The Importance of Being Earnest

Drama | Oscar Wilde
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In what way is “The Importance of Being Earnest” a trivial comedy for serious people?

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In what way is “The Importance of Being Earnest” a trivial comedy for serious people? [NU: 2016]  

“The Importance of Being Earnest” (1895) by Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) is called “a trivial comedy for serious people.” The title itself shows Wilde’s aim. He makes serious issues like love, marriage, and class look light, silly, and funny. Yet behind the laughter, he gives a strong social message.

Love and Names: Wilde shows love as both silly and important. Gwendolen insists she can only marry a man named Ernest. In Act I, she says,

 “The only really safe name is Ernest.” 

Here, Love becomes a joke about names, not feelings. Cecily also dreams of marrying “Ernes

t” before even meeting Algernon. These scenes make romance look trivial but also expose shallow Victorian ideas. 

Marriage and Wealth: Marriage is treated like a business in the play. Lady Bracknell does not care about love. She only asks about money, class, and family. In Act I, she remarks,

 “To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness.”

 Her judgment of Jack shows marriage is tied to birth and wealth, not true affection.  

Truth and Hypocrisy: The play mocks lies and double lives. Jack creates a false brother, Ernest.  He says in Act I:

 “I have always pretended to have a younger brother of the name of Ernest.” 

Algernon invents a sick friend, Bunbury. These tricks make the story comic but also reveal hypocrisy. In Act I, Algernon says,

 “The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”  

This line shows how Wilde hides the serious truth under comic paradox.

In short, Wilde’s play is both light and deep. He makes serious themes look trivial and trivial things look serious. Through laughter, Wilde criticizes Victorian love, marriage, and class rules. 

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Oscar Wilde
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from The Importance of Being Earnest