Hearn, Jeff. “Theorizing Men and Men's Theorizing: Varieties of Discursive Practices in Men's Theorizing of Men” Theory and Society 27.6 (1998) 781-816. JSTOR. Web. 19 March. 2017. Hearn’s article overall suggested ideas of men and how they “theorize” their dominance. For example Hearn states “One of the dominant ways men theorize has been through absence…as dominant purveyors of rules, experiences, objectives, and knowledge. Such absence may obscure implicit centerings of men.”(pg.786) This source will be useful in helping to support my sub point one, how Algernon views himself being dominant over women. Hearn points out how “men” react to absence and this is exactly how Algernon feels when Cecily “challenges” him. Cornwall, …show more content…
“REVIEW: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST Little Theatre revisits Oscar Wilde's Earnest” Tauranga, New Zealand A.8 (2016) 1. ProQuest. Web. 20 March. 2017. In this analysis of the text Taylor discusses the love drama between the characters. This source can help me in explaining my ideas I have about the text relating to love and how Algernon interrupts love itself. Taylor states “Enter the love interests - Algernon's cousin Gwendolen, who wants to marry John because she thinks his name is Earnest, and John's Ward Cecily, who want's to marry Algernon because she thinks his name is Earnest.” This plays with my theory of how Algernon is only in it for the social status and to have this ultimate idea of “winning.” However in this quote we see how Cecily is it in fort he title of being “earnest”, this arises the question of who is manipulating …show more content…
“Redgrave Leads an 'Earnest' That Delights the Eye and Ear” New York Times NJ. 9 (2009) 1. ProQuest. Web. 20 March. 2017. In Siegel’s analysis of the “Importance Of Being Earnest” she describes how the characters are displayed. I agree with the way she views Algernon, Siegel states “Algernon Moncrieff, John's roguish city friend, has created his own alter ego.” This statement helps in my explanation in the way that Algernon wants society to view him verse his true personality. This quote can help me in my sub point in describing how Algernon has created this alter ego in order to keep his “manhood” . This false sense of identity is meant to help him fit into the social norm, without having to change who he really
Oscar Wilde, the writer of The Importance of Being Earnest, celebrated the Victorian Era society while criticizing it in his play. Through his play, he utilized the humorous literary techniques of pun, irony, and satire to comment on the impact of Victorian Era society left on the characters themselves. These comedic literary devices also help to show how the members of this society in the Victorian Era live by a set of unspoken rules that determine politeness, as well as proper etiquette to live by. Wilde uses a pun in the title of the work, as well as in the character personalities. Different types of irony appear in many scenes in the play, to flout the rules of society, as well as mock the intelligence of the upper-class characters, compared to the lower-class characters. Wilde satirizes the rules of the upper-class society of the Victorian Era through the dialogue of the characters. The time period in which these characters live, impacts their daily lives, and their personalities.
AThe Importance of Being Earnest, a play written by Oscar Wilde, is set in England in the late Victorian era. Wilde uses obvious situational and dramatic irony within the play to satirize his time period. According to Roger Sale in Being Ernest, the title has a double meaning to it and is certainly another example of satire used by Wilde. With a comedic approach, Wilde ridicules the absurdities of the character’s courtship rituals, their false faces, and their secrets. Sale, 478.
Jack, thinking he might have been that very baby, retrieves the bag he was found in as an infant in which Ms. Prism identifies by some distinguishing marks to have been her own. Jack realized the woman that had been teaching his niece was his mother. But then Lady Bracknell explained that she was not, but Lady Bracknell’s poor sister Mrs. Moncrieff was. The irony continues to explain how Jack and Algernon were biological brothers. They were pretending to be earlier to play out their game of Bunburyism.
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.
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.
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.
In conclusion, The Importance of Being Earnest strongly focuses on those of the upper class society and the vanity of the aristocrats who place emphasis on trivial matters concerning marriage. Both Algernon and Jack assume the identity of "Ernest" yet ironically, they both are beginning their marital lives based on deception and lies. Lady Bracknell represents the archetypal aristocrat who forces the concept of a marriage based on wealth or status rather than love. Through farce and exaggeration, Wilde satirically reveals the foolish and trivial matters that the upper class society looks upon as being important. As said earlier, a satirical piece usually has a didactic side to it.
“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.
Throughout the late nineteenth century, Oscar Wilde wrote plays such as Lady Windermere’s Fan, A Woman of No Importance, An Ideal Husband, and The Importance of Being Earnest- his most famous play. Earnest is a comedic work that focuses on a pair of wealthy men. They have been leading double lives so that they can go off for periods of time and enjoy living without responsibility while still maintaining their aristocratic reputation. Because of Wilde’s invlovement in the aesthetic movement, it is not uncommon (or unfair) to believe that his work, Earnest included, is nothing more than fluff. That being said, it is also fair to argue that this particular play does have meaning in it. Wilde wrote The Importance of Being Earnest as a commentary on the hypocrisy of the ideal Victorian character. Earnestness is sincerity- which most Victorians believed themselves to be- and so Wilde uses the word ironically. In his eyes, people who considered themselves sincere were actually smug, self-righteous, and pompous. He expresses these opinions clearly through the play’s over-the-top and frustrating characters.
The Importance Of Being Earnest, a play by Oscar Wilde, is a comedy that satirizes numerous aspects of Victorian society. Wilde uses farcical elements, such as cigarette case and tea ceremonies to contribute to the plot as they earnestly criticize the social aspect of the society. In the first act, Wilde introduces the cigarette case to draw the audience's attention to the notion of double identities. The tea ceremonies highlight the significant conflicts and interactions among the characters, as well as the characters’ high social standings. The emphasis on both items develops the drama’s storyline through parodying the actions of the upper class in the Victorian era.
In the play, Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde ridicules and identifies the negative aspects of Victorian society through comedic dialogue. He uses characters with ridiculous personalities to demonstrate his idea of Victorian life. By making absurd scenes with foolish characters, it is his way of mocking the Victorian lifestyle passive aggressively.
Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ is a beautifully constructed depiction of nineteenth century Victorian life. The quirky and often irreverent situations presented were often witty and amusing but in many instances revealed a biting critique of traditional expectations and behaviour. Wilde arguably would have used the play to showcase his literary prowess and it is to what extent that Wilde used the play as a platform or used the play to expose hypocritical values that would be questioned by both contemporary and modern audiences.
It is easy to watch a play and enjoy a story, but it is much more to be able to look past the surface to understand the inspirations behind a work and be able to take a look at history from a more involved perspective. The Importance of Being Earnest was written by Irish author Oscar Wilde at the end of the 19th century. In this play Wilde very strongly uses influences from his world to create the characters, dialogue, and overall plot of the story. Oscar Wilde “...believed that style--in life as well as art--was of utmost importance” (“Oscar Wilde”). This belief was one he epitomized well, and was condemned for because of choices concerning both his writing and personal life.
The Importance of Being Earnest is a play concerned with double identities and a question of what is true. Jack and Algernon adopt another identity in order for them to lead a double life and win the love of an attractive woman. The dualistic theme is present throughout the play including its language; the name ‘Ernest’ being a pun and the huge amount of double entendres hidden in the woven lines of the play. The most evident example of duality of identity in The Picture of Dorian Gray is Dorian himself.