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Importance of being earnest as a social satire

The Satire of The importance of being earnest......

The use of satirical devices such as irony, travesty, sarcasm and farce to ridicule society and the behavior of people in society is quite often successful in questioning the morals and values of the people under observation. In Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Ernest, Wilde mocks the Victorian structure of society in Britain, and the rules it followed in the 1800s. Each character is used by Wilde to satirize the society on such issues like marriage, morality, intelligence, and the appearance versus the nature of something.

Wilde usually satirizes the Victorian society that he lived in with the idea of marriage. Marriage is seen in Victorian society as a business arrangement, as shown when Lady Bracknell questions Jack to determine if he is suitable for Gwendolen, she had provided a list of bachelors that have been prearranged. in addition illustrating the attitude on marriage, Algernon’s speech criticizes the way that married couples behaved towards eachanother by using sharp wit and sarcasm. The quick banter between Algernon and Jack expresses marriage as a travesty, while Algernon also mocks the entirety of marriage through cynicism concerning the nature of romance in marriage. Jack compares Algernon’s views, as he attempts to romanticize his proposal as much as possible, despite how the nearby characters respond.

Algernon: My dear fellow, the way you flirt with Gwendolen is perfectly disgraceful. It is almost as bad as the way Gwendolen flirts with you.

Jack: I am in love with Gwendolen. I have come up to town expressly to propose to her.

Algernon: I thought you had come up for pleasure? … I call that business.

Jack: How utterly unromantic you are!

Algernon: I really don't see anything romantic in proposing. It is very romantic to be in love. But there is nothing romantic about a definite proposal. Why, one may be accepted. One usually is, I believe. Then the excitement is all over. The very essence of romance is uncertainty. If ever I get married , I'll certainly try to forget the fact.

(Act 1, 30)

Adding to his witty dialogue, Algernon comments on the pretense of the Victorian society, which lives by the rules and regulations as well as the logic of morality the people pretend to follow. The name “Ernest” is thought of to be connected to kindness, sincerity and intense conviction, however instead both Jack and Algernon lie by using the name to get what they want. By the use of this name to describe themselves, they turn into hypocrites, which parallels to people in society back then and to this day, while majority of people will do whatever they must to obtain their desires.

Moreover, the morality of society is intended to be earnest, but as an alternative Wilde creates it as truly impertinent, clearly masked behind good appearances and excellent manners. With the opening Jack’s cigarette case, Algernon acts ungentlemanly and hence acts against what is polite according to the standards put in place in that time period time period, which also breaks the barrier of morality, as in the society in which he lives which holds fast to the standards of whats moral is always polite and whats impolite is always irreverent. Criticizing this norm, Algernon disputes that’s “More than half of modern culture depends on what one shouldn’t read.” (Act 1, 32)

Because of the fact that good appearances are kept up in Victorian society intelligence isnt necessary. Even though wit can be useful for conversation, the way of life in the time period required a comprehensive adherence to the standards put into place without question and without a particular ignorance, this cooperation is impossible. Lady Bracknell expresses this through burlesque comedy, she expresses that if education interferes with the absolute obedience of the society, there would be indignation and disorder and that its best to be submissive and ignorant.

I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural ignorance. Ignorance is like a delicate exotic fruit; touch it and the bloom is gone. The whole theory of modern education is radically unsound. Fortunately in England, at any rate, education produces no effect whatsoever. If it did, it would prove a serious danger to the upper classes, and probably lead to acts of violence in Grosvenor Square. (Act 1, 45)

The particular subjects of social life used to satirize Britian in the Victorian era by Oscar Wilde in The Importance of Being Ernest, such as marriage, morality and intelligence are derided through situational irony and wordplay throughout the whole piece. Each character is used to ridicule the state that society is in and morals that the Victorian era followed. Wilde is successful in satirizing Britian through sarcasm, wit and cynicism in the hopes of getting his opinion of society across.
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