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Irony in the importance of being Earnest
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Some say the best lies stem from a little truth, but sometimes, the best truths stem from a little lie. In the comedy The Importance of Being Earnest, (The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2002), Oscar Wilde weaves a tale of humorous irony and satire. Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff go to extreme lengths, even pretending to be completely different people in order to wed the women they love. Oscar Wilde incorporates irony to convey the means in which lies can lead to altered perspectives of a person, realizations of identity, and changed relationships.
Throughout The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde incorporates irony to convey the means in which lies can lead to altered perspectives of a person. Both Jack and Algernon use separate names when
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In addition to the discovery of his christened name, Jack learns that he is more than just Algernon’s friend; He is Algernon’s older brother, another son of Gwendolen’s aunt (56). Jack’s lies about having a brother are revealed to be the truth, similar to how his false name is uncovered as real. Having Algernon as a brother is no different than before, as the two friends always were very close, quarrelling with each other as siblings do. Wilde states, “Algy, you young scoundrel, you will have to treat me with more respect in the future” (57). The brothers’ false statements about their names lead to the finding of truth as their lies cause confrontation from others.
All in all, Oscar Wilde incorporates irony in The Importance of Being Earnest to show how falsehoods can cause changed views, discovered names, and modified connections. If one stays true to the facts of a matter, no confusion, discrepancies, or extreme consequences. Though lying keeps one out of punishment for longer, the repercussions outweigh the outcome of honesty. If one wants to minimize repercussion and ultimate regret, the best path is to be earnest. Honesty is always the best option, even if it is the hardest path to commit
Symbolism is very important in Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest." It is the symbolism that mocks the upper-class of the Victorian Era. Without comprehending and embracing the symbolism of the story, the story cannot make sense. But with context and accurate understanding of the symbols used, the story's message is a powerful one. Some symbols used in the story are food, Lady Bracknell, and the act of Bunburying.
Wilde “awoke laughter” in The Importance of Being Earnest. Wilde showed rather than falling in love because you actually liked a person, the people of the Victorian Era fell in love solely on minute details such as physical features, a person’s name, or how much wealth they had. The comedy comes into play when Wilde pokes fun at the process of falling in love, because the characters rush falling in love with the right person, the audience compares the character’s reality with the world’s reality.
In Oscar Wilde’s drama The Importance of Being Earnest, he uses light-hearted tones and humor to poke fun at British high society while handling the serious theme of truth and the true identity of who is really “Earnest.” Truth as theme is most significantly portrayed through the women characters, Gwendolen and Cecily but to present serious themes comically, Wilde portrays women to be the weaker sex of society, despite the seriousness of the subject—the identity of the men they want to marry.
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.
“I’ve now realized for the first time in my life, the vital importance of being Earnest. (713.521-523) Jack’s final line demonstrates his understanding of the secret meaning behind “The Importance of Being Earnest”, by Oscar Wilde. That human beings have the capacity to be both good and evil. This is shown through the character of Jack, other character’s relation to Jack, and even in the theatrical elements of the show.
Irony in The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde The play The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde is full of irony. Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff, the protagonists in the play, get themselves into a complicated situation called Bunburyism (as Algernon refers to it). They pretend to be someone that they are not to escape their daily lives. They lie to the women they admire, and eventually the truth is revealed.
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.
Crawford, Jamie. (2008). Point, Counterpoint, Thrust: Wilde's Pun Burying in The Importance of Being Earnest. Retrieved May 7, 2011, from http://www.crawfordsworld.com/jaimie/professional/oscar.htm
Throughout The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde plays around with the standard expectations along with the absence of compassion of a Victorian society in the 1890’s, he demonstrates this through several genres of comedy such as Melodrama, Comedy of Manners, Farce, dark humour and Irony, as well as portraying the themes, death and illness, in this play in a brilliance of unusual amount of references.
The Importance of Being Earnest is a comedy of manners, whereby Oscar Wilde uses satire to ridicule marriage, love and the mentality of the Victorian aristocratic society. It can also be referred to as a satiric comedy. What is a satire and what is Oscar Wilde trying to emphasize by employing it in his play? A satiric comedy ridicules political policies or attacks deviations from social order by making ridiculous, the violators of its standards of morals or manners. Usually, a satiric piece doesn't serve only as a form of criticism, but to correct flaws in the characters or to somehow make them better in the end.
“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).
The Importance of Being Earnest appears to be a conventional 19th century farce. False identities, prohibited engagements, domineering mothers, lost children are typical of almost every farce. However, this is only on the surface in Wilde's play. His parody works at two levels- on the one hand he ridicules the manners of the high society and on the other he satirises the human condition in general. The characters in The Importance of Being Earnest assume false identities in order to achieve their goals but do not interfere with the others' lives. The double life led by Algernon, Jack, and Cecily (through her diary) is simply another means by which they liberate themselves from the repressive norms of society. They have the freedom to create themselves and use their double identities to give themselves the opportunity to show opposite sides of their characters. They mock every custom of the society and challenge its values. This creates not only the comic effect of the play but also makes the audience think of the serious things of life.
The wit of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest stems from his place in society and his views of it. He mocks the Victorian aristocracy through his statements and satirising of marriage dependent on social class and wealth, the careful implantation of comedic techniques which add to the effect of the message Wilde aims for the society to take into consideration and the ignorance portrayed by the Victorian society. These socially acceptable mockeries allow the audience to laugh at the satirical social statements while learning a didactic lesson about the current society issues. Through Wilde’s satirical wit, he completes the educational tales he was aiming for, emphasising to readers the insaneness that society can be and its rules.
A lie not closely monitored may become out of hand and turn into something undesired. In the satirical play The Importance Of Being Ernest, the playwright Oscar Wilde shows through irony that dishonesty if not carefully maintained, can snowball into an uncontrollable predicament. The Importance Of Being Ernest mocks the Victorian values of being honest, to uphold responsibilities and to live life earnestly. This is
A good laugh, stemming from challenging issues, contributes to creating a less ominous environment. Retrieving that laughter enhances the artistry composed by the playwright, weaving one word after another amongst the lines of the script. This humorous approach sanctions the disarmament of inhibitions plus defensives while crafting a story with a message of importance to the playwright. In The importance of being Earnest author Oscar Wilde uses theories of comedy and comic devices adding to the theatrics of the absurdities of the social class of the era.