In Act 2 of The Importance of Being Earnest‚ Oscar Wilde uses irony to comment on the‚ absurd nature of the Victorian morals and values‚ context as well as highlight the satire‚ that he implemented‚ and humour. In the scene‚ Cecily admonishes Algy‚ who is pretending to be Ernest by saying‚ "I hope you have not been leading a double life‚ pretending to be wicked and being really good all the time. That would be hypocrisy." This is a use of dramatic irony as usually the act of being a hypocrite is
Premium
Sonia Kaur Professor McLaughlin ENG 102 TH 7 C Topic: Research Paper on The Importance of Being Earnest Essay 4 How does Oscar Wilde satirize Victorian society in his play The Importance of Being Earnest? What is the genre of the play? Sure‚ it is a comedy‚ but where does Wilde put the emphasis on? Social satire. Social satire is a weapon using comedy in order to take a subject‚ in this case the Victorian Era‚ and ridicule it. In this sense‚ comedy is not only to entertain but also educate. Thus
Premium Victorian era The Importance of Being Earnest Comedy
Anna Hidrogo The Importance of Being Earnest: Social Satire The definition of a satire is a humor that ridicules the faults and bad habits of a society. The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde is definitely a social satire. Wilde uses figures of speech such as paradoxes and humorous irony to breakdown the faults of the Victorian Era during the time period of the reform. The characters in this play each held a certain quality that added to the satire Wilde wanted describe. He acknowledges
Premium Victorian era Social class The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest Social class and public reputation are two of the most common things that influence a person in their decision making. In “The Importance of Being Earnest”‚ Oscar Wilde mocks a society for their reasons of choosing who to marry. Oscar Wilde expresses an ironic and satiric perspective on a society that builds a marriage upon a foundation of money‚ power‚ and deceit. The play “The Importance of Being Earnest‚” is one of the most perfect examples of satire in our
Premium Sociology Working class The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest The Importance of Being Earnest a play written by Oscar Wilde is set in England in the late Victorian era. Wilde uses obvious situational and dramatic irony within the play to satirize his time period. According to Roger Sale in “Being Ernest” the title has a double meaning to it and is certainly another example of satire used by Wilde. With a comedic approach‚ Wilde ridicules the absurdities of the character’s courtship rituals‚ their false faces‚ and their secrets
Premium Victorian era The Importance of Being Earnest Irony
The Importance of Being Earnest is a serious comedy about trivial matters The Importance of being Earnest is a play that satirizes the Victorian upper classes. In the play‚ Oscar Wide makes fun of the upper class in many ways. Most commonly‚ Wilde does this by using comic irony‚ humor‚ and witty statements. However‚ if we look deeper into the text‚ a lot of the trivial matters characters discuss have a serious side to them. Wilde uses these matters to satirize the Victorian upper even more. The
Free Social class Upper class Comedy
Literature critical reading THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST‚ A TRIVIAL COMEDY FOR SERIOUS PEOPLE by the Irish writer and poet Oscar Wilde‚ is a comedy about the customs and seriousness of society around Victorian values of that time. THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST is an excellent example of what a satire is‚ by the use of satirical devices such as irony‚ sarcasm and farce to show the society in a ridiculous way. In the play‚ Wilde often satirizes the Victorian society and all the rules that weren’t
Premium Victorian era Morality
The Importance of Being Earnest Questions Themes (Feel free to see the questions related to the themes at http://www.shmoop.com/importance-of-being-earnest/) Lies and Deceit Marriage Respect and Reputation Society and Class Gender Versions of Reality: Romance Love Foolishness and Folly Epigrams Define an epigram. What do the following epigrams say? Keep track of epigrams in the play. “Education is an admirable thing‚ but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing
Premium The Importance of Being Earnest Comedy
Discuss the use of duplicity and subterfuge for comic affect in The importance of being earnest. The importance of being Ernest written in 1899 by Oscar wild is a comedy of manners which was first shown to the Victorian society. Being a comedy of manners‚ the play includes many features of a Victorian melodrama including confusion‚ mistaken identity and a final happy ending. However subterfuge and duplicity is inherent in all characters and is the main source of comic value within the plot. We see
Premium Victorian era Social class
Trivial Comedy for Serious People‚" The Importance of Being Earnest jokingly criticized Victorian manners and morals and attacking the society of the rich and luxurious. Oscar Wilde incorporated his own beliefs and ideology into the play by alluding to Victorian society "lets duplicity led to happiness." It is this "happiness" Wilde’s play focuses on by concentrating the theme of the play on marriage. Alluding to marriage‚ The Importance of Being Earnest begins with the witty and selfish Algernon
Premium The Importance of Being Earnest Marriage Proposal