Oscar Wilde The Importance Of Being Ernest Essay

Oscar Wilde in many ways was far ahead of the Victorian society that he found himself in. Wilde’s homosexual lifestyle and focus on sensuality were so frowned upon in the Victorian society that they were actually illegal, which led to his eventual imprisonment and downfall (Bastiat 2). It is almost as if Oscar Wilde’s life itself was a satire, because these aspects of himself that were illegal and frowned upon were what made his play The Importance of Being Earnest so successful. Wilde’s play was intended to not only entertain his spectators, but also try to change their attitudes in a passive, yet meaningful way. A background knowledge of Oscar Wilde’s life would be essential to understanding The Importance of Being Earnest. Wilde, a homosexual and aesthetic, was very much anti-Victorian; while the Victorians were worried about being proper and following the norms and rules, Wilde was concerned with sensuality, meaning, and pleasure (Walsh 1). Wilde lived a life of pleasure and hid his life from the public eye. Although married to Constance Lloyd, Wilde hid his life of homosexuality from the public view, which is what likely drove Wilde
to satirize the society that did not accept its own and pushed for conformity at all levels (Bristow 36). From an outside view looking in at Wilde, he was not what was expected of a successful Victorian play writer. He was not proper, did not follow the rules, and was not worried about the expectations put onto him by society. Wilde knows that, and so that is why Wilde targets the Victorian society’s expectations of individuals throughout The Importance of Being Earnest. The Victorian society’s expectation that men and women are two very different beings without anything in common is satirized throughout Wilde’s play. Cecily is described by jack as “She has got a capital appetite, goes for long walks, and pays no attention at all to her lessons” (Wilde 261). This is clearly not proper or lady like because “in Victorian times women were not supposed to have body functions or practise sport” (Bastiat 3). There is also the issue of Algernon, who is not exactly what would be described as a manly man. He is seen as feminine throughout the play by his spending of large sums of money on his “luxuriously and artistically furnished” rooms and clothing (Wilde 1). Another challenge against the expectations of society is when Gwendolyn says “And certainly once a man begins to neglect his domestic duties he becomes painfully effeminate, does he not? And I don’t like that. It makes men so very attractive” (Wilde 610). This is likely Wilde challenging what society views as attractive. Wilde is able to “use a paradoxical punchline to explode the myths about gendered fixed identities and preferences” (Bastiat 5). Wilde addresses these expectations of men and women and shows that even if someone acts differently than they are supposed to, as in a man acting feminine or a woman acting masculine, it doesn’t mean that they are wrong or should be treated any differently. This fear of being treated badly or differently from society is essentially what drives The Importance of Being Earnest.
This use of different selves or “Bunburying” is a way for both Jack and Algernon to be themselves and not have to worry about society judging them. These personas that they create are masks to their true identity and personality, and if this true identity is revealed they could lose everything and because of societies need to point out and isolate those who are different and do not fit the social norms. Wilde is showing here the trouble that people will go through to hide their true selves because they know the societal repercussions will be enormous. Here Wilde wants society, those who are viewing his play, to understand that being different is okay but also that being different is also hard on the
individual. This living of a double life is likely something that Oscar Wilde himself had to do on multiple occasions. As a homosexual in Victorian Society, there was no way he would be able to actually live as he pleased. It was illegal to engage in homosexual acts, he would be ruined and his legacy would be tarnished forever. It seems that Wilde had to express himself somewhere, and that is where his writing came in. These undertones and ideas that Wilde creatively added into his plays allowed for him to address society directly through his plays. Wilde’s characters, often obviously flawed, were representative of the crowds that came and watched his plays. Wilde likely hoped that if these spectators identify with certain characters in his play, they will then realize that they themselves are different from everyone else as well. As people slowly realize this, Wilde likely hoped that society’s attitudes would change and they would be more open to accepting people of a different orientation, social class, or education. Wilde clearly attempted to change society’s views by directly bringing his grievances to society in the form of his plays. This slow form of petition against society’s treatment of those who are different was an attempt by Wilde to invoke change. Unfortunately, this change did not come fast enough as Wilde was imprisoned for his homosexual activates, which essentially caused his ruin (Mueller 326). Although Wilde was shunned from society and died as an outcast, he is now viewed and described by many literary giants as “an unwitting victim of social prejudice and persecution, the author of “marvelously polished words,” the luxuriant Society gadfly, a brazen litigant against the Marquess of Queensberry, a prisoner degradingly forced into filthy jailhouse baths, and a saintly rebel who violated boundaries” (Bristow, 110). Clearly although after his death, Wilde was able to achieve his goals of changing society to become more inclusive of people of different backgrounds and behaviors. In the end, Wilde’s satire was successful of invoking change in society and creating a celebration of difference and diversity.