The Importance of Being

Earnestby: Oscar Wilde

Swansboro High SchoolEnglish 12

The Importance of Being Earnest

• Written in 1895

• A comedy in 3 Acts

• Text is a satire. The text criticizes Victorian moral & social issues

• Immediate hit when first performed

• Uses wit, puns, exaggeration, and wordplay to create humor

Main Characters• John Worthing, aka,

“Jack”, aka “Earnest

• Algernon Montcrief, Jack’s friend

• Lane, the butler for Algernon

• Rev. Chausible, the preacher in the country

• Lady Bracknell, mother of Gwendolyn

• Gwendolyn, wants to marry a man named “Earnest”

• Cecily, Jack’s ward

• Miss Prism, Cecily’s governess

Settings• Time: Around 1890

• Place: • London (“the

City”)• Jack’s House in the

Country (a very large and expensive estate)

• The village church

Victorian Period• Named for Queen

Victoria of England (1827-1901)

• The culture was very moral and serious

• Women were expected to be the “angel in the house” – to take the care of their husband and family

Queen Victoria• Became Queen as a

young girl

• Married Albert, Prince Consort and adored him

• After he died, she wore black for the rest of her life

• She had 9 children and created a culture that valued family & stability

Victorian Period• Manners were supremely

important

• English society was divided into classes• Upper (Well-educated

and came from a rich / respected family)

• Having good manners mattered more than anything else

• Considered bad manners to flaunt wealth

Victorian Period• Young women were

always chaperoned until they were married

• Women’s clothing covered them from neck to ankle; modest clothes

• In the upper classes, people with a bad reputation were outcasts no matter how much money they had

Oscar Wilde - Author• Born in Ireland; lived in

England & abroad

• Attended Trinity College in Ireland & Oxford University in England

• Believed in the value of “art for art’s sake” – art should not be concerned with political issues.

• Wrote the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray

Oscar Wilde• With other writers &

artists, rebelled against the prim, moral, religious culture of Victorian England

• Was known to be wild, flamboyant and witty

• Although homosexual, married, and had children

• Being homosexual was illegal, and he served time in prison for it

Literary Vocabulary• Comedy – light-hearted

literature with humor & a happy ending

• Satire – literary writing that makes fun of or criticizes the faults of people or groups. Purpose is to point out flaws.

• Wit – using words to be clever & funny with language

• Pun – a play on words

Literary Vocabulary• Foil – the character

who contrasts the main character (the foil “reflects” the traits of the main character)

• Blocking figure – a character, often old & cranky, who interferes with the romantic desires or the other main characters and provides comic action