Figurative Language In The Importance Of Being Ernest

When Algernon asks Cecily to marry him she surprises him by “[being] engaged for the last three months.” This is quite comical in two stances. The first being that Cecily also practices her own form of “Bunbury” but instead of physically living a “double life” she lives her “wicked” life in her diary. There Cecily is able to live out her life of pleasure and fantasies while still upholding the highest standard of duty and responsibility. Second, to contemporary audiences, being engage to someone who you never met, might be seen as obsessive and crazy.

Jack uses his alter-ego, Ernest, as a escape from his boring and prude life, however as duty starts to call append itself and Jack seeks to marry a woman he met,Gwendolen, and he now wishes to rid his alter-ego but not without consequence. As, Gwendolen’s fixation on the name Ernest and Ernest alone, Jack has to choose between his two worlds, and his lies eventually become his undoing. Wilde’s play and the character Jack Worthing was meant to expose the Victorian Era’s repressive and suffocating norms, The classes care so much about being respectable that they are willing to lie about it, The Importance of Being Earnest reveals the differences between the behavior of the people and the

Throughout much of the play and especially the beginning, Wilde satirizes the setting in which both the characters as well as his audience live in. This satirization specifically requires that the audience be thoughtful whenever Wilde makes a joke, resulting in the thoughtful laughter which makes a true comedy. “The Importance of Being Earnest” is set during the late 20th century in Britain, a time period known as the Victorian Era, in which the British Empire was at its absolute peak. The dominance of Britain in world affairs resulted in a sense of

There is something in that name that inspires absolute confidence". She basically told Jack that if his true name isn't Earnest she will not love him due to his name. So therefore, to keep the love of his life Jack has to keep the persona of Earnest. Even once Gwendolen and Cecily find out that Jack and Algernon names aren't Earnest they can find their love again and forgive them only if Jack and Algy christen themselves as Earnest.

Strange to us because in our book the character is labeled as Jack, so we are already brought into the play with this taste of dramatic irony as Algernon continuously calls him by this false name. After an extremely lengthy and humorous argument with this “earnest” fellow about whether his name is or is not Ernest, Algernon goes on to say “You have always told me it was Ernest. I have introduced you to everyone as Ernest. You answer to the name of Ernest. You look as if your name is was Ernest. You are the most earnest-looking person I ever saw in my life.” Here, Wilde is going on with that Ernest-earnest twist that we are already oh so comfortable with since first picking up the book, as Algernon speaks he subtly changes from the name Ernest to the adjective earnest, saying that it would be absolutely ridiculous for Ernest to be anything but earnest in his eyes. He is not only speaking of the name, but also saying that Ernest is one of the most serious people that he knows and “It is purposely absurd that you are saying your name isn’t Ernest.” is Algernon’s way of saying that you don’t look like a liar, why would you be lying to me about your name? After all is said and done with Algernon and Jack’s argument about whether Ernest is truly earnest or not, Jack decides to tell Algernon the truth about why he is Ernest in the town and Jack in the

“Jack”, or Ernest’s ambitions represents all that was seen as valued in Victorian life among the elite of society, but what I found most important is that while he aims for duty and responsibility in his life, more than anything he wants others to see these qualities in him. It’s not that Jack truly feels he should possess these qualities; rather, he wants to be perceived as such, regardless of his true nature below the surface. This allows for Jack’s hypocrisy in maintaining his alter ego of “Ernest” in the city— and it allows him to escape the country life of raising his ward to go

The play, The Importance of Being Earnest, written by Oscar Wilde is about two young gentlemen named Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff, who have taken on imaginative alter egos. Jack Worthing pretended to be his younger brother, Ernest, in order to leave his boring life in the country, and to propose to Gwendolyn Fairfax. Algernon Moncrieff also takes on the name, Ernest, in order to meet Jack Worthing’s young and pretty ward, Cecily Cardew. Things begin to take a turn for the worst when Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff run into each other at Jack Worthing’s estate in the country and their deceptive schemes are discovered.

Before this direct reference, the theme has only been alluded to when we notice how keen Algernon is in keeping Lane at his proper social ‘place’- a servant who does not discuss his domestic issues with their boss or social betters. Romance is clearly a theme that the play deals with and is introduced by the caustic reference to the relationship between his cousin and Mr. Worthington- ‘My dear fellow, the way you flirt with Gwendolen is perfectly disgraceful.  It is almost as bad as the way Gwendolen flirts with you’- clearly this cannot be anything else but love. The play is also very concerned about the issue of extravagance. Algernon is an extravagant young man, a fact Mr. Worthington does not appreciate and tries again and again to discourage when they discuss Algernon’s culinary tastes. Through the various comments by the characters the play reveals the authors cynicism towards the marriage institution which he relentlessly attacks as the flippant ‘in married households the champagne is rarely of a first-rate brand’ and through such play with words as ‘divorce was made in heaven’ rather than ‘marriages were made in heaven’.

Every line, every character, and every stage direction in The Importance of Being Earnest is set on supporting Oscar Wilde’s want for social change. The Importance of Being Earnest was written during the late period of the Victorian era. During this period social classification was taken very seriously. It could affect working and living conditions, education, religion, and marriage. Wilde explores the issues of social class and turns it into a comedic play. He humorously criticizes Victorian manners and attacking the society of the luxurious life. The audience becomes self-aware as the characters reflect on themselves. Plays such as this become successful because of the backgrounds the writers come from and the experiences they have had.

Oscar Wilde’s play The Importance of Being Earnest (.1993.) is an enlightening epitome of social class in the Victorian era. The satire is driven by the frivolous behaviour, superficial lives and artificial norms within the Victorian aristocracy. Incorporating his own opinion into the play, Wilde continually attacked and mocked their hypocrisy, views on marriage, and their mannerisms. Throughout the play, Wilde used an abundant range of literary techniques to reinforce his opinion. Irony, paradox and hyperboles, as well as witty epigrams and aphorisms were used astutely and were ubiquitous throughout the play. This contributed to the satirical style and tone of the text, and enabled Wilde to effectively communicate his critical perspective on social class in Victorian England.

Satire, in which Wilde places throughout the dialogue, is used to deride Victorian age concept of marriage and exhibit the theme to the audience. This is evident when Wilde addresses how Gwendolen and Cecily refuse to marry a man if their names were not

One thing that Jack and Algernon have in common is that they both have these false faces. Algernon’s alter ego Bunbury is a version of himself used in the country but he uses Ernest to marry Cecily. The story deals with Ernest, this immorally imaginary man that both Cecily and Gwendolyn become engaged to, it exemplifies the irony within the name. Most of the irony comes from this character. One of Wilde's satiric targets is romantic and sentimental love, which he ridicules by having the women fall in love with a man because of his name rather than more personal attributes. Gwendolyn said “No, there is very little music in the name Jack, if any at all, indeed. It does not thrill. It produces

Earnest does more than criticize Victorian society: the play remains humorous and entertaining despite its underlying message. The play has been dismissed as one that “never transcends, as a work of art, the incomplete or the trivial” (Roditi 94). However, for a farce that unconventionally illustrates the importance of honesty, Wilde has undoubtedly written a “farce that is meaningful” (Reinert 1) and one that teaches the value of sincerity through the entertaining, exaggerated absurdity of the predicament. While Jack is in the city under the guise of Ernest, he initially refuses to share his address in the country to Algernon so that he may continue keeping his spheres of nomenclature separated. Jack, who has been engaged in flirtatious conversation with Gwendolen, shares his country address with her; he is unaware that Algernon is well within earshot and takes the opportunity to write the address on his shirt cuff.

In Oscar Wilde’s play, he showed the upper class had many requirements for potential wedding partners, wealth being a key requirement. He also showed that women weren’t allowed to marry outside of their class, even if they loved the person. Overall, the text above shows that marriage was different for the lower and upper classes of society.

Jack’s creation of a fictional brother Ernest gives audience an impression that he is a hypocritical person who ignores the consequences of being dishonest. Only when his desire to marry Gwendolen is threatened does he learn that he cannot escape from responsibility or “come up to town as often as [he] like[s]” (Act 1, p.8). Suffering from the dilemma, his hidden sincerity and kindness are discovered. This makes him become a rounder character. As a consequence, the rest of the plot will be affected and advanced by his unique traits and