Oscar Wilde composed the comical play, "The Importance of Being Earnest" during the Victorian times. The two main characters in "The Importance of Being Earnest" are Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff. Jack Worthing lived in the countryside of Hertfordshire, England. There he was the legal guardian of a girl named Cecily Cardew. They also lived with her governess, Miss Prism. He often went to the visit his friend Algernon at his flat in London.
"The Importance of Being Earnest" portrays the double life of people, back in the Victorian time period. Here, people often were very secretive and liked to keep their public life separate from their private one. Jack Worthing pretended to have a maniac brother named Earnest Worthing in London, as an excuse to visit the city. However, when he goes to London, he would go upon by the name Earnest Worthing. Back in those times, Earnest was a respectable name and every woman would dream of marrying someone by that name. He would go to Algergon's flat to see his cousin, Gwendolen. They were both in love with each other, but she was more in love with him, due to the fact that his name was Earnest. If Gwendolen accepted the proposal, he would kill off his brother. Lady Bracknell was not in agreement with the proposal because she found out that Jack was found in a suitcase and didn't have any parents. Algernon called this double life, "bunburying". He knew that Jack was lying and wanted to find out more information of where he lives in the countryside, so he can go pursue Jack's ward, Cecily. He heard that she was fond of Jack's imaginary brother so he wanted to pass as him.
This play also has a bit of sexuality. In the first scene, where Algernon suspected Jack of eating the cucumber sandwiches he made for his aunt, he says "Well, my dear fellow, you need not eat as if you were going to eat it all. You behave as if you were married to her already, and you're not, and I don't think you'll ever be." This is a way of telling him to keep his hands off Gwendolen.
So far I like the play. It is funny and I'm looking forward to finishing it.
ReplyDeleteUpon hearing the title of the book i imeadiately judged the play. I thought it was going to be one of those plays that are difficult to get through. But to my surprise, i was hooked from the start. The two main characters, Algernon and Jack, are two very interesting men. Jack and Algernon, both have a separate made up life, but what's interesting is, that Jack made up someone named Ernest. At the time that was a big name that all the women fell in love with. What also caught my interest was the fact that Jack was left in a hand bag. I was like what the hell? But what made me keep interest in this play was the fact that, since it was from back then, men and women got engaged really fast and for superficial reasons. The name Ernest is very important through out the book and it becomes more interesting later on. I finished the book in one sitting and it was actually really good.
ReplyDeleteThe author uses multiple characters to represent the best and worst of society at the time he was living. Ernest represents complete social freedom, which is something to be heralded during this period. On the other hand he lacks any sort of commitment or social graces. Jack is a polarizing figure in his local community however he is not ready to take on the tasks that come with such a prominent position. The author also uses sexuality to highlight the darker nature of the human condition. Furthermore it can be said that the importance of being Ernest lies in the fact that it was the only thing that kept Jack sane. Additionally I am excited to read the final act.
ReplyDeleteThe play has a lot of humor but in an ignorant type of way. The plot and characters are quite ridiculous in my opinion. The language is very easy to understand to my surprise. So far from what I have read the characters in this book are possessed by wealth and dont care much for anything else besides leisure. The most interesting thing i found was when Lady Bracknell says "I hadnt been there since her late husbands death. I never saw a woman look so altered; she looks twenty years younger". I didnt quite understand this at first because one would assume after the death of her husband she would be altered in a way that expresses her grief. Instead she looked 20 years younger. Then I thought to myself that this can be compared to the "The story of the hour" and how Mrs.Mallard looked better once she has believed that her husband had past. This clearly shows the burden of unwanted marriage in a woman's life at around that time period.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading this play, the first thing that came to mind was the title. To be earnest means to be honest and authentic, the complete opposite of what the characters portray in this play. I liked the way Oscar Wilde uses humor in his dialogue to show his readers all the ideas he rejected during the Victorian era. For example, during the Victorian era, your status was very important. Your outer appearance and the amount of money you have is the most important thing about you. Wilde brings this topic up when Bracknell is questioning Jack about where he lives and his income to see if he would be good enough for her daughter. Another example that we see is when Guendolen says that she would never marry a guy whose name was jack because she is worried about what people would say if she did. I think that Wilde’s humor works in this play and makes the play more interesting and easier to understand the different themes being described.
ReplyDeleteSo far I am enjoying this play. The title of the play can bring out different ideas of what the actual context could be. I like the irony that the author presents throughout the story. I feel like as the play progresses more secrets are going to be revealed not only with "Jack". As Israa mentioned, I enjoyed Wilde's sense of humor throughout the play. It helps make the play more interesting and on your feet. Its very clear the time period that is being displayed throughout this play. Throughout their discussions of marriage and other life values you can see the views of the people during this time. I hope to learn more about this time period as the play goes along. I expect that Wilde will continue to throw surprises to us as we continue to read this play.
ReplyDeleteBefore beginning this book I was very uneasy about having to start it. By the looks of the cover it appears to be very slow and boring. However, I guess what they say is true, never judge a book by its cover. Because as I have gone along I have began to enjoy it more and more. I have now completed the book and I can honestly say that it was one of the most enjoyable works that I have ever read. It was easy to follow along with, and it has every aspect of a good piece. It contains romance, comedy, some drama, and plenty of irony. The main characters Jack and Algernon are not exactly relatable, but they are easy to understand, and they really brighten up the book. All the situations and scenarios that these characters find themselves in simply makes the book more enjoyable. I reached the end wishing there was more. That is how I know that I truly enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteThis play portrays a significant amount of leisure that was occurring in that time period. For example, there was mention of food, marriage, wine, bunbury, flirting, and many other things. This play shows irony, mostly when Jack says his name is Ernest when he most certainly is not "earnest." He's not honest or genuine to his love Gwendolen. The Importance of Being Earnest also focuses on identity and status. Oscar Wilde shows this when Lady Bracknell questions Jack about his background when he insists to marry Gwendolen. This play is interesting so far and the irony is very entertaining.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first heard the title of the book and saw the front cover, I expected it to be dull and difficult to read. To my surprise, it’s very easy to follow and the way the author portrays his characters is very humorous. I was able to read the book in one sitting because it was hard to put down. When Oscar Wilde introduced Jack and Algernon, I saw their friendship as rather unordinary. They don’t have any real substance in their conversations and it seems like they have a love-hate friendship. I find their banters very entertaining because they are basically arguing about nothing. I can easily tell what kind of humor Oscar Wilde has through reading this play.
ReplyDeleteIrony and Humor, two attributes given by Oscar Wilde to basically show how life was in the Victorian age. The irony is in the title: the importance of being earnest; no one in this play is "earnest". Both main characters, Jack and Algernon, are far from it, especially Algernon. He's not serious at all and kind of funny when it comes to Jack's plan of proposal. The humor is in that every character is ridiculously materialistic and show no signs of honesty. To me, Algernon's "bunburying" appears to be his way to have fun and mess with people. The only bad thing that comes out of that is, when does it stop?
ReplyDeleteAt first, I thought this was going to be one of those old boring British novels that end with a twist; surely it ended with a twist, but it was FAR from boring. To my surprise, it was actually intriguing and funny. The fact that the novel focuses on the "importance of being earnest" when in reality these men are far from earnest is of great interest. Two of these men both want something but they cannot have it because of the "bunburrying" they've caused. They eventually begin to learn that wasn't the smartest thing to do and they leave off with an exciting twist for readers like myself to learn about.
ReplyDeleteI like how this play contains a lot of irony, such as the play on words with the title and Ernest's name. This play gave me a good sense of what upper class life was like in the Victorian Age. I think it is funny how boring the characters' lives really are, that they sit around and talk about the simplest of topics, like cigarette cases and smoking. However, I'm jealous because their lives are so simple and they don't have to work for anything. I also thought it was funny when Gwendolen agrees to marry Jack solely because she thinks his name is Ernest.
ReplyDeleteEnjoying the play so far. I think it’s funny how no there's so many similarities from the "dandies" of the Victorian era and the metro sexual males of today. But besides that, it's interesting that every character is a liar or has a big secret they don't want to share, especially Jack and his love life situation wanting one girl and having the other hidden at home.
ReplyDelete.Being Earnest means being authentic and honest to yourself and others. It is also about being serious, however in this play everything is the exact opposite of that. This play is full of irony because Jack is the complete opposite of being honest and serious and genuine. Also during this time status was a big issue but with Wilde's writing he completely disregards it and does not care what people think and writes the way he is comfortable with. In this play they are both at a loss when it comes to their identities and they both manage to trick the girls into liking them by using a fake name. To really have the name Earnest they both need to be honest to themselves as well as the other people in their lives.
ReplyDeleteI love how ironic this play, especially with the title. Being earnest is all about being honest but this play is literally the opposite of being honest, which humors me. From the beginning, almost everything is a lie, including their identities. This does give me a small glimpse of the secret scandals of a small rich group in the Victorian age, and that captures my attention, making this book a whole lot more enjoyable to read. Personally I think there isn't much difference with the more fortunate society now, with the secret scandals, than the fortunate society during past. This book makes the scandals funny, because we're the ones reading it from a different perspective, actually seeing how idiotic the lies and situations really are.
ReplyDeleteAt first I thought this play was going to boring, and a pain to read. But it actually turned out to be the opposite, its actually a funny play. The title of the play is so ironic because when your earnest, you are honest, genuine and authentic and those are all contradictions of "Ernest". Both Algernon and Jack are living false identities. They only talk about things that have no importance or significance to life. They talk about food and their false identities and a cigarette case. All they care about is status and appearance, nothing else is of importance to them. One of my favorite lines in the play is said by Lady Bracknell "Ignorance is like a delicate exotic fruit; touch it and the bloom is gone". I like this because shes basically saying that the less you know the better it is.
ReplyDeleteA central theme in this play is that of irony. For example, Jack goes by the name of Ernest, which is entirely contradictory to his personality. He is the opposite of earnest. In fact, not one character in this play fits the definition of earnest. Also, many of the situations that occur in the play reflect issues in society at the time. For example, the lack of education, labels and importance of external looks, and marriage as a way of negotiating.
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