A Streetcar Named Desire the Importance of Being Earnest

The Importance of being earnest Themes Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. The Nature of Marriage Marriage is of paramount importance in The Importance of Being Earnest, both as a primary force motivating the plot and as a subject for philosophical speculation and debate. The question of the nature of marriage appears for the first time in the opening dialogue between Algernon and his butler, Lane, and from this point on the subject never disappears for very long. Algernon and Jack discuss the nature of marriage when they dispute briefly about whether a marriage proposal is a matter of â€Å"business† or â€Å"pleasure,† and Lady Bracknell touches on the issue when she states, â€Å"An engagement should†¦show more content†¦In some ways, Algernon, not Jack, is the play’s real hero. Not only is Algernon like Wilde in his dandified, exquisite wit, tastes, and priorities, but he also resembles Wilde to the extent that his fictions and inventions resemble those of an artist. The Importance of Not Being â€Å"Earnest† Earnestness, which implies seriousness or sincerity, is the great enemy of morality in The Importance of Being Earnest. Earnestness can take many forms, including boringness, solemnity, pomposity, complacency, smugness, self-righteousness, and sense of duty, all of which Wilde saw as hallmarks of the Victorian character. When characters in the play use the word serious, they tend to mean â€Å"trivial,† and vice versa. For example, Algernon thinks it â€Å"shallow† for people not to be â€Å"serious† about meals, and Gwendolen believes, â€Å"In matters of grave importance, style, not sincerity is the vital thing.† For Wilde, the word earnest comprised two different but related ideas: the notion of false truth and the notion of false morality, or moralism. The moralism of Victorian society—its smugness and pomposity—impels Algernon and Jack to invent fictitious alter egos so as to be able to escape the strictures of propriety and decency. However, what one member of society considers decent or indecent doesn’t always reflect what decency really is. One of the play’s paradoxes is the impossibility of actually being either earnest (meaning â€Å"serious† or â€Å"sincere†) or moral while claiming to be so. TheShow MoreRelatedEssay Prompts4057 Words   |  17 PagesThe Major of Casterbridge A Doll House The Piano Lesson Ghosts The Playboy of the Western World Great Expectations Romeo and Juliet The Great Gatsby The Scarlet Letter Heart of Darkness Song of Solomon The Importance of Being Earnest 2001: Novelists and playwrights have often seen madness with a â€Å"discerning eye.† Select a novel or play in which a character’s apparent madness or irrational behavior plays an important role. Then write a well-organized essay in which