why does it feel like every line ever written by oscar wilde is laced with drugs ? (in the best way possible)

The Importance of Being Earnest is a brilliantly written comedy by Oscar Wilde. With his customary wit and humour, he ridicules Victorian morality and conventions and questions the hypocrisy of the Victorian institution of marriage and the "requirements" that need to be fulfilled to form a suitable alliance. Through the play, Wilde exposes the superficiality of the upper-class Victorian society. The satirical dialogues of Algernon and Lady Bracknell show how false and nonsensical the attitudes o...

“We live in an age of ideals” Wilde is a genius. This play is genius. What a penetrating critique of high Victorian society this becomes; but rather than being a dull argument or essay, it takes on the body of a hilarious play. This is just absurd, outrageous and straight to the point. This picture says it all to me:Jack undergoes a great deal of social mobility prior to the events of the play; however, Bracknell, who represents the rigidness of British aristocracy, is very alarmed that such ...

The Importance of Being Honest. Jack Worthing lives a double life, being “Jack” in the countryside, and "Earnest" in the city. When his best friend Algernon Moncrief decides to impersonate "Earnest" for his own benefit, things get complicated. And when they each fall in love with Gwendolen Fairfax and Cecily Cardew, respectively, things quickly spiral out of control. Not even together they can make one single "Earnest". Being Earnest Honest I must admit that, though entertaining, I never got t...

This 1895 play about mistaken and hidden identities is my favorite by Oscar Wilde. One of the wittiest plays ever!Algernon is visited in his town home by his friend Ernest, who intends to propose to Algernon's cousin Gwendolen. Algernon manages to dig out his friend's secret: his name is actually Jack.Jack has an 18 year old ward, Cecily, who lives in his country home. So he uses the name Ernest when he is in town so he can live it up a little, and then tells Cecily about his wastrel younger bro...

Every line in The Importance of Being Earnest is an absolute gem. Remember these?“All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does, and that is his.” “I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train.” “No woman should ever be quite accurate about her age. It looks so calculating.” Just three for a start - I had not realised quite how many of Oscar Wilde's bon mots originated in this particular play, which is subtitled, A ...

Algernon (Algy) Moncrieff, is being visited, by his enigmatic friend, Ernest Worthing, that is "Ernest" in town and Jack (John), in the country. It's a long story, but we have time, Mr. Worthing, likes to go to town! Get as far as possible, away from his stifling, depressing, responsibilities at home, change his name to Ernest and becomes his younger brother ( who doesn't exist). Do the wrong things, everybody has secrets, still lies in fact, flow like maple syrup on pancakes, from his lips. Tha...

“If you are not too long, I will wait for you all my life.”Ah, Mr Wilde can always be counted on to make me laugh, to poke fun at the ridiculousness of human behaviour, to tell a story that is both incredibly clever and undeniably silly. The Importance of Being Earnest is a play about mistaken identity, lies, the English class system, and the never-ending vanity and selfishness of high society members. And it's hilarious. It's one of few pre-20th century comedies to have maintained it's laugh fa...

When I was quite young – I guess, if you were of a mind to, you might say it was a generation ago – I was listening to a radio program and for some reason they decided to do the handbag scene from The Importance of Being Earnest. I’d heard of the play before, obviously, but only the name. I had thought it would be some terribly dreary thing, having no idea just how funny a man Wilde was. The guy on the radio gave it quite a build up – saying something to the effect that this scene is not just on...

If you try to take this literally, it is ludicrous, so don’t. It is a delicately crafted confection of spun sugar: sweet but sharp, beautiful, brittle, and engineered to amuse. “An iridescent filament of fantasy”, as critic William Archer described the opening performance on Valentine’s Day 1895. “In matters of grave importance, style, not sincerity, is the vital thing.” Gwendolen This play is a social comedy that celebrates surfaces: the flexible importance of etiquette (as long as it's under...