Critical Interpretation of The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde - Essay Example

? Critical Interpretation of The Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde’s play ‘The importance of being Earnest ‘is a typical Wildean firework giving a clue as to the light nature of comedy that is presented to the audience. Much of the complications of this splendid comedy arise out of the confusions and misunderstandings caused on account of the fictional identity created for his own convenience under the pseudonym ‘Ernest’ by the hero of the play. By creating sets of balancing and opposing characters Wilde’s sharpens the impression they make in the spectators. They utterly lack earnestness. They are merely staking on the surface life. Sexual problems and a discussion on it appear to be prudish and averse to the people. They were crass materials and were interested only in money making. All these vices of the Victorians are reflected by Wilde’s in his play ‘The Importance of Being Earnest.’ The play is about the frivolous behavior and the aristocracy in England in Oscar Wilde’s time. The title of the play emphasizes the importance of being earnest, but none of the characters in the play are earnest. Gwendolen and Cecily are attracted towards a man solely on account of his name. Gwendolyn opines that men should practice proposing to women, even if they have no real love. As for Cecily, she lives in an illusory world, imagining herself to be in love with and being loved by a man called ‘Earnest’. Both the girls are swept off their feet by the name Earnest, Says Gwendolen “It is a divine name. It has music in its own. It produces vibrations.” (Wilde’s, Act 1) According to Cecily “These is something in that name that seems to inspire absolute confidence. I pity any poor married woman whose husband is not called earnest”.(Wilde’s, Act 1) They do not have any regard for any merit that their lovers may have. The men in the play have no serious pursuits. To escape the need to project a moral image, these men assume a false name and go to some other place where they can disport themselves freely. Algernon spends his time minting neat phrases and eating muffins. He lives on the property left behind by his father and does not have to work to support himself. Algernon represents the idle, unenterprising aristocracy of Wilde’s time. Lady Bracknell, the formidable aristocratic lady who keeps her daughter under her strict control, is also flippant and frivolous. Her values are all topsy-turvy. She despises education because it tampers with the natural state of ignorance “I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural ignorance. Ignorance is like a delicate exotic fruit, touch it and the bloom is gone. The whole theory of modern education is radically unsound.” (Wilde’s, Act 1). The epigram used here is another example of Wilde’s powerful use of literary devices in the drama. Lady Bracknell is the character who represents the Victorian materialism. She is haughty aristocrat to the very marrow of her backbone. She looks down upon lower classes. But she sets aside her class-consciousness and consents her nephew Algemon marrying Cecily (who does not belong to an aristocratic family), on finding that Cecily is in possession of a large amount of money. She is thus governed only by monetary considerations. In the Victorian age, girls did not have the freedom to choose their husbands themselves. Husbands were chosen for them by their parents. Lady Bracknell is such a parent. She rejects her daughter’s lover Jack on the grounds of that his parentage is dubious. She never condescend to give his only daughter to “marry into a cloak-room and form an alliance with a parcel”( Wilde’s, Act 1) . She considers Jack’s hand bag origin “to display a contempt for the ordinary decencies of family life that reminds one of the excesses of the French Revolution”(Wilde’s, Act 1). Reserving to her the right to choose a husband for her daughter, Lady Bracknell says categorically “An engagement should come on a young girl as a surprise, pleasant or unpleasant as the case may be. It is hardly a matter that she could be allowed to arrange for herself”. Victorian prudery is represented by Miss Prism and Dr. Chausuble , for example , talks of his wish to be like a bee , hanging on Miss Prism’s lips( Wilde’s, Act 2) . That is he would like to be Mrs. Prism’s pupil and listen to her. Similarly Miss Prism hints that she is like a ripe fruit which he can easily pluck and taste. Thus the two waste themselves, exchanging insinuation. They are incapable of forthright courtship. Jack and Algemon also have been incapacitated by Victorian prudery. Algemon is the wittiest of all the male characters in the play. He slightly alters well known maxims and achieves a shocking effect. Thus discussing his views on marriage with Jack, he says that’ divorces are made in heaven ‘. This is the twisted version of the maxim, ‘Marriages are made in heaven”(Wilde’s, Act 1). The twist in his thought pattern is an evidence of his deviation from traditional values. He scandalizes women who are affectionate towards their husband as follows. “The amount of women in London who flirt with their own husbands is perfectly scandalous .It looks so bad .It is simply washing one’s linen in public. “(Wilde’s, Act 1). This statement also is a distortion of the well known phrase “washing one’s dirty linen in public”. These polished expressions are also exposure to some of the evils of the time. They cannot openly enjoy themselves but have to invent a brother and enjoy themselves surreptitiously. The unrealistic and exacting sexual codes of the Victorian are thus shown to lead to covert sexual enjoyment. Wilde’s talks on some instances to expose the life of married women also. The depression they suffer due to loveless marriage is well depicted through the character Lady Harbury . Algernon makes a paradoxical comment “her hair has turned quite gold from grief”. Now after the death of her husband she seemed to be more active and happy to get freed from the tie of marriage. She now inherits the wealth and is independent. . Wilde’s makes a rare comparison of widowhood to joy and happiness. Thus smoothly Wilde’s turns to the reality about the economic, social and sexual life of that time in common. The importance of being earnest conforms to the norms laid down for the comedy of manners. The play depicts the aristocratic, convention ridden and class- conscious mid -Victorian society. This high comedy stresses the artificiality of personality and theme. All the characters of the play are highly eccentric and for them the normal values of the world stand reversed. It is no secret that “ The Importance of Being Earnest “ is an outstanding success on account of Oscar Wilde’s chiseled language and inimitable humorous style . As Wilde’s chief aim is to provide sheer entertainment, he subordinates the interest of his plot and characterization to his dialogue. He employes wit humor, sarcasm, paradoxes, epigrams and irony of all kinds. The play is a satire in it fun of the ridiculously exaggerated values of birth, rank, fashion etc. Thus the play touches on many things like women’s education, inheritance of property marriage, illegitimacy, class distinction in the society, the role of aristocracy, baptism, food etc and makes fun of almost everything that the then society regarded as sacrosanct. Thus the play successfully deals with the certain permanent attitudes and values which are even now present in England‘s social life. Work Cited Nassar , C. S., Notes on Importance of Being Eanrest, Longman York Press, 1980 Read More