Satire In The Importance Of Being Ernest
How far is it appropriate to consider The Importance of Being Earnest as a Satire on the hypocrisy of ‘polite’ British society?
It can be argued that Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays (2000) explores in depth the idea of satire on the hypocrisy of ‘polite’ British society. Wilde uses dramatic language to amplify the satirical nature of the play; by using irony and satire he is able to mock the polite Victorian etiquette. The play is set in middle class Victorian London, and was written in 1895. Wilde was renowned for being a dandy and somewhat of an extravert, and so the fact he wrote ‘a trivial comedy for serious people’ (2000, p.291) can be seen as satirical due to his frivolous nature and attitude towards …show more content…
earnestness.
When Gwendolen meets Cecily, they are under the false pretence that both of them are to be married to Ernest.
Due to laws of social etiquette that dominated throughout the Victorian era, they’re both exceedingly polite to one another to maintain the social norms, for example Gwendolen (2000, p.333) says ‘I like you already more than I can say’ within her introduction to Cecily. As the conversation progresses, it’s clear to see that they both believe they’re engaged to the same man, Ernest, yet the dramatic irony is that there is no Ernest, and they’re in fact engaged to two separate men who simply claim to be Ernest. Their reaction to this falsehood is, instead of confronting one another, to maintain their façade and not react to any of the fowl things they do to each other. Cecily deliberately spoils Gwendolen’s tea and cake, and even though it’s blatantly obvious, Gwendolen simply continues the polite façade. This relates to the satire on polite British society as Oscar Wilde is arguably mocking the Victorian attitude towards confrontation and social etiquette by amplifying the absurdity of it. They go to great lengths to avoid the confrontation which contributes to the satirical humour of the play. The hypocrisy is evident in the way in which Gwendolen (2000, p.333) says ‘I like you already more than I can say. My first impressions of people are never wrong’ then goes on to …show more content…
say
From the moment I saw you I distrusted you. I felt that you were false and deceitful. I am never deceived in such matters. My first impressions of people are invariably right (Gwendolen, 2000, p.338)
It could be argued that Gwendolen is claiming to have more noble beliefs than she actually does, she’s as responsible for the confrontation as Cecily is and yet she feels she has the moral high ground. It’s my opinion that she is, in fact, hypocritical and Wilde draws attention to this using satirical humour. Furthermore, Gwendolen is arguably the embodiment of the typical Victorian woman, she’s arguably virtuous, polite and educated in the traditional gender roles, as illustrated in this quote
The home seems to be the proper sphere for the man. And certainly once a man begins to neglect his domestic duties he becomes painfully effeminate, does he not? (2000, p.334)
It’s possible that Gwendolen is used by Wilde to illustrate just how ludicrous the polite British society is. Furthermore, the fact that Cecily and Gwendolen will only love a man if his Christian name is Ernest simply illustrates the shallow nature and hypocrisy in the polite society, Qaisar Iqbal Janjua argues
The false idealism that made both Gwendolen and Cecily fall in love merely with the name of Ernest, shows the hypocrisy and the hollow morals of upper-class society at that time (2010, p.26)
There’s hypocrisy in Algernon’s attitude towards marriage ‘Good heavens!
Is marriage so demoralising as that?’ (2000, p.295) yet, later in the play, he proposes to Cecily ‘I love you, Cecily. You will marry me, won’t you?’ (2000, p.330). The way in which Algernon jumps from one extreme to the other, saying such controversial things such as ‘Divorces are made in heaven’ (2000, p.297) to proposing to a lady he has only just met in person could be Wilde’s use of satire to mock just how absurd the hypocrisy in what is supposed to be a polite British society. Wilde’s attitude towards to hypocrisy is evident in the way he depicts his characters, for example the ones that could be argued to be hypocritical generally have one fatal personality flaw, such as Gwendolen’s desire to marry a man called Ernest, regardless of his personality, and Algernon’s ‘Bunburying’. The way Jack and Algernon act in public is entirely different to the way they actually are, they are perceived as respectable gentlemen in company, yet at home they admit to leading a double life and even glorifying divorce, Felix Liman
argues
This proves that he wanted to show his audience that they are hypocrites because the way they acted in public was different from the way they acted in their private lives. (2012)
It could be that Wilde illuminates these characters in a slightly negative and foolish light as a reflection of his negative attitude towards hypocrisy in the polite British society.
It could be argued that there’s a theme of hypocrisy in the title itself, both Jack and Algernon feel it’s important to be sincere, to be earnest, as it was an attractive quality in the Victorian era. However, both Jack and Algernon are arguably facetious in nature, they both have dual identities, both claiming to be named Ernest, in addition to this there’s nothing earnest in requiring a specific name, it’s almost trivial to think it important to be named Ernest. Walter E Houghton argues
To be in earnest intellectually is to have or to seek to have genuine beliefs about the most fundamental questions in life, and on no account merely to repeat customary and conventional notions insincerely, or to play with ideas or words as if the intellectual life were… a game…(1957, p.218-221)
It’s conceivable that Jack and Algernon are in no way earnest, intellectually by this definition or otherwise. They focus on the menial and by claiming to be earnest, they could be labelled hypocritical, Wilde uses this to mock what the polite British society perceives as earnest, and the importance of it, if there is any.
I believe that it is unquestionably appropriate to consider and explore the idea that The Importance of Being Earnest as satirical on the hypocrisy of ‘polite’ British society. I would even go as far to argue that Wilde used the humour in this play to leave the audience of the time questioning their own hypocrisy.
Word count: 1073
Bibliography
Houghton, W.E (1957) The Victorian Frame of Mind, 1830-1870. United States of America, Yale University Press.
Janjua, Q.I. (2010) Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest (A Critical Analysis by Qaisar Iqbal Janjua) [Internet] Available from: http://www.scribd.com/doc/24940568/Oscar-Wilde-s-the-Importance-of-Being-Earnest-A-Critical-Analysis-by-Qaisar-Iqbal-Janjua [Accessed on 27 October 2013]
Liman, f. (2012) The Importance of Being Earnest as a Satire. [Internet] Available from: http://felixessays.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/the-importance-of-being-earnest-as.html [Accessed on 28 October 2013]
Wilde, O. (2000) The Importance Of Being Earnest and Other Plays. Richard Allen Cave, London, Penguin Books.
It can be argued that Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays (2000) explores in depth the idea of satire on the hypocrisy of ‘polite’ British society. Wilde uses dramatic language to amplify the satirical nature of the play; by using irony and satire he is able to mock the polite Victorian etiquette. The play is set in middle class Victorian London, and was written in 1895. Wilde was renowned for being a dandy and somewhat of an extravert, and so the fact he wrote ‘a trivial comedy for serious people’ (2000, p.291) can be seen as satirical due to his frivolous nature and attitude towards …show more content…
earnestness.
When Gwendolen meets Cecily, they are under the false pretence that both of them are to be married to Ernest.
Due to laws of social etiquette that dominated throughout the Victorian era, they’re both exceedingly polite to one another to maintain the social norms, for example Gwendolen (2000, p.333) says ‘I like you already more than I can say’ within her introduction to Cecily. As the conversation progresses, it’s clear to see that they both believe they’re engaged to the same man, Ernest, yet the dramatic irony is that there is no Ernest, and they’re in fact engaged to two separate men who simply claim to be Ernest. Their reaction to this falsehood is, instead of confronting one another, to maintain their façade and not react to any of the fowl things they do to each other. Cecily deliberately spoils Gwendolen’s tea and cake, and even though it’s blatantly obvious, Gwendolen simply continues the polite façade. This relates to the satire on polite British society as Oscar Wilde is arguably mocking the Victorian attitude towards confrontation and social etiquette by amplifying the absurdity of it. They go to great lengths to avoid the confrontation which contributes to the satirical humour of the play. The hypocrisy is evident in the way in which Gwendolen (2000, p.333) says ‘I like you already more than I can say. My first impressions of people are never wrong’ then goes on to …show more content…
say
From the moment I saw you I distrusted you. I felt that you were false and deceitful. I am never deceived in such matters. My first impressions of people are invariably right (Gwendolen, 2000, p.338)
It could be argued that Gwendolen is claiming to have more noble beliefs than she actually does, she’s as responsible for the confrontation as Cecily is and yet she feels she has the moral high ground. It’s my opinion that she is, in fact, hypocritical and Wilde draws attention to this using satirical humour. Furthermore, Gwendolen is arguably the embodiment of the typical Victorian woman, she’s arguably virtuous, polite and educated in the traditional gender roles, as illustrated in this quote
The home seems to be the proper sphere for the man. And certainly once a man begins to neglect his domestic duties he becomes painfully effeminate, does he not? (2000, p.334)
It’s possible that Gwendolen is used by Wilde to illustrate just how ludicrous the polite British society is. Furthermore, the fact that Cecily and Gwendolen will only love a man if his Christian name is Ernest simply illustrates the shallow nature and hypocrisy in the polite society, Qaisar Iqbal Janjua argues
The false idealism that made both Gwendolen and Cecily fall in love merely with the name of Ernest, shows the hypocrisy and the hollow morals of upper-class society at that time (2010, p.26)
There’s hypocrisy in Algernon’s attitude towards marriage ‘Good heavens!
Is marriage so demoralising as that?’ (2000, p.295) yet, later in the play, he proposes to Cecily ‘I love you, Cecily. You will marry me, won’t you?’ (2000, p.330). The way in which Algernon jumps from one extreme to the other, saying such controversial things such as ‘Divorces are made in heaven’ (2000, p.297) to proposing to a lady he has only just met in person could be Wilde’s use of satire to mock just how absurd the hypocrisy in what is supposed to be a polite British society. Wilde’s attitude towards to hypocrisy is evident in the way he depicts his characters, for example the ones that could be argued to be hypocritical generally have one fatal personality flaw, such as Gwendolen’s desire to marry a man called Ernest, regardless of his personality, and Algernon’s ‘Bunburying’. The way Jack and Algernon act in public is entirely different to the way they actually are, they are perceived as respectable gentlemen in company, yet at home they admit to leading a double life and even glorifying divorce, Felix Liman
argues
This proves that he wanted to show his audience that they are hypocrites because the way they acted in public was different from the way they acted in their private lives. (2012)
It could be that Wilde illuminates these characters in a slightly negative and foolish light as a reflection of his negative attitude towards hypocrisy in the polite British society.
It could be argued that there’s a theme of hypocrisy in the title itself, both Jack and Algernon feel it’s important to be sincere, to be earnest, as it was an attractive quality in the Victorian era. However, both Jack and Algernon are arguably facetious in nature, they both have dual identities, both claiming to be named Ernest, in addition to this there’s nothing earnest in requiring a specific name, it’s almost trivial to think it important to be named Ernest. Walter E Houghton argues
To be in earnest intellectually is to have or to seek to have genuine beliefs about the most fundamental questions in life, and on no account merely to repeat customary and conventional notions insincerely, or to play with ideas or words as if the intellectual life were… a game…(1957, p.218-221)
It’s conceivable that Jack and Algernon are in no way earnest, intellectually by this definition or otherwise. They focus on the menial and by claiming to be earnest, they could be labelled hypocritical, Wilde uses this to mock what the polite British society perceives as earnest, and the importance of it, if there is any.
I believe that it is unquestionably appropriate to consider and explore the idea that The Importance of Being Earnest as satirical on the hypocrisy of ‘polite’ British society. I would even go as far to argue that Wilde used the humour in this play to leave the audience of the time questioning their own hypocrisy.
Word count: 1073
Bibliography
Houghton, W.E (1957) The Victorian Frame of Mind, 1830-1870. United States of America, Yale University Press.
Janjua, Q.I. (2010) Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest (A Critical Analysis by Qaisar Iqbal Janjua) [Internet] Available from: http://www.scribd.com/doc/24940568/Oscar-Wilde-s-the-Importance-of-Being-Earnest-A-Critical-Analysis-by-Qaisar-Iqbal-Janjua [Accessed on 27 October 2013]
Liman, f. (2012) The Importance of Being Earnest as a Satire. [Internet] Available from: http://felixessays.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/the-importance-of-being-earnest-as.html [Accessed on 28 October 2013]
Wilde, O. (2000) The Importance Of Being Earnest and Other Plays. Richard Allen Cave, London, Penguin Books.