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Importance of Being Earnest

The document discusses key themes in Oscar Wilde's play "The Importance of Being Earnest". Marriage is a central theme that drives the plot, as the characters debate the nature and purpose of marriage. Morality and the strict moral code of Victorian society is also examined, though Wilde satirizes rigid morality. Finally, the concept of "earnestness" is discussed, as earnestness represents seriousness and solemnity that Wilde viewed as against true morality, while characters who embrace triviality may attain greater virtue.

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Amalia Korakaki
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263 views

Importance of Being Earnest

The document discusses key themes in Oscar Wilde's play "The Importance of Being Earnest". Marriage is a central theme that drives the plot, as the characters debate the nature and purpose of marriage. Morality and the strict moral code of Victorian society is also examined, though Wilde satirizes rigid morality. Finally, the concept of "earnestness" is discussed, as earnestness represents seriousness and solemnity that Wilde viewed as against true morality, while characters who embrace triviality may attain greater virtue.

Uploaded by

Amalia Korakaki
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Themes in The

Importance of
Being Earnest.

Overview.
Marriage
Morality
Lies vs Inventiveness
Ernest

Marriage.
Marriage has great importance in the play, mainly as a primary force
motivating the plot. The question of the nature of marriage appears in
the opening dialogue and from this point on never disappears for
very long.
Algernon and Jack discuss this later when the briefly dispute about
whether a marriage should be business or pleasure, and Lady
Bracknell touches on the issue when she says An engagement
should come on a young girl as a surprise, pleasant or unpleasant,
as the case may be. Also, Lady Bracknells list of bachelors and the
prepared interview for Jack are both based on assumptions about the
nature and purpose or marriage. These assumptions reflect typical
preoccupations of Victorian responsibility social position, income
and character.

Marriage Cont.
The play is actually a continuing debate about the nature of marriage
and whether it is pleasant or unpleasant. Lane says that he believes
it to be a very pleasant state before admitting that his own marriage
failing was because of a misunderstanding between myself and a
young person. Algernon thinks Lanes views are somewhat lax
whereas his views are relentlessly cynical until he meets and falls in
love with Cecily. Jack tells Algernon that the truth isnt quite the sort
of thing one tells to a nice, sweet, refined girl. At the end of the play
when Jack apologizes to Gwendolen, she forgives his on the grounds
that she thinks that he will change, which suggests her own rather
cynical view of the nature of men and marriage.

The Constraints of Morality.


Morality and the constraints it imposes on society is another main
theme in the play.
-Algernon: the servant class has a responsibility to set a moral
standard for the upper class
-Jack: reading a private cigarette case is ungentlemanly.
-Algernon: More than half of modern culture depends on
what one shouldnt read
These restrictions and assumptions suggest a strict code of morals
that exist in Victorian society, but Wilde isnt concerned with
questions of what is and isnt moral. Instead, he makes fun of the
whole Victorian idea of morality and as a rigid body of rules about
what people should and shouldnt do.

Lies vs Inventiveness.
Algernon and Jack may create similar deceptions, but they are not
morally equivalent characters. When Jack fakes his brother Ernests
death, he forces that fantasy on his loved ones, and though we are
aware of this deception, they are not and he does his best to
convince the family that he is in mourning. In contrast, Algernon and
Cecily develop elaborate stories that dont really assault the truth in
any serious way. They invent life for themselves as though life is a
work of art

The Importance of Not Being Earnest.


Earnestness is basically the enemy of morality in the play. Wilde
used the word earnestness and the many forms it can take
(boringness, solemnity, pomposity, complacency) as hallmarks of the
Victorian character. When characters in the play use the work
serious, they tend to mean trivial and vice versa. E.g. Algernon thinks
it shallow for people not to be serious about meals.
For Wilde, the word earnest consisted of two different but related
ideas; the notion of false truth and the notion of false morality. The
moralism of Victorian society drives or urges Algernon and Jack to
make up fictitious alter egos so as to be able to escape the societies
thoughts on propriety and decency. However, what one person
believes about what is decent or indecent doesnt always reflect what
decency really is. One of the plays paradoxes is the impossibility of
actually being either earnest or moral while claiming to be so. The
characters who embrace triviality and wickedness are the ones who
may have the greatest chance of attaining seriousness and virtue.

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