Importance of Being Earnest

1374 Words3 Pages

Gwendolen Fairfax and Cecily Cardew offer representation of the ideas of the woman toward the turn of the century. They happen to be similar in many ways but still have their differences. Gwendolen and Cecily are insistent and take initiative in search of their own aspirations. Gwendolen follows Jack to the country, a place most likely very unfamiliar to her, and Cecily pursues Algernon as soon as she sees him. They are also both capable of escaping those who intend to keep them from their goals. Gwendolen is able to flee her overbearing mother, Lady Bracknell; Cecily outsmarts Jack by organizing Algernon to stay, and also avoids Miss Prism to continue on a rendezvous with her lover. For both women, material and small things are most important. Gwendolen insist on marrying a man with the name Ernest merely based on the name's connotations. Cecily also craves the same as she believes Jack's brother is an immoral man and ever though she has never met him, the thought of him sounds idealistic. She rebelliously and romantically toys with pursing the "immoral brother," but clearly she will shape him into the man she wants him to be. The name of Ernest is also important to her. Both Gwendolen and Cecily are products of the Victorian concept in which how one accomplishes is more important than why. Though seeming very similar Cecily and Gwendolen are divergent in certain aspects, Gwendolen is confident and knowing, while her mother has taught her to be short-range. She is also raised in the only traditional family in the entire play. On the other hand, Cecily is more sheltered, and more primitive. She doesn’t really experience motherly love other than her governess. The character of Gwendolen is tool used to confer marriage and give Wild...

... middle of paper ...

...inds out he is named after his biological father whose name happens to be Earnest. So it turns out he was telling the truth the entire time.
The lack of a point of view in this play adds to the lack of sense of the characters and suspension in the play. During this time period of Decadence in France and England the apprehensions of the characters are highly insignificant and conceited. The play in its entirety has a constant satiric tone in order to depict the shallow entanglements the upper society. The Importance of Being Earnest reflects a moral value, especially earnesty, dealing with human’s daily life. One may do whatever possible to reach their goal but, being earnest is a difficult task. Even though one may secretly uphold a falsehood eventually the truth will come to the light. Hence, under any circumstance honesty is always the best policy.

Show More
Related

  • The Importance Of Being Earnest Laughter Essay

    642 Words  | 2 Pages

    Gwendolen confesses to Jack, or his confidante Ernest, “The moment Algernon first mentioned to me that he had a friend called Ernest, I knew I was destined to love you” (10). That quote proved that Gwendolen’s drive to marry “Ernest” for him having the name Ernest, rather than marrying him for his character. Cecily also confesses something along the same lines as Gwendolen to Algernon, that even though she had never met him before she fell in love with him: “Well, ever since dear Uncle Jack first confessed to us that he had a younger brother who was very wicked and bad, you of course have formed the chief topic of conversation…a man who is much talked about is always very attractive…I daresay it was foolish of me, but I fell in love with you, Ernest” (32). She is led to believe that Algernon’s real name is Ernest. Cecily and Gwendolen are attracted to Jack and “Ernest” because of their histories. Gwendolen was excited to find o...

    Read More

  • Importance Of Being Earnest Movie Vs Play Analysis

    824 Words  | 2 Pages

    Everyone always says the story is always better than the movie, let’s say it’s always the truth. ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ is a theatrical play about two men Jack and Algy. Jack is a man from the country who lies saying his name is earnest when he goes into the city, he is very in love with Algy’s cousin Gwendolen. Lady Bracknell is Gwendolen’s mothers who very much does not like jack what so ever. Algy is a man in very much debt who ends up falling in love with Jacks ward Cecily, he also has some lies about who is. The whole point of lying about who they both are was to get away from the everyday lives they lived and not worry about being found out. In 2002 this famous play was turned into a movie, sadly though a lot of scenes were

    Read More

  • An Imagined Modern-Day Setting for "The Importance of Being Earnest"

    331 Words  | 1 Pages

    Firstly I would set this play in the 21st century so that a modern audience could relate to it. Algernon, one of the main characters in the play, would live in a luxury apartment in the centre of London, over looking the River Thames. His apartment would have a minimalist theme to it and would be influenced by aesthetic; for example he would have a piece of abstract art on the wall for no reason other than that he thinks it looks nice.

    Read More

  • Comparing the Roles of Women in Arcadia, The Importance of Being Earnest, and Look Back in Anger

    1829 Words  | 4 Pages

    Gwendolen and Cecily act like air-heads and are easily won over by the men they plan to marry. Gwendolen simply wants to marry a man named Earnest. She tells Jack “my ideal has always been to love someone of the name of Ernest” (I.381-82). The mere idea of marrying a man for his name shows how easily Gwendolen can attach herself to a man. Marriage is the most serious of all relationships and Gwendolen is foolish to deter...

    Read More

  • In Oscar Wilde's 'The Importance Of Being Earnest'

    1514 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Oscar Wilde’s play, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” is an early Victorian melodramatic play. This play is very honest and frank. It is a satire, comedy of errors, and an intellectual farce. There are two main characters, Algernon and Jack. Jack Worthing, is known by Jack when he is living at his own country estate, but when he goes into city, London; he creates a fictional character called ‘Earnest.’ Algernon has created a fictional character named ‘Bunbury.’ Algernon uses Bunbury to get him out of prior engagements. This helps him get out of the house and clear his head whenever he wants. Although their both the characters situations are different, both created an “alter-ego” to help them get away from their own lives and also to live another life. They are best friends; both have the same social background, class and taste. Between Jack and Algernon, Jack is more serious about his life; he creates a fictional character to help him keep his image of being humble and respectable intact but in truth is vain. On the other hand, Algernon is truthful about himself and he goes against the Victorian values. But society loves him anyway as he accepts that he is not formal or conservative, or proper and he is rough around the edges but he’s funny, witty and smart. Although Wilde creates two characters in Jack and Algernon who are similar in social class, age, tastes, etc., he also carefully creates subtle character differences between them that create conflict and humor in the play.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Being Earnest Analysis

    1578 Words  | 4 Pages

    Gwendolen is a shining example of a victorian woman like most women in the era she has ideas, it was said she attended lectures, and is bent on self improvement, her costume should be a very frilly dress suited to the style of the time. Jack the play’s protagonist is another very victorian era character in public he is depended upon by his servants and his land, he’s also seen as a caretaker by many of the other characters throughout the play, by victorian era standards he is seen as a respectable and responsible young

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Being Earnest By Oscar Wilde

    1272 Words  | 3 Pages

    Oscar Wildes ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’’ is believed by many to be his most genius work and certainly has withstood the test of time. The play is set in London during the 1890’s in which time frame aristocracy and upper class held the majority of the countries wealth. Many of the comical aspects question the morals of the upper class in which he satirises throughout the play. One method of this, for instance is through one of the main protagonist, Algernon Moncrieff. Algernon is an upper class individual who is oblivious to the world around him in such an exaggerated manner that it makes his character comically adjusted for Wildes own views. Many aspects of the time period are made a mockery through puns and witty remarks from the main protagonists, most if not all are portrayed in a sense that makes them undoubtedly a laughing stock. Wildes methods are not discrete; nor are they obvious, many of the comical comments made are by none other than the protagonists themselves. This furthermore enforces the corrupted morals of the time periods prestigious upper class by showing their sheer inability to acknowledge hypocrisy. For example, in act one; Algernon states “ Lane's views on marriage seem somewhat lax. Really, if the lower orders don't set us a good example, what on earth is the use of them? They seem, as a class, to have absolutely no sense of moral responsibility.” This is especially amusing as Algernon believes that the lower class have a duty to set an example when in reality the matter of fact was quite the contrary. Algernon states that he believes the lower class are lacking in morals, he being arguably one of the most morally distorted characters Wilde created makes the double standards more prominent.

    Read More

  • Gender and Consistency in "The Importance of Being Earnest"

    1833 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Importance of Being Earnest is regarded as one of the most successful plays written by Oscar Wilde, a great 19th century playwright. Oscar Wilde deals with something unique about his contemporary age in this drama. It addresses Victorian social issues, French theatre, farce, social drama and melodrama. All these factors influenced the structure of the play in a large scale. This play is basically a Victorian satirical drama showcasing the social, political, economic and religious structural changes that affected 18th century England. It was the time when British Empire had captured most part of the world including Oscar Wilde’s homeland, Ireland. The aristocrats of England had become dominant over the middle and poor class people and Wilde wrote plays with the motivation to encourage people to think against the English aristocracy and artificiality.

    Read More

  • Tartuffe Hypocrisy Essay

    729 Words  | 2 Pages

    Similarly, in “The Importance of Being Earnest”, Jack and Algernon both begin their marital lives based on deception and lies. As a matter of fact, Gwendolen and Algernon both know Jack as Ernest. When Jack proposes to Gwendolen, she becomes overly attached to the idea of marrying someone called Ernest. Gwendolen exclaims: “My ideal has always been to love someone of the name Ernest/There is something in that name that inspires absolute confidence/It is a divine name/It has a music of its own/It produces vibrations” (Wilde 106), and Cecily is of the same opinion “it had always been a girlish dream of mine to love someone whose name was Ernest/I pity any poor married woman whose husband is not called Ernest” (Wilde 116). Jack and Algernon never admits to Gwendolen and Cecily that they are living a double life, their relationships are based on lies. They are more occupied with the name Ernest than the fact of actually being earnest. In spite of leading a deceptive and double life, both men

    Read More

  • Social Order Satire in "The Importance of Being Ernest"

    1361 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Ignorance is like a delicate fruit; touch it, and the bloom is gone,” engraves Oscar Wilde as he sets the literary table with a bountiful demonstration of Victorian satire. “The Importance of Being Earnest” is evidently a comic critic of late Victorian value (Schmidt 5). Brought into this world from Dublin, Ireland, to well-heeled parents in 1854. Wilde received an opportunity for social improvement when graduating from Oxford University, after receiving a financial scholarship that gave him a first hand account of the upper crust society lifestyle which allowed him to acquire material to poke fun at (Moss 179). Wilde shows his characters as if they knew that people where watching them. By doing that he caused the audience to feel that the actors had authentic regret about their characters actions (Foster 19).

    Read More

  • Comparing Gilbert And Sullivan And The Mikado By Oscar Wilde

    1313 Words  | 3 Pages

    Though Cecily and Gwendolen both love two different men, they show a deep obsession over the name “Ernest.” The first relationship introduced in the play is of Jack and Gwendolen, as he asks “Gwendolen, will you marry me?” (Wilde 307). At first the play seems straight forward and simple, as Jack gets the women he desires and only needs to change his name to Ernest to cover up his lies. However, things begin to get complicated and the love triangle begins to form when Algernon involves himself in Jack’s “game.”

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Being Earnest Marriage Theme Analysis

    1070 Words  | 3 Pages

    To give a little background on the play; the pursuit of marriage is the driving force behind the play. “I now pronounce you, man and wife.” This traditional saying, commonly used to announce a newlywed couple during a wedding ceremony, marks the happily ever after that many dream of today. In today’s society, marriage is an expression of love between two individuals. Marriage has not, however, always been an act of love. In the Victorian era, marriage was almost a chore. Most people married out of need rather than want. In the Play this is evident when Lady Bracknell objects to Gwendolen and Ernest’s engagement on the basis of his lack of legitimate background. On the other hand, Jack objects to the marriage of Cecily and Algernon’s

    Read More

  • Satire In Oscar Wilde's The Importance Of Being Earnest

    881 Words  | 2 Pages

    Oscar Wilde’s, “The Importance of Being Earnest”, play carefully uses satire as a didactic tool to mask the underlying social commentary with the help of comedy through characters theme and dialogue. Wilde uses satire to ridicule class and wealth, marriage and the ignorance of the Victorian Age. Audiences are continually amused by Wilde’s use of linguistic and comic devices such as double entendre, puns, paradox and epigrams, especially in the case of social commentary and didactic lessons. Characters portrayed in the play such as Jack, Cecily, Algernon and Lady Bracknell, allow Wilde to express his opinions on the social problems during the Victorian Age.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Being Earnest: Irony

    513 Words  | 2 Pages

    Is He Serious? The Importance Of Being Earnest is a story of irony, the title itself is a pun. To be earnest means: to be honest or sincere, and everyone is lying stating their name is Ernest… how ironic. Many times writers embed irony into a story, like a Christ figure causing harm to someone, or the buckle up it saves lives sign falling onto someone who crashed into it killing them while wearing their seatbelt;but Wilde took irony to a whole new level.

    Read More

  • Gwendolen Insincere

    1289 Words  | 3 Pages

    She only becomes insincere towards Cecily when she sees the other as a threat to her relationship with Ernest. Although being insincere to someone is not the best decision, Gwendolen uses it to cover up her insecurity. When she finds out that Cecily is Mr Worthing’s ward, she tells the younger girl, “Disloyalty would be as impossible to [Ernest] as deception. But even men of the noblest possible moral character are extremely susceptible to the influence of the physical charm of others” (163). Gwendolen expresses to Cecily how she wished the other was older and uglier, making the chances of Ernest being attracted towards her decrease. Gwendolen is a lady of appearance, and she is confident of her own, but she is still insecure towards Cecily. Because of this, she becomes rude towards Cecily. Yet, however, Cecily explains to Gwendolen that Ernest Worthing is not her guardian, but Jack is. In response to this, Gwendolen shows her relief by telling Cecily, “You have lifted a load from my mind. I was growing almost anxious” (163). Here, Gwendolen admits that Cecily made her anxious about her relationship with Ernest; she relaxes once she finds out that Ernest most likely has not met Cecily if that is the case. With this, the audience sees how her insecurity causes her insincerity towards Cecily, and how much she cares about her relationship with

    Read More

More about Importance of Being Earnest

Open Document