Summary of The Importance of Being Earnest

dramatists in England, and especially to Congreve and Wycherley; but it is a type of comedy which can flourish in any civilized urban society, and we see it again in Sheridan (1751-1816). This kind of comedy makes fun not so much of individual human beings and their humors as of social groups and their fashionable manners. It is general satirical, though in a good-natured way. The comedy of manners is a highly artificial form of drama and is generally full of verbal wit. So, like…

The Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde, ca. 1894 “Life is far too important a thing ever to talk seriously about.” - Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan Oscar Wilde liked to write plays that pointed at the aristocracy and nouveau riche in a critical way, but of course, written in a funny way so that his work became satirical. Oscar Wilde was therefore a brilliant writer of comedies of manners, the entertainment form that satirizes the manners of a social class, in Wilde’s case, the high…

In Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde uses satire to ridicule the strict expectations of marriage and the Victorian aristocracy. He breaks from what is socially acceptable by creating extravagant situations and including eccentric characters. With its outlandish scenarios, “Wilde now uses, as plot, a purely farcical intrigue” (135 Roditi). The play involves changing of identity, misunderstanding lovers, and unexpected surprises. Each act leads to the events of the next act…

Have you ever noticed something that seemed ridiculous or petty but everyone never said anything bad about it? Well, that is exactly how Oscar Wilde felt about the Victorian upper class. In the play “The Importance of Being Earnest”, Oscar Wilde uses the characters to portray how he viewed the Victorian upper class. Wilde satirizes the Victorian upper class by using understatements about serious matters, bringing attention to the comedic behaviors of the characters, and portraying the humourous…

“I hope you have not been leading a double life, pretending to be wicked and being good all the time. That would-be hypocrisy.” (Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest) Jamie Lessells Life in the 21st century has moved on from past events and stereotypes, and celebrities have never been more in the spotlight. Despite all this change, some ideas, attitudes and values constructed in The Importance of Being Earnest are still relevant in society today. Themes such as marriage and living double…

In Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, the characters often engage in quick, witty remarks towards one another. Yet beneath their comic front, these characters’ words subtly challenge the reality we think we live in, demanding the we see beyond what we have come to accept. When Lady Bracknell asks Algernon how he has been behaving and Algernon replies he has been feeling well, Lady Bracknell remarks, “that’s not quite the same thing. In fact the two things rarely go together” creating…

In Oscar Wild’s written work, “The Importance of Being Ernest”, he employs humor through the use of flirty diction and satiric actions of certain characters. He does so in order to achieve his purpose of showing the lifestyle of the high class people during the Victorian era. Act 2, opening scene, Algernon and Cecily are saying their goodbyes. Algernon tries to have a few more moments with Cecily before he has to leave, he tries to show his true feelings, mentioning her, “..absolute perfection..…

Zahwa Ezzelden Prof. Forman 12/01/2017 Gender Queer Theories In the short drama “The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde”, the story takes place in the Victorian Era. In the Victorian Era, it was very common for the Male to be in charge, and the one with the higher classes, versus the female, where the female is usually the one that would stay home, cook and clean and be the modest one. Oscar Wilde took a spin on the “proper” gender roles that are appropriate for that Era and he made…

In the passage from Act II “The Importance of Being Ernest” by Oscar Wilde, Wilde uses many sources of humor to show the comical way in which Ernest and Cecily meet for the very first time. Starting with a confusing engagement and ending with a phony name, this encounter took a different turn than expected as it developed. The first source of humor used in “The Importance of Being Ernest” is when Cecily has announced to Ernest, also known as Algernon, that they are engaged. Ernest has never met…

Annotated Bibliography: The Importance of Being Earnest Reinert, Otto. "Satiric Strategy in the Importance of Being Earnest." College English 18.1 (1956): 14-18. National Council of Teachers of English. JSTOR, Oct. 1956. Web. 5 July 2015. The main idea in this analysis of Wilde’s satire is to prove that Wilde does not just use satire for the sake of having his play being called a “farce,” rather he uses satirical strategy to enhance the experience of the play and how it differs from “normal”…