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An essay on 'Importance" on Oscar Wilde's Important of being earnest
Objects of Wilde's satire inThe Importance of Being Earnest
An essay on 'Importance" on Oscar Wilde's Important of being earnest
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Newman’s “Knowledge Its Own End” explores the notion that education is essential in order to engross the sciences or liberals as he called them. Newman believes that the use of liberal education “has a very tangible, real, and sufficient end, though the end cannot be divided from that knowledge itself. Knowledge is capable of being its own end” (2). With this in mind, Newman confirmed knowledge as undeniably good, “the compensation of a great deal of thought in the compassing, and a great deal of trouble in the attaining” (2). Similar to Pater’s theory aestheticism that encourages “art for art’s sake,” as displayed in Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest. For example, in reference to Algernon’s witty remark about piano playing
Knowledgeable, educated, and wise have become descriptive characteristics that have become seemingly interchangeable in today’s society. However, what does it mean to be educated, wise or knowledgeable? In the article “The Educated Student: Global Citizen or Global Consumer” by Benjamin Barber, he says “…young people were exposed more and more to tutors other than teachers in their classrooms or even those who were in their churches, their synagogues-and today their mosques as well.” (417). It is suggested that the places where these characteristics are obtained have changed with industrialization and capitalism. “The Student and the University (from the Closing of the American Mind)” by Allen Bloom directly postulates from the vantage point of a college while referring to an entering student “In looking at him we are forced to reflect on what he should learn if he is to be called educated.” (422). The main reason students continue their education falls under the assumption that will be considered educated at the completion of their studies. But, what does it mean to be educated? Deborah Tannen proposes in “The Roots of Debate in Education and the Hope of Dialogue” that students since the middle ages have gone to places of higher education to learn how to argue or, more formally, debate (538). Where does the ability to argue fall into education? With little support for the education system currently in place, Barber, Bloom, and Tannen discuss in their respective articles the existing problems, their origins, and what they entail.
If they are taught correctly, liberal arts classes have the potential to help “students cross social boundaries in their imaginations. Studying a common core of learning will help orient them to common tasks as citizens; it will challenge or bolster… their views and, in any case, help them understand why not everyone in the world (or in their classroom) agrees with them,” explains Gitlin in his article “The Liberal Arts in an Age of Info-Glut.” By exposing students to this in high school, they will be more prepared when this moment occurs in their careers. I, along with many students throughout the country, have been exposed to incorrectly-taught liberal arts classes. Students taking English, for instance, must read specific novels while assessing a theme that is already pointed out to them. Then, they must answer a question that has only two answers. This type of curriculum not only eliminates the development of opinions, but it keeps the students from being exposed to most of the author's beliefs and the author’s point of view, which is the main purpose of liberal arts classes. Without this exposure, students are left incapable of working with others and accepting their opinions in order to develop solutions to
Newman says that the scope of education should broaden and encourage more learning outside of the career track, while Freire says how the material is learned should be broadened and laid out where it is learned for its entirety and not just its basic ideas. They feel that “the learned professions altogether... [are] the most popularly beneficial and… most intimately divine of all human pursuits” (Newman, 57). Simply said, education is something of high importance that should be desired and acquired by all. If one does not embrace education, he or she will not gain knowledge or understand its importance. Fredrick Douglass, a famous slave that worked to gain knowledge, and ultimately helped abolish slavery understands this concept. In his biography, “Learning to Read,” he describes his struggle of learning to read and write. He says, “I wished to learn… [and] after a long, tedious effort for years, I finally succeeded in learning” (Douglas, 50). As a slave, being educated was a difficult task, but Douglass understood its importance and desired to pursue it. At first, he despised, the education, “while they [(the arguments in the Columbian Orator)] relieved me of one difficulty, they brought on another even more painful than the one of which I was relieved,” but it eventually lead to his understanding of “abolition” and helped him free “[him]self and fellow-slaves” (48,49). The education Douglass learns from the Columbian Orator and local newspapers, among other places, is a prime example of liberal knowledge. He learned it “for the sake of knowing it.” Douglass’s example solidifies Newman’s idea that liberal education is valuable because it is proven to have “value and dignity” (Newman, 58). His example also exemplifies Freire’s point that “Liberation is a praxis: the action and reflection of men and women upon their world in order to transform it” (65). Freire believes that one
Sanford J. Ungar, a journalist and president of Goucher College, is one of those faculty members actively trying to disprove the accusations against liberal arts colleges and educations. In his February 2010 article from the academic journal The Chronicle of Higher Education, Ungar gives readers many examples of common misunderstandings about liberal arts and then informs them why those examples are incorrect. Appropriately titled, Ungar’s “7 Major Misperceptions About the Liberal Arts” is an easy go to guide when a person wants to learn more about liberal arts. These readers, mainly students and parents looking towards a higher degree of education, can read Ungar’s essay and find new knowledge about the liberal arts discipline.
Now, let us define liberal arts or liberal education. According to Michael Lind, liberal arts should be understood in its original sense as “elite skills” (54). We all know that liberal arts include cour...
Similarly, in This is Water, David Foster Wallace argues a real education as offering people the choice of what to think about in life. He states that “a liberal arts education is not so much about filling you up with knowledge as it is about ‘teaching you how to think’, but rather about the choice of what to think about” (1). After getting educated, students obtain the basic knowledge among many subjects, but with all the information and facts being offered, people may lose conscious of what to think about. Schooling may cause students over-think things which are unnecessary because it may take over what you actually notice and care. Wallace insists “learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and
In the 1997 article, “On The Uses of a Liberal Education: As a Weapon In the Hands of the Restless Poor,” published by Harper’s Magazine, the social critic Earl Shorris described how political power could be achieved by a rather non-vocational educational discipline, the humanities. He emphasizes on how the knowledge of a liberal Education can be used as a form of weapon within the lives for the poor.
The commencement speech given by David Foster Wallace in the autumn of 2005, is a very deep speech that examines the whole idea of a Liberal Arts education at an extremely deep and intellectual level. In the 22 minute long speech Wallace talks about how higher education not only teaches you to think but “how to exercise some control over how and what you think.” (Wallace). Wallace later in his speech stresses the importance of this level of thinking by saying “if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed” (Wallace) What he means by saying this is that if you cannot think at a higher level and make sense of real world problems your life will become meaningless and you will become dead inside your head.
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. Many aspects of the time period are made a mockery through puns and witty remarks from the main protagonists, most if not all are portrayed in a sense that makes them undoubtedly a laughing stock. Wildes methods are not discrete; nor are they obvious, many of the comical comments made are by none other than the protagonists themselves. This furthermore enforces the corrupted morals of the time periods prestigious upper class by showing their sheer inability to acknowledge hypocrisy. For example, in act one; Algernon states “ Lane's views on marriage seem somewhat lax. Really, if the lower orders don't set us a good example, what on earth is the use of them? They seem, as a class, to have absolutely no sense of moral responsibility.” This is especially amusing as Algernon believes that the lower class have a duty to set an example when in reality the matter of fact was quite the contrary. Algernon states that he believes the lower class are lacking in morals, he being arguably one of the most morally distorted characters Wilde created makes the double standards more prominent.
Education has become stagnant. Intelligent individuals are still being molded, but the methods of education are creating individuals who lack free will. Through deep analytical understandings of education, both Walker Percy’s essay, “The Loss of the Creature,” and Paulo Freire’s essay, “The Banking Concept of Education,” have been able to unravel the issues and consequences of modern-day education. Despite creating clever people, Percy and Freire believe that the current form of education is inefficient because it strips away all sovereignty from the students and replaces it with placid respect for authorities, creating ever more complacent human beings in the long run.
In modern times, the importance of liberal arts is questioned. The article “Myth: A Liberal Arts Education is Becoming Irrelevant” by Carol T. Christ makes the argument that a liberal arts education provides a broader range of knowledge which is useful because it produces a critically thinking student. Obtaining a career is the main focus of college education. Knowing this, Christ emphasizes how a liberal arts education is useful when looking for employment. She refutes the conception that a liberal arts education is irrelevant in today’s society by identifying the useful qualities it provides the employers look for such as, “Flexibility, creativity, critical thinking, strong communication skills (particulary writing)” (Christ,
In ancient civilization, a liberal arts education was considered essential for free people to take place in civic life; without them people would not be willing to disregard one's traditional values, and analyze a broad variety of arts, humanities, and sciences to create new opinions and ideas. In the 21st century many Americans are doubtful that liberal arts degrees are actually worth the cost of college. In his essay “The New Liberal Arts”, Sanford J. Ungar discusses seven “misconceptions” of liberal arts degrees in modern-day America.
The aesthetic movement was an artistic and literary movement that was centered on the saying “art for art’s sake” and arguing that art was not to be utilitarian or practical. The movement wanted art to exist for the sake of its beauty alone, and that it did not need to serve any political or didactic purpose. The pieces of art created by the artists in the movement did not tell stories or sermons; their art was visual, delightful, hinting at sensual desires; their poetry was pure. The proponents of the movement say that the experience of art is the most intense experience available in life and that nothing should be allowed to restrict it. The intensity of the aesthetic experience is the dominant goal in human life. If there are morally unwanted things of art, they do not really matter in contrast to this all-important experience which art can give.
AA theory by Clive Bell suggests the pinpoints the exact characteristic which makes a work true art. According to Bell, an artwork must produce “aesthetic emotion” (365). This aesthetic emotion is drawn from the form and formality of an artwork rather than whether or not it is aesthetically pleasing or how well it imitates what it is trying to depict. The relation of objects to each other, the colors used, and the qualities of the lines are seemingly more important than what emotion or idea the artwork is trying to provoke. Regardless of whether or not the artwork is a true imitation of certain emotions, ideals, or images, it cannot be true art unless it conjures this aesthetic emotion related to formality (367).
How do we get educated? To most, education is an arduous slog through school; starting with simple stories about naughty rabbits swapping bologna sandwiches. As we grow, we move on to more and more intellectual pursuits- onward to ancient kings being depressed. By the time we graduate we are ready for a life as a ‘productive member of society’. One may find themselves wondering where that shift is from ignorant to educated. Most people will tell you it comes when you graduate high school, some will argue that it will not happen until you become a parent, others will say it never happens. David Foster Wallace and Mike Rose believe that being educated is not a matter of how well you have been educated, but how you grow as a person. Mike Rose’s life experiences illustrate this perfectly.