WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT 4 ANALYSIS OF HUMOR IN THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST The Importance of Being Earnest is replete with two elements: pun and paradox. These two are played up immensely to present a very humorous approach to cultural criticism. In essence‚ it is a satirical comedy on the aristocratic class during the Victorian Era. The text is full of epigrams that expose the characters’ views on lying‚ marriage‚ reputation‚ society‚ gender‚ romance and love. Additionally‚ the play keeps
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Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest provides a satirical view of the Victorian era‚ primarily focusing on Victorian standards of marriage and social expectations. Wilde builds his critique of Victorian morality through his humor and wit between the character’s banter‚ the hypocritical Victorian view of honesty. Wilde view of Victorian society is illustrated through his wit and humor embedded in the characters’ dialogues. For example‚ Jack and Algernon live double lives as lowlifes
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Clever puns and witty dialectic. That is what you will encounter while reading Oscar Wilde’s play “The Importance of Being Earnest”. But what makes this play so great is not just the characters but the title itself. The title depicts the whole story and foreshadows the main characters’ journey of self-discovery. With a metaphor and some irony Wilde makes the best pun of all‚ the title itself. In the play‚ Ernest deceives Gwendolen‚ who is the love of his life‚ into thinking that he has a brother
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Society is made up by a set of social rules. People within society must conform and act upon these values. Throughout the play “Importance Of Being Earnest‚” Oscar Wilde uses the conventions of The Comedy Of Manners style social customs critiques how society operates within restraints established by society. This paper will examine women roles‚ table manners‚ separation of social class and orderly conduct. Society creates social norms and values for women. They are then restricted to follow these
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the question whether if it is better to be or not to be. The Importance of Being Earnest is a play that uses satirical comedy to analyze aspects of society. Jack‚ Algernon‚ Cecily‚ Gwendolen‚ and Lady Bracknell are all over dramatized representations of the shallow‚ pretentious British upper class. Characters trade smart remarks‚ but they seem oblivious to the humor and absurdity of their statements. In The Importance of Being Earnest‚ the satire of an upper-class Victorian society can also be interpreted
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The Importance of Being Earnest is a well-known play‚ written by an Anglo-Irish playwright‚ novelist‚ poet‚ and critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest playwrights of the Victorian Era. He was born in Dublin on 16 October 1854. In his lifetime he wrote nine plays‚ one novel‚ and numerous poems‚ short stories‚ and essays. Among his work the most popular and well-known are “The Picture of Dorian Gray”‚ “The Importance of Being Earnest”‚ “The Ballad of Reading Gaol”. Wilde was a proponent of
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morals and would also make a mockery out of the high prestigious people of the Victorian society‚ that play was entitled “The Importance of Being Earnest”. In Wilde’s play “The Importance of Being Earnest”‚ Wilde uses comical satire to describe the high society class of the Victorian era‚ were image and social status is important as breathing. “The Importance of Being Earnest” play brought about “light comedy” (Bastiat 53) and the satirical humor that allowed one the look of how marriage‚ the nature
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In Oscar Wilde’s play‚ “The Importance of Being Earnest‚” the traditionally esteemed values of duty‚ honesty‚ and hard work are tossed aside in favor of baser motivations. Pleasure‚ rather than morality‚ is the focus of every decision made by these less than admirable characters. As eloquently stated by Jack‚ “…pleasure‚ pleasure! What else should bring one anywhere?” (1735). The characters treat serious responsibilities such as marriage‚ family‚ and faithfulness as mere trivialities that can be
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The Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest is a satire based on Victorian society in the late 1800’s. Everything about this play is a satire; from marriage to social class‚ and even the play’s name. Wilde criticizes these aspects of Victorian society with the use of witty puns and unusual‚ awkward situations. Wilde brings to light the fact that late Victorian society cared more about a person’s name and wealth than their personality. This debases the sanctity
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Oscar Wilde’s play The Importance of Being Earnest follows Jack and Algernon‚ two young men living in Victorian England‚ whose attempts to court Gwendolen and Cecily are complicated by the fictitious identities they have created to escape social obligations. Over the course of the play‚ their various deceptions are exposed and things get further and further out of hand until a timely revelation brings the matter to a resolution. This play is primarily a satire that serves as a vehicle for Wilde to
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