The Importance of Being Earnest is a play by Oscar Wilde that was first performed in 1895. The play is a satire of Victorian society and its values, particularly the importance placed on social status, wealth, and marriage. The plot revolves around two friends, Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff, who lead double lives in order to escape the constraints of their social obligations. Jack pretends to be his own fictitious brother, Ernest, in order to woo the woman he loves, Gwendolen Fairfax, while Algernon assumes the ...
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The Importance of Being Earnest is a play by Oscar Wilde that was first performed in 1895. The play is a satire of Victorian society and its values, particularly the importance placed on social status, wealth, and marriage. The plot revolves around two friends, Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff, who lead double lives in order to escape the constraints of their social obligations. Jack pretends to be his own fictitious brother, Ernest, in order to woo the woman he loves, Gwendolen Fairfax, while Algernon assumes the identity of Jack's fictitious brother in order to woo Jack's ward, Cecily Cardew. The play is full of witty dialogue, mistaken identities, and comedic misunderstandings, and it ultimately exposes the hypocrisy and absurdity of Victorian society. The Importance of Being Earnest is widely regarded as one of the greatest comedies in the English language and is still performed and studied today.LANE. I believe it IS a very pleasant state, sir. I have had very little experience of it myself up to the present. I have only been married once. That was in consequence of a misunderstanding between myself and a young person.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.
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Add this copy of The Importance Of Being Earnest to cart. $38.22, new condition, Sold by Booksplease rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Southport, MERSEYSIDE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2010 by Kessinger Publishing.
This is one of those all-important plays that depart a good message, but also make you laugh in the process. The characters and themes in this play are wonderful and colorful. The biting wit of the dialog makes this play a winner in my mind. I love everything about this play, and while I haven't seen the movie at all, I hope that it would be something like this when I actually do see it.
canadianchicklitlover
Apr 19, 2007
Excellent Play - A MUST READ!
In my 10+ years of live theater exploration, no play has stuck in my mind as much as Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest. I'll admit to having seen a movie version prior to reading the play, and even that the movie was the REASON I later picked up the play, since then, I have re-read it several times. Even after seeing one interpretation of it, I was very able to establish my own ideas on the play, both in regards to meaning, and in production ideas. The Importance of Being Earnest was my first Wilde play, and while I have read others since then, and would call myself an avid Oscar Wilde fan, The Importance of Being Earnest is my absolute favourite. The rich setting can be imagined, the wittyness of the dialogue, and in fact of entire plays, and Wilde's inherant social comedy are important factors of all Wilde plays, and this one is no different. People of all ages can appreciate the humour and wit present in the play - in fact, I would say anyone from ages 10-100 can appreciate this play for the wonderful work of literature it is!
