The Importance of Being Earnest
As our AP exam nears, I thought it would be most effective to review our most recent work discussed in class, The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde. Because it is the only full on comedy we have read this year, I wanted to elaborate on some of the things I noticed in this play and discuss some of the ideas mentioned in the critical article "Anarchy and Individualism in "The Importance of Being Earnest."
A big idea that is prominent throughout this play concerns conception versus reality. Every character has a picture of what they consider to be the truth. The characters are defined by their conceptions and imagination rather than the reality that surrounds them. A perfect example of this sort of character is Cecily. A secluded girl that lives in the country, Cecily's reality is her diary (which is in fact an account of purely fictional events that never truly occurred). She imagines for herself a perfect "love at first sight" engagement in which she marries a the perfectly named "Ernest." As mentioned in the critical article, "Cecily’s existence is based almost solely in her own imagination." In this play, many of the character's actions are determined by what they perceive to be the truth, or even what they want to be the truth.
In this way, both Algernon and Jack create identities by which they lead double lives, playing on the lines of what is true versus what they believe to be true. Jack pretends to have a younger brother while Algernon pretends to have a friend by the name Bunbury. Both of these fantasies dictate the actions that the two characters take within their actual lives. In the same way, Gwendolyn, like Cecily, believes that a man named "Ernest" is the only man that she could ever fall in love with. Even when both Gwendolyn and Cecily discover the truth about Algernon and Jack, "manipulation powers prevail." It is simply absurd to see Cecily and Gwendolyn decide to fall in love with Algernon and Jack anyways, as long as the two are willing to change their names for the ladies.
There is a lot of stress on appearances in this play, an idea that Wilde presents in such an absurd fashion that is causes the reader to reevaluate the morals and priorities that guide society (specifically Victorian society, as it was written in that day). Gwendolyn insistence loving with someone names Ernest illustrates the tendency of people in that time period to judge based on appearance of honor and goodwill as opposed to the truth. These ideas can be applied to our society, even today. We can see how outer appearances and superficial qualities are significant in this play when we witness Lady Bracknell's behavior. When Lady Bracknell discovers Cecily's wealth, she has a sudden change of heart in which he insists that Cecily and Algernon get married. The stress on superficial qualities such as status and wealth are mocked throughout the play. Because the characters focus on such trivial things, they end up in a false illusion of happiness, and are completely as ease with the hypocrisy that takes place about them.
These were simply some of the interesting things I noticed in this play. There were numerous more, such as the detrimental nature of marriage to the individual and the elusive nature of morality within a society guided by superficially fixed principles.
