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10-27-2007, 05:19 PM
1*An Artificial, Farcical Comedy:
This kind of comedy is entirely lacking in truth to nature, and it creates an artificial , imaginary, world.
The Importance of Being Earnest is characterized by exaggeration and extravagance both in its plot and its dialogue to the point of ridicule.
2*The Farcical Situation of a Baby Found in a Hand-Bag:
The distinguishing feature of a farcical comedy is exaggeration to the point of absurdity. Now, most of the situations in The Importance of Being Earnest are absurd and they amuse us by their very absurdity. The central situation about which the play hinges is Jack’s having been found in a hand-bag in the cloak-room of a railway station in London. Jack is thus a foundling.
The fact of being a foundling is not by itself absurd. What is absurd is that Miss Prism, the nurse, committed a blunder by putting the child in a hand-bag and the three-volume novel written by her in the perambulator instead of putting the manu****** in the hand-bag and letting the child remain in the perambulator. Now, it is impossible for us to believe that any body, on matter how absent-minded, can commit a blunder of that kind. That is not the only absurdity. We do not understand why , after having committed that blunder, Miss Prism did not go back to her employers to report the loss of the child and why she simply disappeared from the scene.
3*The Absurdity of Gwendolen's Rapturous Reaction to the Name "Ernest":
Another absurdity which could be found only in a farcical comedy is Gwendolen's rapturous reaction to the name of Ernest. She tells Jack that it had always been her ideal to love some one of the name of Ernest because there is something in this name that inspires absolute confidence. She adds that the moment her cousin Algernon first mentioned to her the fact that he had a friend called Ernest; she knew that she was destined to love the man having that name. He always had an irresistible fascination for her, she says. She also makes it clear that she could not love a man with any other name. The name Jack, for instance, is not acceptable to her. Gwendolen pities any woman who is married to a man called John because such a woman would never enjoy the pleasure of a single moment's solitude. The name Ernest, she says, is a divine name, with a music of its own. It is a name that produces vibrations. All Gwendolen's comments on the name Ernest are absurd, but this very talk constitutes one of the comic highlights of the play.
4*The Absurdity of Cecily's Having Fallen in Love With Algernon:
Another absurdity in this farcical comedy is Cecily's similar reaction to the name Ernest. Cecily says that there is something in the name Ernest which seems to inspire absolute confidence, and she pities any poor married woman whose husband is not called Ernest. She says that it had always been a girlish dream of hers to love some one whose name was Ernest. Cecily's reaction to the name of Ernest is absurd like Gwendolen's reaction to that name. Not only that, the absurdity in Cecily's case is further heightened by the account she gives to Algy of how she fell in love with him and got engaged to him in her imagination. She tells Algernon that she had become engaged to him on the 14th of February, about three months ago, and that the next day she had bought an engagement ring in his name which she promised him in her imagination always to wear. The absurdity does not end here, Cecily has also been writing letters to her lover, and been replying to those letters on his behalf. She always wrote three times a week, and sometimes oftener. On one occasion she broke off her engagement with him because of a quarrel, but she forgave him within the same week and got engaged to him again.
5*The Realistic Elements in the Play :
In spite of so many absurdities in this play ,it must be admitted that there are a number of realistic and credible situations and happenings in the play also . For instance;1-There is nothing , absurd or fantastic about Algernon's invention of Bunbury and Jack's invention of a younger brother called Ernest . We all seek excuse for some of our unusual or objectionable activities , and both Algernon and Jack have created two persons in order to cover up their escapades. 2- Lady Bracknell's reaction to Jack's account of his origin is also perfectly believable . No society would agree to the marriage of a daughter with a man whose parentage is not known. 3- Lady Bracknell's reaction to the fact that Cecily has a large amount of money in her name is also perfectly believable , because a bride who can bring a rich dowry is always acceptable to people. 4- There is nothing fantastic about the three love-affairs in the play also . It is perfectly natural for Jack to be in love with Gwendolen ,for Algernon to fall in love with Cecily as soon as he sees her , and for Dr.Chasuble to be attracted by Miss Prism and to marry her.
6* A Trivial Comedy for Serious People :
Wilde described the play as a trivial comedy , and he was right ;but he also described it as a trivial comedy for serious people ,which is a paradox characteristic of Wilde . How can a trivial comedy appeal to serious people ? .Perhaps Wilde meant that even serious people would be moved to laughter by the comedy of this play .Or, perhaps, he meant that ,though it was a trivial comedy, it did convey certain ideas which might interest serious people. Wilde wants both the audiences of his comic play and the serious people to have interest in his play . Although Wilde is described as a trivial , he can be a writer of artificial comedy which brings thinking.
*The serious ideas in the play:-
1-The relatives are a pack of tedious people is another observation containing a large measure of truth.2-Another serious element in the play is the portrayal of Lady Bracknell as a snobbish woman with a mercenary outlook. This portrayal is a satirical attack on social snobbery, class-consciousness, and greed for money.3- The portrayal of Dr. Chasuble may also be taken in a serious light as a satirical picture of the hypocrisy and shallowness of certain members of the clergy .4-Furthermore , the play also poses the problem as to how Jack should have been treated by society if he had really been an abandoned, illegitimate child.
7* The Parallelisms in the Play:
1-Jack has invented a very useful younger brother called Ernest , in order that he might be able to go to London as often as he likes in order to meet Gwendolen and also for a change to relieve the monotony of his life at his country residence . In the same way Algernon has invented a valuable permanent invalid called Bunbury in order that he might be able to go down into the country whenever he pleases in order to escape from the social whirl of London and especially from the boring dinner-parties of his aunt , Lady Bracknell.2-Yet another example of parallelism is the readiness of both Jack and Algernon to acquire the name of Ernest and to change their names only, even though it is eventually found unnecessary for either of them to undergo that ceremony .3-Both Jack and Algernon get rid of their invented persons . While Jack gets rid of his brother , Algy gets rid of his friend after loving their beloveds.
1-The reaction of Gwendolen and Cecily to the name "Ernest". Both girls almost rapturous over this name . Both find that this name is one which inspires absolute confidence . It had been Gwendolen's ideal to marry someone by the name Ernest , and it had been the girlish dream of Cecily to do the same .2-Yet another example of parallelism is that both Gwendolen and Cecily maintain diaries, though for different reasons. Gwendolen keeps her diary with her on her railway journeys in order to be able to read something sensational, while Cecily records in her diary what she calls "the wonderful secrets" of her life as well as the words of praise of her beauty spoken by her admirer Algernon.
8*The Targets of Satire in This Play:
A satire is a humorous or witty exposure of human failings, weakness, follies , absurdities, and pretensions.
9* The satirical Portrayal of Algernon:
He is a typical representative of the English upper class of the time , and he has been portrayed in a satirical manner. His shallowness, irresponsibility, extravagance, and vanity have been exposed in such a manner as to make us laugh at this specimen of the aristocracy. He throws expensive parties, even though he admits that he is short of money. In fact , he is in a state of indebtedness. As lady Bracknell points out” he has nothing but his debts to depend upon . Another trail of character which is satirically treated is his gluttony . As Jack points out , this man is always hungry and is always eating . He wants Jack to invite him to dinner at an expensive restaurant. One would think that eating is his main hobby . Algernon is a fashionable man , and is always over-dressed . As Lady Bracknell points out , Algernon “is nothing but he looks every thing”. According to Jack, Algernon has a ridiculous vanity. His vanity is seen also in his claim that he plays on the piano with wonderful expression. In short, the whole portrayal of Algernon is satirical , his only commendable and admirable quality being his brilliant wit.
10* The Satirical Portrayal of Lady Bracknell :
The portrayal of Lady Bracknell is perhaps the most satirical of all. In this case the author simply gloats the foibles and absurdities of the upper-class ladies of his time . Lady Bracknell claims to have a taste for music , but she would like her nephew to make the selection of the numbers to be played at her party .In other words, her taste in music is simply a pretence. Her principal absurdities are her snobbery , her class-consciousness , her mercenary outlook on life ,her suspicious nature and her domineering temperament .E.G.; The manner in which she cross-examines Jack to determine his suitability as her son-in-law shows both her suspicious nature and her domineering temperament . The importance of money in her eyes because , as soon as she learns that Cecily will bring a rich dowry , she begins to see in Cecily certain qualities which she had not observed before . Her domineering nature appears also in the manner in which she exercises rigid control over her daughter and her own husband ,and this aspect of her life is also ridiculed by the author.
11* The satirical portrayal of Miss Prism :
Miss Prism amuses us by her literary pretensions. She once wrote a three-volume novel which she deposited in the perambulator while she put the baby under her charge in a hand-bag which she placed in a railway cloak -room . Nothing could be more absurd than this behaviour which is supposed to have resulted from her absent-mindedness. In addition to her literary pretensions, she also has moral pretensions which she shows in her dislike of the wicked younger brother of Jack Worthing and in her feeling of joy at the reported death of that wicked fellow.
12-Witty Epigrams in the play.
The definition
An epigram is an interesting or amusing thought expressed in a few words. Or, an epigram may be defined as a short, pointed saying , ingenious in thought and clever in expression .E.G.;
1-Jack gives us an epigram when he says: “When one is in town one amuses oneself. When one is in the country one amuses other people.”.
2-Cecily makes an epigrammatic remark when she says: “Of course, a man who is much talked about is always very attractive. One feels there must be something in him, after all.”.
13-Irony in the play:
The definition of comic irony:The essence of comic irony is mockery or deception of one kind or another, and its force derives from the pleasure in contrasting”appearances”with”reality”.There are various types of comic irony.
1-The verbal irony The simplest and the most commonly used is verbal irony which occurs when the speaker says the opposite of what he means.E.g.;Jack’s remark to Lady Bracknell:”How extremely kind of you”when Lady Bracknell says that she is satisfied with certain particulars about Cecily, is ironical.
2-The ridicule irony: Irony also means a kind of ridicule which exposes the errors or faults of others by seeming to approve or defend them.There is irony in Cecily’s remark to Miss Prism:”You know German and geology, and things of that kind influence a man very much.” (Here Cecily is ridiculing Miss Prism’s self-conceit about her knowledge of German and geology).
3-The dramatic irony: Comic irony also exists in a clash between one aspect and another of some double situation, the whole of which is understood by the reader and some of the characters, while other characters are ignorant of it . An obvious example is Algernon’s coming to Jack’s country house under the assumed name of Ernest and pretending to be Jack’s younger brother. Here the reader, as well as Algernon and Jack, knows the reality, but Cecily and the others do not.
This kind of comedy is entirely lacking in truth to nature, and it creates an artificial , imaginary, world.
The Importance of Being Earnest is characterized by exaggeration and extravagance both in its plot and its dialogue to the point of ridicule.
2*The Farcical Situation of a Baby Found in a Hand-Bag:
The distinguishing feature of a farcical comedy is exaggeration to the point of absurdity. Now, most of the situations in The Importance of Being Earnest are absurd and they amuse us by their very absurdity. The central situation about which the play hinges is Jack’s having been found in a hand-bag in the cloak-room of a railway station in London. Jack is thus a foundling.
The fact of being a foundling is not by itself absurd. What is absurd is that Miss Prism, the nurse, committed a blunder by putting the child in a hand-bag and the three-volume novel written by her in the perambulator instead of putting the manu****** in the hand-bag and letting the child remain in the perambulator. Now, it is impossible for us to believe that any body, on matter how absent-minded, can commit a blunder of that kind. That is not the only absurdity. We do not understand why , after having committed that blunder, Miss Prism did not go back to her employers to report the loss of the child and why she simply disappeared from the scene.
3*The Absurdity of Gwendolen's Rapturous Reaction to the Name "Ernest":
Another absurdity which could be found only in a farcical comedy is Gwendolen's rapturous reaction to the name of Ernest. She tells Jack that it had always been her ideal to love some one of the name of Ernest because there is something in this name that inspires absolute confidence. She adds that the moment her cousin Algernon first mentioned to her the fact that he had a friend called Ernest; she knew that she was destined to love the man having that name. He always had an irresistible fascination for her, she says. She also makes it clear that she could not love a man with any other name. The name Jack, for instance, is not acceptable to her. Gwendolen pities any woman who is married to a man called John because such a woman would never enjoy the pleasure of a single moment's solitude. The name Ernest, she says, is a divine name, with a music of its own. It is a name that produces vibrations. All Gwendolen's comments on the name Ernest are absurd, but this very talk constitutes one of the comic highlights of the play.
4*The Absurdity of Cecily's Having Fallen in Love With Algernon:
Another absurdity in this farcical comedy is Cecily's similar reaction to the name Ernest. Cecily says that there is something in the name Ernest which seems to inspire absolute confidence, and she pities any poor married woman whose husband is not called Ernest. She says that it had always been a girlish dream of hers to love some one whose name was Ernest. Cecily's reaction to the name of Ernest is absurd like Gwendolen's reaction to that name. Not only that, the absurdity in Cecily's case is further heightened by the account she gives to Algy of how she fell in love with him and got engaged to him in her imagination. She tells Algernon that she had become engaged to him on the 14th of February, about three months ago, and that the next day she had bought an engagement ring in his name which she promised him in her imagination always to wear. The absurdity does not end here, Cecily has also been writing letters to her lover, and been replying to those letters on his behalf. She always wrote three times a week, and sometimes oftener. On one occasion she broke off her engagement with him because of a quarrel, but she forgave him within the same week and got engaged to him again.
5*The Realistic Elements in the Play :
In spite of so many absurdities in this play ,it must be admitted that there are a number of realistic and credible situations and happenings in the play also . For instance;1-There is nothing , absurd or fantastic about Algernon's invention of Bunbury and Jack's invention of a younger brother called Ernest . We all seek excuse for some of our unusual or objectionable activities , and both Algernon and Jack have created two persons in order to cover up their escapades. 2- Lady Bracknell's reaction to Jack's account of his origin is also perfectly believable . No society would agree to the marriage of a daughter with a man whose parentage is not known. 3- Lady Bracknell's reaction to the fact that Cecily has a large amount of money in her name is also perfectly believable , because a bride who can bring a rich dowry is always acceptable to people. 4- There is nothing fantastic about the three love-affairs in the play also . It is perfectly natural for Jack to be in love with Gwendolen ,for Algernon to fall in love with Cecily as soon as he sees her , and for Dr.Chasuble to be attracted by Miss Prism and to marry her.
6* A Trivial Comedy for Serious People :
Wilde described the play as a trivial comedy , and he was right ;but he also described it as a trivial comedy for serious people ,which is a paradox characteristic of Wilde . How can a trivial comedy appeal to serious people ? .Perhaps Wilde meant that even serious people would be moved to laughter by the comedy of this play .Or, perhaps, he meant that ,though it was a trivial comedy, it did convey certain ideas which might interest serious people. Wilde wants both the audiences of his comic play and the serious people to have interest in his play . Although Wilde is described as a trivial , he can be a writer of artificial comedy which brings thinking.
*The serious ideas in the play:-
1-The relatives are a pack of tedious people is another observation containing a large measure of truth.2-Another serious element in the play is the portrayal of Lady Bracknell as a snobbish woman with a mercenary outlook. This portrayal is a satirical attack on social snobbery, class-consciousness, and greed for money.3- The portrayal of Dr. Chasuble may also be taken in a serious light as a satirical picture of the hypocrisy and shallowness of certain members of the clergy .4-Furthermore , the play also poses the problem as to how Jack should have been treated by society if he had really been an abandoned, illegitimate child.
7* The Parallelisms in the Play:
1-Jack has invented a very useful younger brother called Ernest , in order that he might be able to go to London as often as he likes in order to meet Gwendolen and also for a change to relieve the monotony of his life at his country residence . In the same way Algernon has invented a valuable permanent invalid called Bunbury in order that he might be able to go down into the country whenever he pleases in order to escape from the social whirl of London and especially from the boring dinner-parties of his aunt , Lady Bracknell.2-Yet another example of parallelism is the readiness of both Jack and Algernon to acquire the name of Ernest and to change their names only, even though it is eventually found unnecessary for either of them to undergo that ceremony .3-Both Jack and Algernon get rid of their invented persons . While Jack gets rid of his brother , Algy gets rid of his friend after loving their beloveds.
1-The reaction of Gwendolen and Cecily to the name "Ernest". Both girls almost rapturous over this name . Both find that this name is one which inspires absolute confidence . It had been Gwendolen's ideal to marry someone by the name Ernest , and it had been the girlish dream of Cecily to do the same .2-Yet another example of parallelism is that both Gwendolen and Cecily maintain diaries, though for different reasons. Gwendolen keeps her diary with her on her railway journeys in order to be able to read something sensational, while Cecily records in her diary what she calls "the wonderful secrets" of her life as well as the words of praise of her beauty spoken by her admirer Algernon.
8*The Targets of Satire in This Play:
A satire is a humorous or witty exposure of human failings, weakness, follies , absurdities, and pretensions.
9* The satirical Portrayal of Algernon:
He is a typical representative of the English upper class of the time , and he has been portrayed in a satirical manner. His shallowness, irresponsibility, extravagance, and vanity have been exposed in such a manner as to make us laugh at this specimen of the aristocracy. He throws expensive parties, even though he admits that he is short of money. In fact , he is in a state of indebtedness. As lady Bracknell points out” he has nothing but his debts to depend upon . Another trail of character which is satirically treated is his gluttony . As Jack points out , this man is always hungry and is always eating . He wants Jack to invite him to dinner at an expensive restaurant. One would think that eating is his main hobby . Algernon is a fashionable man , and is always over-dressed . As Lady Bracknell points out , Algernon “is nothing but he looks every thing”. According to Jack, Algernon has a ridiculous vanity. His vanity is seen also in his claim that he plays on the piano with wonderful expression. In short, the whole portrayal of Algernon is satirical , his only commendable and admirable quality being his brilliant wit.
10* The Satirical Portrayal of Lady Bracknell :
The portrayal of Lady Bracknell is perhaps the most satirical of all. In this case the author simply gloats the foibles and absurdities of the upper-class ladies of his time . Lady Bracknell claims to have a taste for music , but she would like her nephew to make the selection of the numbers to be played at her party .In other words, her taste in music is simply a pretence. Her principal absurdities are her snobbery , her class-consciousness , her mercenary outlook on life ,her suspicious nature and her domineering temperament .E.G.; The manner in which she cross-examines Jack to determine his suitability as her son-in-law shows both her suspicious nature and her domineering temperament . The importance of money in her eyes because , as soon as she learns that Cecily will bring a rich dowry , she begins to see in Cecily certain qualities which she had not observed before . Her domineering nature appears also in the manner in which she exercises rigid control over her daughter and her own husband ,and this aspect of her life is also ridiculed by the author.
11* The satirical portrayal of Miss Prism :
Miss Prism amuses us by her literary pretensions. She once wrote a three-volume novel which she deposited in the perambulator while she put the baby under her charge in a hand-bag which she placed in a railway cloak -room . Nothing could be more absurd than this behaviour which is supposed to have resulted from her absent-mindedness. In addition to her literary pretensions, she also has moral pretensions which she shows in her dislike of the wicked younger brother of Jack Worthing and in her feeling of joy at the reported death of that wicked fellow.
12-Witty Epigrams in the play.
The definition
An epigram is an interesting or amusing thought expressed in a few words. Or, an epigram may be defined as a short, pointed saying , ingenious in thought and clever in expression .E.G.;
1-Jack gives us an epigram when he says: “When one is in town one amuses oneself. When one is in the country one amuses other people.”.
2-Cecily makes an epigrammatic remark when she says: “Of course, a man who is much talked about is always very attractive. One feels there must be something in him, after all.”.
13-Irony in the play:
The definition of comic irony:The essence of comic irony is mockery or deception of one kind or another, and its force derives from the pleasure in contrasting”appearances”with”reality”.There are various types of comic irony.
1-The verbal irony The simplest and the most commonly used is verbal irony which occurs when the speaker says the opposite of what he means.E.g.;Jack’s remark to Lady Bracknell:”How extremely kind of you”when Lady Bracknell says that she is satisfied with certain particulars about Cecily, is ironical.
2-The ridicule irony: Irony also means a kind of ridicule which exposes the errors or faults of others by seeming to approve or defend them.There is irony in Cecily’s remark to Miss Prism:”You know German and geology, and things of that kind influence a man very much.” (Here Cecily is ridiculing Miss Prism’s self-conceit about her knowledge of German and geology).
3-The dramatic irony: Comic irony also exists in a clash between one aspect and another of some double situation, the whole of which is understood by the reader and some of the characters, while other characters are ignorant of it . An obvious example is Algernon’s coming to Jack’s country house under the assumed name of Ernest and pretending to be Jack’s younger brother. Here the reader, as well as Algernon and Jack, knows the reality, but Cecily and the others do not.