Analysis of The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde - Essay Example

December 14, Analysis: O. Wilde Play Introduction True love is difficult. The paper delves on marriage built on money, not love. The paper focuses on the use of fictitious persons to cover one’s true self. Being earnest is very important.Analysis The play focuses on the theme of discrimination. The rich must marry another rich person. Bracknell informed Jack to find out the social status of his parents, “…produce one parent (Wilde 38)” as basis for approving Jack’s marriage to Gwendolyn.

The play was a protest to the strict societal standards implemented during the Victorian cultural era. Gwendolyn affirms to Jack, “from mother’s facial expression, we cannot be married (Wilde 47).” Jack refused to approve Bracknell’s marriage between Algernon and Cicely until she reaches 35 years of age. Bracknell affirms, “35 is a very attractive marriage age (Wilde 138).” The story focuses on the theme of destiny. Gwendolyn feels she is destined to marry only the person named Ernest stating to Jack, “My very own Ernest!

(Wilde 26).” Ernest represents a rich family. Jack does not belong to a rich class. Likewise, Jack is characterized as a poor person. Consequently, Jack is eager to marry a rich lady in order grab the money of the rich lady. In the same manner, the author creates an imagery picture that Algernon is an unhappy with his family (Croally 35). Algernon creates a fictitious person, Bunbury. Creation is done to escape from his family. Algernon excuses himself from many important social and family events.

He instead prefers staying with Bunbury. Algernon disguises as Ernest to Cicely. Cicely falls in love with Ernest (Algernon). When Gwendolyn learns that Cicely is also being engaged to marry the same Ernest, the two women fight. However when Jack (Ernest) and Algernon (Ernest) appear together, the two women stop fighting and vent their anger on the two men who pretended to be take the name of Ernest. Further, the story ends with Miss Prism, Lady Bracknell’s former maid, stating that Jack was left at a station thinking the child was the book to be published stating, “…placed the baby in the handbag and deposited it on the train to be sent to the publisher (Wilde 144)”.

Jack is Algernon’s elder Brother. Since Cicely is wealthy, Bracknell approves the marriage between Cicely and Algernon. Bracknell then approves the marriage between Gwnedolyn and Jack (Ernest). The story ends with the Jack affirming to Bracknell the significance of being earnest. Jack is eager to marry Gwendolyn, “..we must marry immediately (Wilde 26).” The story shows irony (Turner 84). Gwendolyn and Cicely are both in love with the person named Ernest. Gwendolyn wants to marry only the person named Ernest.

However, they find out that Jack and Algernon pretended to be Ernest. In addition, the story has simile (Croally 35). After learning that both Gwendolyn and Cicely’s found about their lie about the Ernest name, both Jack and Algernon felt that their happy love world had disintegrated in front of their eyes. Conclusion Summarizing, true love is complexly difficult. Victorian society requires people to marry for money. Love must not be prioritized in Victorian society. If someone has the desire, there is always a way to achieve one’s desires.

Evidently, being earnest in life should be very important.Works CitedCroally, Neil. Classical Literature. New York: Routledge Press, 2011. Print.Turner, Ferdinand. The Element of Irony in English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014. Print.Wilde, Oscar. The Importance of Being Earnest. Harvard: Harvard University Press, 1899. Print.