Absurdity and Satire in The Importance of Being Earnest
analytical Essay
1685 words
Absurdity and Satire in The Importance of Being Earnest
In Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, much is made of societal expectations, protocols, as well as the inversions of these expectations. A character, Jack Worthing, adopts an alter ego when going into town to avoid keeping up with the serious and morally upright behaviour that is expected of him as guardian to his eighteen-year-old ward, Cecily. Another character, Algernon Moncrieff, makes up an invalid friend Bunbury whose grave health conditions provide him with the excuse to escape to the country as and when he pleases. Both Jack and Algernon are admired by two young ladies who erroneously believe the men's names to be Ernest, and who adore the men for this very reason. 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 back cover), in the words of the author himself.
Act 1 JACK. [Nervously.] Miss Fairfax, ever since I met you I have admired you more than any girl . . . I have ever met since . . . I met you.
GWENDOLEN. Yes, I am quite well aware of the fact. And I often wish that in public, at any rate, you had been more demonstrative. For me you have always had an irresistible fascination. Even before I met you I was far from indifferent to you. [JACK looks at her in amazement.] We live, as I hope you know, Mr Worthing, in an age of ideals. The fact is constantly mentioned in the more expensive monthly magazines, and has reached the provincial pulpits, I am told; and my ideal has always been to love some one of the nam...
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... play is "to ridicule the vicious and the foolish" and "to expose the reigning Follies in such a manner, that men shall laugh themselves out of them before they feel they are touch'd" (qtd Rose 81). Indeed, it is precisely through the use of such absurdity that The Importance of Being Earnest successfully pokes fun at the audience without them getting offended, since the sting of the criticism is cushioned by the detachment that the viewers feel from such ludicrousness in the play.
Works Cited
Abrams, M. H. A Glossary of Literary Terms. 7th ed. Boston: Heinle & Heinle.
Montgomery, Martin et. al. "Irony." Ways of Reading. Advanced Reading Skills for Students of English Literature. London: Routledge, 2000.
Rose, Margaret. Parody: Ancient, Modern, and Post-Modern. Cambridge: CUP, 1993.
Wilde, Oscar. The Importance of Being Earnest. London: Penguin, 1994.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how oscar wilde's the importance of being earnest depicts societal expectations, protocols, and inversions of these expectations. jack worthing adopts an alter ego when going into town to avoid keeping up with serious and morally upright behaviour.
- Narrates how they have admired miss fairfax more than any girl. they wish that in public, you had been more demonstrative.
- Opines that most metaphysical speculations have very little reference to the actual facts of real life.
- Opines that ernest is a divine name with music of its own and produces vibrations.
- Analyzes how an inversion of attitudes is displayed in the exchange between jack and gwendolen, where the latter expresses her love for the former because of his false name, ernest.
- Analyzes how gwendolen's preoccupation with the name of the person she loves is a clear inversion of her usual expectations.
- Analyzes how gwendolen's idea of marrying ernest suggests emptiness and a lack in value of the ideals of society of that era.
- Analyzes how the play uses indirect satire to make a dig at its audience, made up mostly of the middle to upper classes.
- Analyzes how henry fielding's play the historical register for the year 1736 uses absurdity to poke fun at the audience without them getting offended.
Related
- analytical
- The Importance of Being Earnest, uses comedy and farce to display a light hearted approach to the hugely powerful upper class of Victorian society and add a playful edge to their actions. Although it could also be seen as a comedic shell for the true nature of Wilde’s comment upon the society in which it is set, exposing the flaws and inconsistencies that the upper class was built upon. It will be necessary to consider whether Wilde is purposely commenting on the dysfunction of the society in which he lived, or if it does in fact only serve as a comedy.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how wilde's writing is funny because it allows a victorian audience to laugh at their own behaviour.
- Analyzes how wilde creates playfulness in the importance of being earnest by following the classic structure of comedy moving from disorder to harmony at the end.
- Analyzes how wilde mocks the victorian fixation on material worth and how this can affect the pursuit of love.
- Analyzes how wilde's play is a sharp satire as he mocks social obligations, suggesting that people had to escape the unrealistic pressure society placed upon them.
- Analyzes how wilde uses the title, the importance of being earnest, to create irony and satire as the characters despite striving to, act without any morality.
- Concludes that wilde's play is a harsh comment on the victorian society in which it is set, despite the use of classic comedic devices.
- Analyzes how wilde's the importance of being earnest uses comedy and farce to display a light hearted approach to the hugely powerful upper class of victorian society.
1202 wordsRead More - Oscar Wilde's The Importance Of Being Earnestanalytical essayAccording to two female characters in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, Ernest is a name that is typically desirable for a husband and represents high social status and wealth. Earnest, on the contrary, according to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, means to be “serious, sincere”, or, in other words, honest (“Earnest”). Within the irony of the title of Wilde’s play itself, the hypocrisy of the high social class of the Victorian era is revealed. Wilde himself said of the play in one of his letters to Lord Alfred Douglas from Worthing, “The real charm of the play, if it is to have a charm, must be in the dialogue. The plot is slight…but…adequate” (Ericksen, 145).
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how oscar wilde's the importance of being earnest portrays the hypocrisy of the high social class of victorian era.
- Analyzes how the importance of being earnest is a comedy of manners, revealing the shallow mindset of victorian high society through satirical, yet critical tone.
- Analyzes how wilde reveals victorian high society's false sincerity and shallowness through the dialogue between characters.
- Analyzes how lady bracknell's values are not held in the character of the individual, but in silly things like wealth and status.
- Analyzes how gwendolen fairfax and cecily cardew defy victorian ideals for women of modesty, unassertiveness, and naivety.
- Analyzes how wilde exposes the prevailing class prejudices of nineteenth century england through the character, values, and dialogue of the characters.
1137 wordsRead More - Earnestness In The Importance Of Being Earnestanalytical essayThroughout 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.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how oscar wilde wrote plays such as lady windermere's fan, a woman of no importance, an ideal husband, and the impairment of being earnest.
- Analyzes how wilde points out the flaws in victorian values that lead one to believe that the only way to be both happy and respected is to live a double life.
- Analyzes how wilde is claiming that society values the guise of morality more than the real thing.
- Analyzes wilde's cynasis, claiming that victorian society is built on lies and deciet and that truth in each person only sees the light of day when it will benefit them.
- Analyzes how wilde's the importance of being earnest is a comedic work. it is absurd, but entertaining, and provides an examination of hypocritical victorian ideals through its characters.
1453 wordsRead More - The Importance of Being More Than Earnestanalytical essayEvery line, every character, and every stage direction in The Importance of Being Earnest is set on supporting Oscar Wilde’s want for social change. The Importance of Being Earnest was written during the late period of the Victorian era. During this period social classification was taken very seriously. It could affect working and living conditions, education, religion, and marriage. Wilde explores the issues of social class and turns it into a comedic play. He humorously criticizes Victorian manners and attacking the society of the luxurious life. The audience becomes self-aware as the characters reflect on themselves. Plays such as this become successful because of the backgrounds the writers come from and the experiences they have had. In The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde satirizes the Victorian society and the ironic differences between the lower and upper class.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how oscar wilde's the importance of being earnest satirizes the victorian society and the ironic differences between the lower and upper classes.
- Analyzes how oscar wilde's the importance of being earnest satirizes the life of the wealthy.
- Analyzes how wilde satirizes the upper classes by placing the play in an upper class social setting.
- Analyzes how lady bracknell represents the archetypal aristocrat and controlling mother who forces marriage based on wealth or status rather than love.
- Opines that when a young girl becomes engaged to someone, she or her father, should inform them of the fact. engagement should come on her surprise or unpleasant, as the case may be.
- Analyzes how wilde satirizes aristocratic foolish beliefs through exaggeration. lady bracknell is superlative and feels that her daughter has had the highest level of upbringing.
- Analyzes how lady bracknell represents the views of aristocrats in the film, the importance of being earnest.
- Analyzes how lady bracknell believes the upper class to be much more educated than the lower class because of social status alone.
- Analyzes how wilde demonstrates the extremes of lady bracknell by comparing her to miss prism. the irony of these ideals symbolizes the ridiculousness of the time.
- Analyzes wilde's play, the importance of being earnest, as one of the first plays to deal with modern issues, such as the importance of social status.
- Explains that oscar wilde's the importance of being earnest was performed at gainesville state college ed cabell theatre.
- Explains that the national council of teachers of english was established in 1956. the literature network, jalic inc., 2008.
- Explains that wilde, oscar, and woods, robert. the demography of victorian england and wales.
1726 wordsRead More - Importance Of Being Earnest Essayanalytical essayIn The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde uses wit to undermine the societal expectations of women. Set in England during the late 19th century, the play shows the shallow and trivial attitude of the upper-class Victorian society. This status-driven society favors men, creating a dissatisfying life for women. The male characters, particularly Algernon Moncreiff, uses wit to show superiority over women. Yet, Cecily Cardew’s wit and cleverness best Algernon at his own game. Although often interpreted as a sign of farcical psychosis, Cecily’s diary actually reveals her true intelligence and dominance over Algernon.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how oscar wilde uses wit to undermine the societal expectations of women in the importance of being earnest.
- Analyzes how algernon moncreiff, an upper-class male, traipses around with a sarcastic attitude and sharp tongue. socioeconomic status and pure amusement influence him and act as his only motivation in life.
- Analyzes how cecily cardew's view of her diary is important when analyzing the relationship between her and algernon.
- Analyzes how algernon exploits cecily's interest in ernest to flirt with her, but since he sees marriage as "problematic," their relations should not move much further.
- Analyzes how cecily's diary proves her power over algernon. it is simply a young girl’s record of her own thought sand impressions and consequently meant for publication.
- Analyzes how cecily's overdramatic performances are a cover for her cleverness. the diary scene between her and algernon gains whole new meaning.
885 wordsRead More - The Importance of Being Earnest, written by Oscar Wilde, is a novel about two friends who lead double lives. Throughout the novel, the reader sees both sides of John Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff’s personalities. Both characters exhibit a serious upper class personality in one setting but also have a completely different personality that allows them to be more carefree and pleasure-seeking. Ultimately Worthing & Moncrieff’s double lives allow them to express different sides of themselves and in turn discover their true selves.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how jack's best friend, algernon moncrieff, creates a double life in london, and uses the name ernest in an attempt to meet cecily cardew.
- Analyzes how ernest and algernon moncrieff's double lives allow them to express a personality that they aren't usually able to show.
- Explains wilde, oscar, and sylvan barnet's the importance of being earnest: and other plays.
- Analyzes how oscar wilde's the importance of being earnest is a novel about two friends who lead double lives.
576 wordsRead More - The Importance Of Being Earnestanalytical essayEvery text is an argument to the audience and every argument is influenced by a text and the audience surrounding the author. The Importance of Being Earnest is a play written by Oscar Wilde which was first performed in 1895. The plot centers around the proposal of marriage between Jack Worthing and Gwendolen Bracknell and also the proposal from Jack’s friend and Gwendolen 's cousin Algernon Moncrieff extended towards Jack’s ward, Cecily Cardew. In The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde uses the ideas of his time period, his own background, and absurd comedy to argue that the views of marriage and gender held by those in Victorian Era England are wrong and hypocritical.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that every text is an argument to the audience and every argument is influenced by a text. the importance of being earnest was written by oscar wilde and first performed in 1895.
- Analyzes how wilde's portrayal of the victorian era in the importance of being earnest portrays the high standards and expectations that victorian gentlemen were held to.
- Explains that oscar wilde was influenced by the values held by his audience, but unlike other members of victorian society, he refused to accept them.
- Analyzes wilde's use of absurd and ironic comedy in the play to illustrate the absurdity of victorian society.
- Analyzes how an audience and context influence an author creating a triangle of impact. oscar wilde uses the ideas of his time period, comparing them to his own, and criticizing them in his play.
1120 wordsRead More - The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wildeanalytical essayOne of the Oscar Wilde’s most loved, well known and successful play ‘The Importance Of Being Earnest’ was written during the summer of 1894 at Worthing, England. It was first performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James’s theatre, London. Jack Worthing, the play’s main character was found and adopted by a wealthy man, Thomas Cardew in a handbag at a railway line where he was accidentally abandoned as a baby. All the respect that has been given to him as acknowledged upper-class Victorian is only because of his adopted father’s wealth. As the protagonist of the play he is expected to be an earnest man to do justice to the title of the play, but it turned out to be that he is nowhere close to that. Wilde has used Jack’s character more to an instrument to represent a set of ideas or attitudes.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how oscar wilde's "the importance of being earnest" was written during the summer of 1894 at worthing, england, and first performed on 14 february 1895 at the st james’s theatre, london.
- Analyzes how jack's relatives and neighbors believe him to be well-mannered, productive member of a polite. he acts like an older brother to algernon.
- Analyzes how jack creates a fake and imaginary persona to avoid the burdens of his social responsibility. his love for gwendolen fairfax, the daughter of lady bracknell, is pure and sincere.
- Analyzes how algernon (algy) moncrieff, jack's best friend, is younger, flip-pant, irrelevant, and playful in nature. he exemplifies acumen, ridicules the world around him and the society in it.
- Analyzes how algy represents wilde's cleverness and position in the esthetic culture of the 1890s.
- Explains that oscar used two different locations as the setting for this play, which are the luxurious london and the unblemished countryside estate, hertfordshire in the late 19th century of the victorian era.
- Analyzes how wilde has made both the country and the city setting as a waggish and frolicsome.
- Explains that unlike most plays, this play does not have a narrator from whose eyes and voice we learn the story. the characters speak in the first-person.
- Analyzes how algernon moncrieff is visited by his best friend, ernest worthing, who explains the purpose of his visit to algy’s cousin, gwendolen.
- Explains how jack aka ‘ernest’ was forced into admitting his double-role act. this was his explanation for creating a fake younger brother called ‘ ernest’.
- Analyzes how algernon reveals about a fake persona, his friend ‘bunbury’, that he created to escape from the dull gathering and social responsibility.
- Analyzes how lady bracknell enters the room to find about both of them. she asks jack if he could be considered as a life partner for her daughter.
- Analyzes how gwendolen disapproves further contact between them and tells him that they can never get to be together as he don't know about his biological parents or their level/status.
- Analyzes how act 2 takes place at jack's country house in woolton, hertfordshire. cecily is found studying german language as scheduled by her uncle, jack with her governess, miss prism.
- Analyzes how jack has setup a plan to kill his irresponsible younger brother ‘ernest’ because that is how much he's willing to marry gwendolen.
- Analyzes how jack and algy calmed them down and explained the truth. they were engaged to nobody, since there was no ernest. the men told them that they only wanted to meet the lady of their interest.
- Analyzes how lady bracknell arrives at the manor house and sees algernon holding cecily's hand, which she disapproves in the first. jack refuses to give his consent for their marriage.
- Analyzes how lady bracknell recognizes miss prism as a family nursemaid twenty-eight years ago. she recklessly put the baby boy in the hand bag and the manuscript of her novel.
- Analyzes how wilde uses comical tone most of the time in the play, with puns and epigrams used to show satirical situations. he never wastes his opportunity to critic the victorian society.
- Analyzes how the play's style of writing is as funny and witty as oscar wilde. some dialogues can be literally taken out and used in our lives.
- Analyzes wilde's use of the main character to tell the world things that would come out of his own mouth. the advices and comments that jack and algernon give in the play are examples of their thought.
- Analyzes how dramatic irony is one of the important essences of john and algernon's play, which is the double life jack has been living all the while to stupefy his friends.
- Analyzes how jack and algernon have been trying to marry the love of their love beyond all the obstacles they faced. marriages are made in heaven, but this was not the case during the victorian era.
- Analyzes how marriage was more to maintaining and improving the social status. it was measured by the amount of wealth rather than the deep of love.
- Analyzes how jack and algernon's fake personas are their way of escaping from the burdensome responsibility of the society.
- Opines that wilde's play is funny and has its own hidden message. all of us are living a lie to some extent.
1979 wordsRead More - 'The Importance Of Being Earnest' By Oscar Wildeanalytical essayThe plot of “The Importance of Being Earnest” by Oscar Wilde, performed by Shem Productions is a Victorian melodrama where Jack Worthing, the protagonist, lives by a phantom name ‘Ernest’ in London, and by his original name in the country. This further leads to a series of misunderstandings among his friends, family and girlfriend.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes the plot of "the importance of being earnest" by oscar wilde, performed by shem productions, where jack worthing, the protagonist, lives by a phantom name ernest in london, and by his original name in the country.
- Analyzes how the central metaphor was the double life represented by the idea of ‘bunburying’, an imaginary term given by algemon. the play was enacted without narration or chorus music.
- Analyzes how an evolving debate is witnessed about the nature of the marriage throughout the play. the play was a mix of comedy, couples fall in love but cannot be together, and satire.
354 wordsRead More - The Laughter and Plodding of the Film Adaption of Oscar Wilde’s "The Importance of Being Earnest"analytical essayWhenever Jack Worthing (Firth) wants to leave his boring country life behind, he travels to London pretending to be his fictitious ‘brother’ Earnest. In the city he falls in love with the beautiful Gwendolen (O’Connor). There are two things standing in the way of their true love: first there is Gwendolen's Mother (Dench), a matriarchal woman whom all potential suitors must pass. Secondly, Gwendolen believes that she could only ever love a man named Earnest: which is the name by which she knows Jack.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how jack worthing travels to london pretending to be his fictitious ‘brother’ earnest and falls in love with the beautiful gwendolen (o'connor).
- Analyzes how oscar wilde's version of his plays is the dialogue, and this film is no different.
- Explains that wilde doesn't pay much attention to characterization or plot development in his plays, and oliver parker's re-interprets much of the importance of being earnest.
- Opines that the film does not keep hold of the light hearted tone of another recent wilde adaptation, an ideal husband, and comes across as occasionally slow and plodding.
- Analyzes how rupert everett, colin firth, frances o'connor, reese witherspoon, and judi dench steal the show.
- Opines that wilde's the importance of being earnest is the perfect film for anyone who wants something other than the special effects extravaganzas that currently swamp our screens.
505 wordsRead More