The Importance Of Being Earnest By Oscar Wilde

The dictionary definition of ‘being earnest’ is having a purpose, being steadily, and somberly eager in pursuing it or having determination. In the play, The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, the author commences showing his audience the significance behind the title through his use of contrasting different ideas and manipulation of alluding to multiple concepts. The irony held the opposite intent of the title that Jack had named himself Earnest, who is neither earnest nor honest yet the author gradually develops the significance behind the developing title. Further, Wilde begins his play by contrasting the different ideas of the country and the city – or Cecily vs. Gwendolen. The country represents sophistication, innocence, and the simple life; the city portrays the excitement of life. Gwendolen in Act 1 proclaims that Jack is, “the most earnest-looking person [she] ever saw in [her] life” (42). Gwendolen and Cecily both have an infatuation with the name Earnest
Thus, the lady refuses Gwendolen to marry Jack unless he finds himself a decent family – later in the play the characters find out that all his lies were the truth and his ‘decent family’ was right in front of him the whole time. It shows he was Earnest throughout the play in which he did not know of, he was un-earnest in being Earnest. Another allusion in furthering the significance of the title is, that of which a ‘quixotic;’ Don Quixote refers to being naïve and unrealistic and whimsical. The context of the allusion was when Algernon asked Cecily if ‘she would reform with him.’ This hopes to make Algernon/ Earnest put aside his immoral ways – as when he is not lying to Gwendolen, he is the best of himself and entirely moral up to his