The Importance of Not Being Earnest
The Importance of Not Being Earnest
Oscar Wilde's hilarious play, "The Importance of Being Earnest," is based in Victorian England and follows the story of Mr. Jack Worthing; a lovesick man who lies regarding his identity so he may escape to the city. While his lies start unraveling, chaos breaks out. In the last line of the play, Jack claims that,"he has learned the vital importance of being earnest." This conclusion brings the reader to wonder, does a tiger ever change it's stripes? Does the truth actually set one free? And did Jack really ever tell the truth about himself? It is clear that Jack, Ernest, or whatever you want to call him, never learned the importance of being earnest.
To begin, not Jack's, nor anyone's, personality can drastically change in a few minutes; to say that it can is popostperous. In Wilde's "The Impotance of Being Earnest," Jack literally learned that 'bunburying' is wrong in a couple pages. It is also true to say that a person's personality is based off their moral character. Children are raised with certian traits that can alter their political and religious views, above all, resulting in their personality. Because lying has to do with morals, it is a part of a person's character and reflects other traits. Most people "...never change, except in [their] affections" (188). In that way, Jack's lying personality can never change. To conclude, lying is part of Jack's personality, and personality does not change, therefore, it is impossible for Jack to have learned the importance of being earnest.
Pursuing this further, Jack did not learn the importance of honesty because he would have nothing in return from it. It is simple to say that humans can be very selfish, especially the Upper Class in Victorian England.While this is clear, it is not clear to imply that Jack suddenly became nt selfish, as discussed in the previous point. While there was an immediate gain from Jack muttering the words, "I have now learned the vital
Oscar Wilde's hilarious play, "The Importance of Being Earnest," is based in Victorian England and follows the story of Mr. Jack Worthing; a lovesick man who lies regarding his identity so he may escape to the city. While his lies start unraveling, chaos breaks out. In the last line of the play, Jack claims that,"he has learned the vital importance of being earnest." This conclusion brings the reader to wonder, does a tiger ever change it's stripes? Does the truth actually set one free? And did Jack really ever tell the truth about himself? It is clear that Jack, Ernest, or whatever you want to call him, never learned the importance of being earnest.
To begin, not Jack's, nor anyone's, personality can drastically change in a few minutes; to say that it can is popostperous. In Wilde's "The Impotance of Being Earnest," Jack literally learned that 'bunburying' is wrong in a couple pages. It is also true to say that a person's personality is based off their moral character. Children are raised with certian traits that can alter their political and religious views, above all, resulting in their personality. Because lying has to do with morals, it is a part of a person's character and reflects other traits. Most people "...never change, except in [their] affections" (188). In that way, Jack's lying personality can never change. To conclude, lying is part of Jack's personality, and personality does not change, therefore, it is impossible for Jack to have learned the importance of being earnest.
Pursuing this further, Jack did not learn the importance of honesty because he would have nothing in return from it. It is simple to say that humans can be very selfish, especially the Upper Class in Victorian England.While this is clear, it is not clear to imply that Jack suddenly became nt selfish, as discussed in the previous point. While there was an immediate gain from Jack muttering the words, "I have now learned the vital