Looking out in the world you will see many people that fit stereotypes that have been around since the beginning of time: However, these people that seem to fit in simple boxes are actually very complex. Similar to real people, characters in plays seem to fit these stereotypes, but upon further investigation these characters can fit a multitude of different stereotypes and personality traits. In Victorian Comedy of Manners playwrights used stock character types to give characters stereotypes that the audience can relate to. Unlike Commedia Dell'arte, these characters are not as easily recognizable because characters often have traits of many different character types. Oscar Wilde gives us many examples of characters fitting multiple stock character …show more content…
The rake, in many Comedy of Manners productions, causes the conflict that furthers the plot of the play. In The Importance of Being Earnest, Algernon causes the conflict when he shows up at Jack’s house pretending to be Ernest to woo young Cecily. This displays his mischievous ways and love of women. Furthermore, Algernon's imaginary friend who he uses to get out of unpleasant affairs, Mr. Bunbury, also displays how he is prone to acting mischievous. On top of this, Algernon’s wealth allows him to cause trouble in Victorian high society while still maintaining his high status. He also shows the ability to spend money on whatever he wants, whether it is the finest clothes or cucumber …show more content…
Although Algernon showed little signs of wanting to settle down with a wife at the beginning of the play: his love for Cecily swept him off his feat. This quick and sudden falling in love is very characteristic for lovers in Comedy of Manners plays. Although he may have been draw to Cecily with the rake quality of being a womanizer, he soon found true romantic love thus becoming a young male lover. Moreover, The director of The Importance of Being Earnest chose to show Algernon as a knight in shining armor coming to rescue Cecily. This choice on the director's part was definitely meant to highlight Algernon’s young male lover
“Don’t judge a book by its cover” is an overused cliché that has been analyze by many people. The movie Finding Forrester, by James W. Ellison, shows this theme in a more analytical manner. The movie focuses on an unusual relationship between a young man, Jamal Wallace, and a famous writer, William Forrester. Jamal is expected to fail in school and only excel on his basketball career, except he excels in both and never stops trying to achieve his dreams. He is faced with several obstacles, including racial comment and stereotypes assumptions by his teachers, peers, and mentor.
Algernon takes eating very seriously throughout ‘The importance of being earnest’. I believe this is done by the writer to not only show his character to be of comic type, but also to show his insecurities within the world he lives and his inability to function in a high society. In page 8 Algernon takes sandwiches that are intended for his guest, Lady Bracknell. In victorian times it would be greatly frowned upon to consume food that is laid out for your guests and Algernon is aware of his ungentlemanly actions. When his Aunt asks where the cucumber sandwiches are, Algernon pretends to be shocked by their absence ‘Good heavens! Lane! Why are their no cucumber sandwiches?’ This ability to lie with such impeccable composure suggests he is familiar with the act of covering up his food indulgences. Algernon is not only greedy but also selfish and does not like the idea of Jack eating bread and butter, an obvious act of hypocrisy however he is content with his beliefs. I believe this is done by Oscar Wilde to further enforce how out of touch Algernon is from his surroundings. We even see...
Worthing, may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both seems like carelessness.(Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest) This disagreement leads to further complications in the next two acts. Dramatic irony is portrayed in the second act. Dramatic irony is when the audience knows more than the character does. For example, we, the readers, know that Algernon is using the name Earnest to impress his cousin Cecily.
(4) Conventional is easy. Whenever an idea is generally perceived by society as standard or traditional it becomes very easy to display to the public without the raise of an eyebrow. This is the basis on which stereotypes appear in films. You’d think in the 21st century where what once were radical notions like same sex marriage and recreational drug use are being legalized that something uncalled for like the constant portrayal of character stereotyping would come to an end. Alas, stereotypical characters continue to emerge in film and unfortunately have become a staple of Hollywood because they’re simple and straightforward, requiring little effort on the part of the writers or thinking from the audience.
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.
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
Two adolescent women who incorrectly consider the men’s names to be Ernest, and who are passionate about the men for this very reason think highly of both Jack and Algernon. In relating the story of mix-ups and mistaken identities, the ideals and manners of the Victorian society are satirized in a comedy where the characters "treat all the trivial things of life seriously and all the serious things of life with sincere and studied triviality"(Wilde, Oscar). Oscar Wilde’s amusing scenes often take their source in societal satire and unconventional (Baselga 15). All the way through his play, The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde satirizes education, women, and morality.
In conclusion, Charles Dickens, a social critic of humble origins himself, has conveyed his conception of a true gentleman, which is such a good conception that it is commonly used in our society today. He shows that you can only be a true gentleman at heart and if you are not it will be revealed. Matthew Pocket’s metaphor that ‘No varnish can hide the grain of the wood; and that the more varnish you put on, the more the grain will express itself’ very successfully delivers and summarises Dickens’ message, that no matter how much you try to, your true identity will always be revealed. It also effectively reinforces Dickens’ treatment of the Victorian preconception of a gentleman as misconstrued and mistakenly engrossed with social status, wealth, birth, and apparel.
One particular criterion character effectively supports the central idea in “Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving. The character's type develops with the personality development throughout the story. Three types of characters: round, flat, and stock, appear in most stories. The round character displays a fully developed personality and full emotions. Flat characters, also known as supporting characters, do not develop fully or express complex emotions. A stock character, also known as a stereotype, fits an established characterization from real life or literature. With these three types of characters leading the reader through the story, the reader learns the events taking place as well as the changes in the character’s lives. The author keeps the reader informed of the changes affecting the characters throughout the narrative through style. When a character undergoes a fundamental change in nature or personality during the story, the character has dynamic style. However, a character without change defines a static character. Although all characters have a style and type sometimes understanding the differences appears complicated. A chart often helps establish a better understanding of character type and style.
Characters in comedy and tragedy are generally quite different. Comic characters are (or used to be) lower class individuals (Aristotle, Goldsmith). Indeed this is the case with t...
Marriage is of paramount importance in The Importance of Being Earnest. In the play, marriage is reflected as the conventional Victorian society respectability, which is character, income, and status. These three criteria were considered to be the nature and purpose of marriage of that time. In a cynical way, marriage was considered as a means to an end.
While watching movies, have you ever noticed that the villains in almost every single Hollywood film are of Middle Eastern or European descent? In a reoccurring theme of Hollywood, the villains in these films are almost always foreigners or people of color. This is a stereotype. On the other side of the spectrum, we often see that the heroes of these films are most often than not white males. This is another stereotype. Within the last few years, we’ve seen actors such as Will Smith, Morgan Freeman, and Zoe Saldana take the lead roles, so it can’t be said that there are no non-white heroes, but there certainly isn’t many. Hollywood action movies, moreover than other genres, are typically loaded with an abundance of stereotypes. The way these movies are composed and structured can tell us a great deal about the views held within the American psyche and who holds the social power. The harsh reality is that the media ultimately sets the tone for societal standards, moralities, and images of our culture. Many consumers of media have never encountered some of the minorities or people of color shown on screen, so they subsequently depend on the media and wholeheartedly believe that the degrading stereotypes represented on the big screen are based on fact and not fiction. Mary Beltran said it best when she stated in her “Fast and Bilingual: Fast & Furious and the Latinization of Racelessness” article, “ultimately, Fast & Furious mobilizes notions of race in contradictory ways. It reinforces Hollywood traditions of white centrism, reinforcing notions of white male master while also dramatizing the figurative borders crossed daily by culturally competent global youth – both Latino and non-Latino” (77). This paper will specifically look...
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.
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.
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.