Preview

Being Earnest

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
465 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Being Earnest
"The Importance of Being Earnest" is the drama written by Oscar Wilde. Wilde played it in the Victorian era. During this period, people had the very restricted lives. In addition, the petit bourgeoisie was appeared. They got a lot of money in this society, by the development of the science and the industry. The middle class didn't have any leadership, but tried to pretend like the nobility and becoming as the snob. Furthermore, the dignity was the most important thing to them. It was the circumstance of the Wilde critics the people's hypocrisy about the Victorian era's convention and the issue of this society. Maybe, the bourgeoisie couldn't acclimatize about the changing of their lifestyles and feel the pressures from it. Therefore, Bunburying had the significance for the person who wants to avoid …show more content…
It seems like the people who live in the Victorian era were tired of being earnest, because of that they wanted to escape from what they have been doing. For instance, the main character from The Importance of Being Earnest "Jack" the Cecily's guardian, but he gets a tired from his accountability; therefore, he created a fictional character "Earnest" as his younger brother to have a break. Additionally, the characters "Cecily" and "Gwedolen" both fell in love with the man who has a name "Earnest" because of his name and accepted the proposal, yet when ladies found out, there are two Earnests and one was "Jack" the other one was "Algernon," it disappointed the ladies. In conclusion, the name Earnest was an important matter to all four of the main characters Jack, Algernon, Cecily, and Gwedolen. It was Jack and Algernon's Bunburying, and the reason of the ladies felt the affection for the gentlemen. It is wrong to create the feigned character for the one's relaxation, but people couldn't live in the fullness of the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The Victorian Era was a time that consisted of mostly finger foods and zealous matches of badminton, however, in the midst of it all lied a strict code of manners that anyone who was anyone was expected to follow. Victorian Era mannerisms were beyond extraordinary and Oscar Wilde, the author of The Importance of Being Earnest, realised this and despised them. Throughout the story, Oscar likes to “poke fun” at the outrageous customs of the Victorian Era. To accomplish this feat, Oscar uses satire to ridicule the appalling customs and opinions of the Victorian Era such as love, wealth, and manners.…

    • 877 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Oscar Wilde is known as a comedic playwright to much of the world, although his plays address issues with contemporary society in a nonchalant way by turning these issues into a joke. In The Importance Of Being Earnest Wilde uses irony and mockery to ridicule the narcissistic attitude of the victorian aristocracy as well as to expose their hypocrisy, ridiculous social norms, and their sheer stupidity that results in a myriad of silly and funny situations.…

    • 201 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The comedy of the Importance of Being Earnest uses spoken language to convey comical actions rather than physical actions. The Importance of Being Ernest is a drama because of its origins as a play, but also a contextual comedy as the characters follow the general format of falling in love with each other and ending with the idea of marriage. However, the play is also very satirical, making light of the aristocratic classes, exaggerating the upper-class morals and the frivolity of the characters.…

    • 1216 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    While reading Oscar Wilde’s story “The Importance of Being Earnest” I can see that the play is about a debate of pleasant and unpleasant marriage. Wilde explores sincerity in his play by really gearing the play around the word “earnest”. In the play both women wanted to marry a person named “earnest” because they thought that it actually meant to be sincere, responsible, and earnest. The play presents many scenes of sincerity versus hypocrisy. For example, when Lady Bracknell asks Jack about Cecily with the intention to judge her as a wife for Algernon, while Lady Bracknell notices Cecily after she found out about her money. But, also the men characters play having a double life or secret life. Both men Jack and Algernon make up a fake…

    • 187 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    "The tone says life is fun. The undertone suggests life is a catastrophe. " How far do you agree with this model of comedy in relation for The Importance of Being Earnest?- Edward Braddock. The Importance of Being Earnest has been described in many ways, some believing that its dialogue is "wittily allusive and understated rather than downright comic" , whereas others believe it is simply a narrative driven by Wilde's deep roots in the Aestheticism movement. Despite the play being a comedy where the status quo remains when the curtain falls, the jovial and fun tones the play appears to have are paralleled by dark undertones- some more subtle than others.…

    • 1579 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In “The importance of Being Earnest” different sequences show discrimination based on social classes. Poor people had not write to respect from rich. The respect or consideration of people was based on their fortune and not their human being. For instance, since Mr. Worthing was considered to be from a poor family which was unknown, he was disrespected by Lady Bracknell who treated him to be a cloak-room (Oscar). In addition, the marriage between people of different…

    • 443 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Through the play, “we are made to share Wilde’s view of the ludicrous and sinister realities behind the fashionable façade of an over-civilized society where nothing serious is considered serious and nothing trivial trivial” (Reinert 17). In the interactions between people who subscribe to Victorianism, such as Gwendolen and Cecily, the trivial matter of addressing each other while having a conversation is turned into a manner of enormous social importance. In contrast, in the interactions between people who subscribe to Bunburyism, or the total rejection of Victorianism, matters as serious as pretending to have a dead brother Ernest or sick friend Bunbury are treated lightly. Gwendolen and Cecily’s Victorianism leads them to become enraged at each other without reason, while Jack and Algernon’s Bunburyism very nearly leads to their mutual loss of the women whom they love. In this way, Wilde shows that moral ideals should lie in the middle between Bunburyism and Victorianism because of the consequences of taking both ideas of extremes (Reinert 18). Jack sums up the moral best in the last line of the play when he proclaims that he has “now realized the vital Importance of Being Earnest” (Earnest 313). Through this play, Wilde states that the key to success is to simply behave without thought for social…

    • 995 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 'The Importance of Being Earnest', Jack and Algernon are the main male characters. They have encounters with Gwendolen, Lady Bracknell and Cecily. These characters are rather unusual ladies for the time period, and their behaviour is not what was considered to be of a typical Victorian lady; however they still try to uphold a sophisticated and polite manner.…

    • 684 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Earnest Problem Proposals

    • 594 Words
    • 3 Pages

    A complicated person can take a toll on a relationship. In The Importance of Being Earnest, Aunt Augusta is that complicated person. From the beginning, she brings conflict with her social class, her family, and her approval.…

    • 594 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Importance of Being Earnest is a play that trivializes many things: the Victorian society, the nature of marriage and especially the concept of human identity. While identity is typically considered to be something concrete, the characters within the play are constantly in flux. This is especially evident in Jack, whose forms his identities as he goes through life. He transforms from a nameless baby in a handbag, to Jack the thriving member of the countryside bourgeois, then further on to become Ernest, a member of the aristocracy. Jack creates a fiction that is eventually proven to be his actual identity. The army lists show that his father’s name was Ernest John, which prove that Jack was both an Ernest and a Jack, as he was named after his father. Through the army lists, Wilde shows the triviality of one’s nominal identity in Victorian society, and the importance of the art of creating an identity.…

    • 1235 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    In Victorian society, the male role would be to rule, protect and provide for his family. Men were always making the political decisions and women had the job of wife, mother and domestic manager. When married, it was men who owned all properties of the women, and she must be faithful to her husband. Divorce led to shame only on females and loss of the right to see their children. In this patriarchal society, men were clearly dominant over women, however, this is not entirely the case in ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’. The play portrays particular female characters in very different and unexpected manners, some less favourable than others.…

    • 1509 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The play “The Importance of Being Earnest,” is one of the most perfect examples of satire in our culture. Although it is set in England, it makes fun of the upper class. The play uses dramatic irony to show how Oscar Wilde sees the upper class as too formal and snobbish. It is dramatic irony because the characters in the play obviously think that they are high class with their multiple houses and butlers even though the author thinks that the upper class is too snobbish.…

    • 785 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    One of the main reasons that the play has been so popular for over 100 years is because of the plot. This situation comedy is so light-hearted and has a happy, and rather unrealistic ending. The mix-up about the three couples makes you come out of the play extremely pleased and happy with the way that your life is going, as well as being positive. The neat plan of Situation -> Chaos -> Resolution is seen as very clever to many people, making the way that the play was wrote appealing to any age group. Bunburying is one of the main causes of chaos in this play as this quote shows, Algernon Moncrieff is himself a keen Bunburyist. "That is absurd. One has a right to Bunbury anywhere one chooses. Every serious Bunburyist knows that." Yet, this is not the only factor that has contributed to making this amazing play last over 100 years. Another quotation, this time to show the resolution is the last line in the play "On the contrary, Aunt Augusta, I've now realized for the first time in my life the vital Importance of Being Earnest."…

    • 1156 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Jack Worthing Symbolism

    • 431 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In The Importance of Being Earnest, character itself is one of the most important symbols. There are two major symbolical characters. Jack Worthing is the protagonist in this story. For years, he has pretended to have and irresponsible younger brother named Ernest, whom he is always having to bail our of some mischief. More than any other characters in this story, Jack worthing represents conventional Victorian values. He wants others to think he has such notions as duty, honor, and respectability even though he flouts those notions. Algernon Moncrieff is the secondary main character in this story. He is seems like the figure of the dandy than any other character. Like Jack, Algernon…

    • 431 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Being Sincere

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In today’s world, socializing is one of the key factors that has bonded relationships between us humans. However, one aspect of socializing is sincerity. That being said, it is important to speak from the bottom of the heart; however, it can also be hurtful. I am here today to present why I believe that being sincere is important and how to avoid emotionally hurting someone by being sincere.…

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays