‘a trivial comedy for serious people’ (2000, p.291) can be seen as satirical due to his frivolous nature and attitude towards…
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde was first published by Leonard Smithers & Co. in London in 1899. It was later republished by Dover Thrift Editions in 1990. The story follows Mr. Jack “Earnest” Worthing as he stumbles through a rather laughable and humorous situation alongside his companion Algernon Moncrieff. Through different twists and turns, Algernon and Jack discover many things about honor, honesty, and above all, love. Many important characters aid them in their journey, and these characters often play an important part.…
Importancehe Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personæ in order to escape burdensome social obligations. Working within the social conventions of late Victorian London, the play's major themes are the triviality with which it treats institutions as serious as marriage, and the resulting satire of Victorian ways. Contemporary reviews all praised the play's humour, though some were cautious about its explicit lack of social messages, while others foresaw the modern consensus that it was the culmination of Wilde's artistic career so far. Its high farce and witty dialogue have helped make The Importance of Being Earnest Wilde's most enduringly popular play.…
In true definition of farce, Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest incorporates unlikely and improbable situations, extravagant characters, and the occasional mistaken identity. Wilde’s farce relies on creating absurd situations that characters approach in means they find entirely logical in his parody of high society. His protagonist, Algernon is the only character aware of the absurdities of Victorian high society, and responds by taking absolutely nothing seriously-leading a double life as a “Mr. Bunbury.”As he recognizes his brother practicing the same mischief, Algernon shares his “enlightened” philosophies about Bunburying with Jack through outstanding hypocrisy, paradox and epigrams, to create what Wilde deems “trivial comedy for serious people.”…
Jack not only pretends to be something he is not; a man with high moral responsibility, but also someone who he is not as he creates a ‘false impression’ with all of the people around him. This type of deception allows Wilde to suggest the hypocrisy of Victorian society, as the plot ‘makes a fool out of respectability’ [1] while simultaneously illuminating the amusing aspect to deception as the play progresses. Perhaps Wilde is attacking Victorian society as he knew they would never accept his life style. It also presents reality as trivial as society is created and moulded by the very people who aim to escape it. Many contemporary critics have dismissed the play as being entirely trivial, and some say it is ‘inspired nonsense,’ [1] as it primarily consists of aspects of satire, farce and comedy of manners, in addition to the use of ‘deus ex machina’ as a plot resolution, but they fail to acknowledge the use of hypocrisy.…