The Importance of Being Earnest
By Oscar Wilde
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The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. This hilarious comedy is a satire on the Victorian Era where the protagonists pretend to be a fictional character, Ernest in order to escape social obligations.
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was born on the 16th October 1854 and died on the 30th November 1900. He was an Irish playwright, poet, and author of numerous short stories and one novel. Known for his biting wit, he became one of the most successful playwrights of the late Victorian era in London, and one of the greatest celebrities of his day. Several of his plays continue to be widely performed, especially The Importance of Being Earnest.
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Reviews for The Importance of Being Earnest
2,485 ratings92 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I've always enjoyed this play and couldn't turn down the opportunity to listen to this audio production with James Marsters (SPIKE!) in one of the lead roles. The play remains as funny and charming as ever, and while not all of the actors rocked the English accent as well as others, it was a delightful and fast listen. Highly recommended.
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5A cute little trifle, just a middle-of-the-road blip, though. At least now I can say I’ve been exposed to it, and exposure is good - unless you’re arrested for it, or die from it.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is a very different portrait of Victorian England. A play where every protagonist is an antagonist, and vice versa. There are no bad guys, there are no good guys, there are only people. Oscar Wilde's characters have not the unforgettable personalities of Dickens nor the impressive realism of Tolstoy, yet they are somehow undeniably human. Lovable, relatable, susceptible, and somewhat incorrigible. This is a satire, an attempt to poke fun at himself and his culture. Wilde jabs and jokes from the title to the last sentence. You cannot go a paragraph without encountering some witty line or clever pun. His main character (Jack) is a picture of the Victorian dandy: Elegant, refined, philanthropic - yet also ( surprise surprise) a hypocrite and a liar. The other lead man, Algernon ( who most definitely steals the show in my humble opinion) is less of a picturesque Victorian gentleman. He is more dandy with a heavy helping of Oscar's own "wilde" personality" ( excuse the horrid pun, I think one pun is permissible in a review of the "punniest play in the English language"). He leads the same sort of life as Jack, and yet his actions do not effect others quite as profoundly. He is a soloist, his mistakes are all games, and as such are stamped with approval by the author. In the end, this book is an extremely funny fun-read. Although he does jest and joke, he makes no profound statements or analysis of anything. He makes no strong points, and doesn't seem to have any purpose beyond just writing a really funny play. This is not the sort of thing that you read and then muse over for an hour feeling really good about yourself and thinking "Wow, I am much smarter then when I first opened the cover" ( I'd head over to War and Peace or any Dostoevsky/Tolstoy novel if that is what your looking for). And yet there is a time and a season for the short, complicated, and extremely hilarious "love story" that Oscar Wilde has provided for us. My only advice is to read this in a private place. Apparently (based on the queer face expressions of local librarians and other patrons ) reading a book while stifling laughter and occasionally breaking out into giggles is not acceptable, at least not in my hometown library.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Oscar Wilde's wit is brilliant and unmatched.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5You can’t beat Oscar Wilde when it comes to witty dialogue. The playwright mastered the art form of clever repartee and The Importance of Being Earnest is the best example of that talent.Two bachelors, Jack and Algernon, both find themselves pretending to be someone they are not in order to get what they want. Their actions cause confusion and cat fights when two ladies, Gwendolen and Cecily find themselves falling for the fictional “Earnest.” Top it off with the indomitable Lady Bracknell, whose matchmaking skills rely heavily on evaluating someone’s social standing and you’ve got a recipe for hilarity. I’ve always loved this play and rereading it was a treat. I also had the chance to finally see it performed in May and I loved it. That version set the story in the 1990s instead of the 1890s, but the text was exactly the same, which reminded me that romantic comedies really haven’t changed too much. This play also contains many of Wilde’s most infamous lines. Here’s a few of my favorites:“I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train.” “To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness.”“I'll bet you anything you like that half an hour after they have met, they will be calling each other sister.Women only do that when they have called each other a lot of other things first.”BOTTOM LINE: Read it! It’s a quick and delightful play.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Probably Oscar Wilde's most famous play, and certainly one of his best works. The story revolves around a couple of society gentlemen who have fallen in love with women who have the idea that they should marry a man by the name of Ernest. Since neither of the young men are named Ernest, this leads to a lot of pretense, and suddenly the world is blessed with two Ernest Worthingtons. The resolution might seem somewhat contrived, but since the entire play is a satire, this can be forgiven, since it is intended to appear that way. A fun work, and a quick read.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Aha! So THIS is what Wodehouse was trying to do. Algernon > Jeeves
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5One of the awesome book I have ever read! Though the story was simple but the way it was presented by Oscar wilde was brilliant! It’s very difficult to put down this book once you start. Definitely a treat for those who love humor genre! Enjoyed every bit of it!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Another book for my RL book club, and one I was hugely excited about, the book being a Wilde after all. While I won't go as far as to say Plays aren't my thing, they are definitely not my staple reading either. There have been a number of plays I have read and enjoyed, but I always have suspected in it being my luck more than anything else, in picking those plays - not to mention, the not-so-decent plays are thankfully, easily forgotten. The witticism, the cynicism, the antipathy, were all there as they could be expected to be and the play more or less delivered to my ridiculously high expectations. And the quotes, oh the quotes! "The good ended happily, and the bad unhappily. That is what Fiction means."“My dear fellow, the truth isn’t quite the sort of thing one tells to a nice, sweet, refined girl. What extraordinary ideas you have about the way to behave to a woman!” “Never speak disrespectfully of Society, Algernon. Only people who can’t get into it do that.” ...and there were many more...5/5
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This was my first experience of an Oscar Wilde play and it definitely exceeded my expectations. This was well-written, witty and intelligent, with charming characters and a great plot. I will definitely be picking up more Wilde in the future.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5“I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train.” A play should of course for maximum benefit be expereinced in the theatre. The next best thing would be to buy an audiobook - the L.A. Theatre Works performing The Importance of Being Earnest with live audience. It’s such a delight - have there been written a more funnier play? With Oscar Wilde’s famous quips and witty remarks - this story of mistaken identities in upper class british society display an exuberance of life and high spirits. “Never speak disrespectfully of Society, Algernon. Only people who can’t get into it do that.” I think everyone in this production is in top form - and specially Lady Bracknell played by Margaret Scudamore. “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.”
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Witty and so clever. I do love when societal norms are questioned. I watched the movie shortly after with Micheal Redgrave and thought it was excellent as well. The best part was the ending with Ms. Prism; she was just as I imagined her in my mind.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I just love Oscar Wilde. He is fresh, he is ironic and he describes the english society of his time in a remarkable way. The importance of Being Earnest is a short play very easy to read that brings to the reader a great story that it can enjoy over and over again discovering the magic of his words at the time that we are transported in time...
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5started this book without any knowledge nor expectatations. a great surprise how funny this piece is. a comedy of changed identities and not so proper british society. a true gem.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wilde’s last completed play, written in 1895, before his world tragically came crashing down. As always, he’s irreverent and witty in satirizing the institutions of society, most notably love and marriage in this play. Two bachelors use deception and the alter ego “Earnest” in the attempt to woo a couple of ladies who are under the watchful eye of a protector, Lady Bracknell. Irony pervades the play; to be earnest of course is to be sincere, which the men are anything but. Wilde’s mission was to make light of everything society holds dear, to point out that ‘serious matters’ are in reality trivial, and it’s silly to pretend otherwise. In this he was successful, and I find that his humor really stands the test of time.Just a couple of quotes, on marriage:“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 I ever get married, I’ll certainly try to forget the fact.”“To speak frankly, I am not in favour of long engagements. They give people the opportunity of finding out each other’s character before marriage, which I think is never advisable.”
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I have long enjoyed the wittiness that I found peeking around the corner of each page of this marvelous book. At many times, I found myself laughing quite hard at things that seemed both innocent and obvious at the same time. A must read for any hardcore literature fan.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I actually read an online version of this text provided by my teacher as part of my Introduction to Drama course, so this is not the same version I'm writing about, but is the same work. This is a more modern version of the Comedy of Manners, though from a very conservative time in history that didn't allow for much sexual content. That said, there are some interesting mistaken identities, "faked" deaths, couples falling in love at the drop of a hat, and great criticism and humor towards Victorian society and habits. It's modern enough to be read easily, with an interesting story, and is doubtlessly amusing. I'd certainly recommend that anyone interested in drama read it once at least.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Every time I read this play, I find myself amazed at how funny it is! This Librivox recording (version 3) was excellent, which didn't surprize me since Elizabeth Klett was not only the voice of Gwendolyn but also the coordinator. Ruth Golding was especially good as Lady Bracknell, but all the narrators were wonderful.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A gem of a play. Wilde at his best. Has also been transferred very successfully to the screen.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Mildly amusing, but really not much more than that. Maybe I'm just too familiar with Wilde's brand of witticism, but I frequently found them irritating this time round.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I bought this on a whim, I recognised the name and decided "Why not".I loved it, it was sharp, funny and oh so relevant.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ah where to begin? A lifetime of quotes. Oh to be Lady Bracknell in my dotage. "To lose one parents, Mr. Worthing, may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness. " or "Hesitation of any kind is a sign of mental decay in the young, of physical weakness in the old." and finally "Three addresses always inspire confidence, even in tradesmen."
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I had to read this for my AP Lit class. It was the first book for the class, and I was a bit skeptical of it at first. As it turns out, it was hilarious! I could rarely find a page where I was not laughing. Nothing better than a good Victorian satire! ;)
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Very funny, in the ridiculous sense, and often quotable. (I think Wilde could go further into illogic and non-sequiturs, and should try some longer-running gags.) Edited nicely; the humor doesn't overstay its welcome. Jack: You never talk anything but nonsense. Algernon: Nobody ever does.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I found the play amusing, so I'm giving the book three stars. However, I have to give one star to the homophobic creator biography and literary analysis that is contained in the edition I actually read, a 1959 book in the Barron's Educational Series. When it wasn't offensive, the literary analysis was just boring as hell and written in dry, tortured, overly academic prose that contrasted greatly with the witty dialogue in Wilde's play. Wilde's work stands the test of time, while the introductory matter is best left in the past.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5man pretends to be ernest; comedy
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 2 narrators on this version were incredible, immediately switching voices without missing a beat. I don't know how they did it. The book was amusing in a stuffy English way. Silly can be fun.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is a hilarious and quick play centered around two couples and the name Ernest.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5After encountering references to this play in a book I recently read, I decided it was high time I "took in the play", which was rather easy to do with access to the audiorecording of a L.A. Theatreworks production. Now I understand why this play is considered by some to be the apogee of Wilde's work and such a wonderful precursor to the English farcical comic novel style perfected by P.G. Wodehouse. An entertaining Victorian story of courtship and manners, assumed names, mistaken lovers and the epitome of the "dragon" aunt. A whimsical mayhem romp!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5After what feels like a millennium, I have read The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde and I totally get the hype now. Oscar Wilde's play focuses on two men who independently of the other have invented alternate personas that allow them to cut loose without (hopefully) any repercussions. One of the men has created Ernest who is by all rights a scoundrel and his creator has finally decided to do away with him so that he can settle down and get married. The problem is that his friend (the other deceitful man) has decided to take on the mantle of Ernest so that he can win the heart of a girl that he's just met. (I recommend reading this in one sitting because otherwise you're liable to get confused.) Wilde uses word play and absolutely ridiculous circumstances to discuss the folly of youth and poke fun at the whims and fancies of people who believe they are really truly in love even if they don't truly know the other person. For instance, the two women of the play are determined that they will only marry someone named Ernest but as it turns out no one is named Ernest there is a bit of a kerfuffle. After all is said and done, no one comes out on top and everyone is depicted as foolish and unimpressive. It was thoroughly amusing and I guess now I'll have to see the movie that was based on it. :-P If you haven't read it yourself and you'd like a quick, fun read this will do just the trick. 9/10I was staring at the book's title and then it hit me: "Oh because it's about two men proclaiming to be Ernest and they do it will all earnestness." *facepalm*