Satire In The Importance Of Being Earnest

While it is widely understood now that Victorian society was one of excess and frivolity, it most certainly seemed legitimate to members of high society at the time. However, this was not the case with Oscar Wilde, who in his final play made mockery of his countrymen by satirizing the way in which they lived. This play, entitled The Importance of Being Earnest, follows the courtship of two young girls and exaggerates the absurd formalities of such a process in high society. The characters are shallow and delusional as a result of their upbringing, and collectively their words bring harsh criticism to the British upper class. These characters can be split into two clear categories. The majority, which is comprised of characters raised as

In the final lines Jack proclaims that he understands the “vital importance of being earnest” and also that it is not a “triviality” (Wilde 59). In other words, he announces to the audience his complete transformation into a true aristocrat, and his allocation of the appropriate attitude to go with it. Algernon does the same thing, committing to changing his name so that he will be a fashionable husband for Cecily. Both characters have become enraptured with the luxury of the aristocracy, and in pursuing it became corrupted with its values. In this case Oscar Wilde uses very clear character development to emphasize the influence of the aristocracy; it surely would not be so detrimental to society if it were not also at its apex. For the problem of the aristocracy is two-fold. Within a small frame the aristocracy is numb and delusional, and this is the source of the play’s humor. But in The Importance of Being Earnest that same society is presented in such a way that it can be extrapolated into a larger frame, where its naivety victimizes many others. It is easy to imagine an entire city dominated by such people, and Wilde’s satire then turns from comical to