The Importance of Being Earnest

Melissa Long 04/18/07
Part 1:
I personally enjoy Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest much more than I enjoyed Taming of the Shrew because it is much easier to read. I find that when the plot is confounded with too many characters and too much going on (for example, exchanging identities as in Taming), it is much harder to follow and less enjoyable. The Importance of Being Earnest has just the right number of characters and is more modern in writing style so it is easier to comprehend. I found it to be a shame that the plot in Taming of the Shrew was interesting, but because the style was confusing I found it less enjoyable. The humor in The Importance of Being Earnest is much more vivid because I did not have to worry about what was going on, who was who, and what the characters were trying to say.
Part 2:
It was completely apparent in The Importance of Being Earnest that the characters’ senses of humor were very similar. They tended to use wit and off-the-wall comments to amuse the audience. It may be that these comments were born from the creative mind of Oscar Wilde himself in order to reflect his own personality and sense of humor. On the other hand, the humor that is clearly evident in The Importance of Being Earnest, in my opinion, was a creation of the author to bring out the personal quirks of each of the characters.
One of the best examples is when the audience first meets Lady Bracknell. Her conversation was with Algernon in which Algernon was excusing himself from dining with her that evening due to his friend Bunbury. She goes on to speak on her opinion regarding illnesses and those who frequently, or ever, become ill. The passage is ironic because she is bashing those who become sick or harp on illnesses. She even criticizes people who are sympathetic with those who become ill. The irony stems from the fact that everyone at some point in life becomes ill, yet, according to Lady Bracknell, it is unacceptable. The passage is humorous, while inviting the reader into the mind of the character. We find out that Lady Bracknell, depending on how the passage is read, is either very witty or is very disciplined. Either way, it is humorous to the audience, and it gives the audience an insight into her character.
Another example of how wit helps to develop the characters is in regards to the character of Algernon. From the first act, the reader finds out that Algernon is a wealthy man (probably overweight because he eats a lot) who seems to not do much besides travel and dine with friends and family. Yet, although his life is such that he could do whatever he pleases, he finds it necessary to make up an individual on which to blame reasons for his absence from social events, dinners, etc. One amusing scene with Algernon involves the imagery of him eating all of the cucumber sandwiches that have been ordered for his afternoon tea with Lady Bracknell and Gwendolen. When Bracknell asks Algernon where the food is, he responds by yelling at Lane in regards to where the sandwiches were. The reader can devise that his wit is quick, because instead of taking blame for his gluttony, he decided to blame Lane for not getting the sandwiches to begin with (which is obviously a lie). The imagery created with the stage direction of “picking up empty plate in horror” is humorous, especially with the addition of his verbal reaction. The audience may then see Algernon as witty, but also slick and smart.
The humor and wit that is exuded from each character in The Importance of Being Earnest serves to give an insight into their minds, actions, and personalities. Humor is not a distraction from the development of the plot, because humor, specifically which type of humor a character uses, only helps to develop the personality of the character. Therefore, through the use of wit, Oscar Wilde succeeds in developing each character along with their personalities and what the reader expects from them as individuals.