The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People
By Oscar Wilde
4.5/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
Jack Worthing gets antsy living at his country estate. As an excuse, he spins tales of his rowdy brother Earnest living in London. When Jack rushes to the city to confront his "brother," he's free to become Earnest and live a different lifestyle. In London, his best friend, Algernon, begins to suspect Earnest is leading a double life. Earnest confesses that his real name is Jack and admits the ruse has become tricky as two women have become enchanted with the idea of marrying Earnest. On a whim, Algernon also pretends to be Earnest and encounters the two women as they meet at the estate. With two Earnests who aren't really earnest and two women in love with little more than a name, this play is a classic comedy of errors. This is an unabridged version of Oscar Wilde's English play, first published in 1899.
Oscar Wilde
Born in Ireland in 1856, Oscar Wilde was a noted essayist, playwright, fairy tale writer and poet, as well as an early leader of the Aesthetic Movement. His plays include: An Ideal Husband, Salome, A Woman of No Importance, and Lady Windermere's Fan. Among his best known stories are The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Canterville Ghost.
Read more from Oscar Wilde
The Picture Of Dorian Gray Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5De Profundis Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Complete Works Of Oscar Wilde Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Comedies: Lady Windermere's Fan, An Ideal Husband, A Woman of No Importance, and The Importance of Being Earnest Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings50 Great Love Letters You Have To Read (Golden Deer Classics) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Importance of Being Earnest: A Play Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Greatest Christmas Stories of All Time: Timeless Classics That Celebrate the Season Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA House of Pomegranates Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Poems Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Oscar Wilde: A Life in Letters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Complete Works of Oscar Wilde Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/550 Beautiful Christmas Stories Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBlood, Sperm, Black Velvet: The Seminal Book Of English Decadence (1888-1908) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Penny Dreadfuls MEGAPACK ®: 10 Classic Shockers! Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Gothic Classics: 60+ Books in One Volume Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMy Own Dear Darling Boy: The Letters of Oscar Wilde to Lord Alfred Douglas Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Complete Fairy Tales of Oscar Wilde Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5
Related to The Importance of Being Earnest
Titles in the series (100)
Little Women Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Uncle Tom's Cabin: or, Life among the Lowly Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Scarlet Letter Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pinocchio: The Tale of a Puppet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Oedipus Trilogy — Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hamlet, Prince of Denmark Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pride and Prejudice Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Odyssey Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wuthering Heights Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Walden, and On the Duty of Civil Disobedience Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jane Eyre Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Romeo and Juliet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Raven Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Midsummer Night's Dream Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Call of the Wild Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Macbeth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don Quixote Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Secret Garden Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Tale of Two Cities Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Much Ado about Nothing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Paradise Lost Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Moby Dick: or, The Whale Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Canterbury Tales and Other Poems Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related ebooks
The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Importance of Being Earnest (World's Classics Series) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Plays Of Oscar Wilde Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People by Oscar Wilde Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People: Bestsellers and famous Books Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Importance of Being Earnest (Legend Classics) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Essential Oscar Wilde Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Importance of Being Earnest (Warbler Classics) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Importance of Being Earnest (new classics) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTHE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST(Illustrated) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Darcy Connection: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Perfect Bargain Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond Time Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThis Feels Like Home Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Beast of Yorkshire: Those Scandalous Taggarts, #1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Seven Eight Play It Straight: Grasshopper Lawns, #4 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMy Daughter’s Wedding Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLaundered - An Anthology of Monster Messes: Legion of Dorks presents, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Hollow Earth Chronicles Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHer Gilded Prison Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Her Gilded Prison: Daughters of Sin, #1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Marriage Is Murder Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Highlander's Loving Heart Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Deadly Web Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Whisperer Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhite Lies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Perfect Strangers (A Historical Romance) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rake's Ransom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Classics For You
Flowers for Algernon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mythos Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Master & Margarita Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Old Man and the Sea: The Hemingway Library Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Confederacy of Dunces Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Learn French! Apprends l'Anglais! THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY: In French and English Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Odyssey: (The Stephen Mitchell Translation) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Silmarillion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Poisonwood Bible: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fellowship Of The Ring: Being the First Part of The Lord of the Rings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sense and Sensibility (Centaur Classics) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Little Women (Seasons Edition -- Winter) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Iliad: The Fitzgerald Translation Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Animal Farm: A Fairy Story Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wuthering Heights (with an Introduction by Mary Augusta Ward) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Jungle: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5East of Eden (Original Classic Edition) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Titus Groan Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Farewell to Arms Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Republic by Plato Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Count of Monte-Cristo English and French Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Count of Monte Cristo (abridged) (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5For Whom the Bell Tolls: The Hemingway Library Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Things They Carried Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ulysses: With linked Table of Contents Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Heroes: The Greek Myths Reimagined Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Canterbury Tales Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Scarlet Letter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for The Importance of Being Earnest
91 ratings86 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Aha! So THIS is what Wodehouse was trying to do. Algernon > Jeeves
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde; (4*)The Importance of Being Earnest seems to start as a play about truth but quickly becomes a play about the false through the classical "simply a misunderstanding". The two male leads, Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff, use imaginary friends they invent to avoid the boring and weekly family engagements. These imaginary friends lead to eventual confusion between them and the women they love. This misunderstanding is only half the fun though. Wilde mocks the ill portrayed English Aristocracy of the late 19th century; poking fun at not only their etiquette but also their stubborn and unpractical tendencies, their immoral behavior, and their exploitation of the lower classes. Very rarely do comedies strike to the heart of the matter and say something as meaningful as Oscar Wilde did with this great play of his.Wilde gives new meaning to the terminology irreverence and farce.His views on the virtues of having a satirically empty head as written by one understanding this is the funniest I have ever read. His characterization of the English upper class as both idle and clueless most likely came very close to the truth.But he wraps it all up happily (for most) and leaves us with a great laugh. Well done, Wilde!
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The short three act play of Oscar Wilde, known more for the title than by being read. I was motivated to read the play after watching a recent movie adaption (with Colin Firth as Ernest/Jack). A nice little farce with plenty of opportunity for Wilde to show-off with his bon mots and carefully cynical witticisms. But, good fun, and pleasing to see how closely the movie had stuck to the original intentions of Wilde's creation. Read January 2012.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5So funny! Did it as a high school play
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A very entertaining play by Wilde, with his typical wit and witticisms and oxymoronic statements.
- 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: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Even though I have seen and read the play a few times, THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING ERNEST bears up under repeated scrutiny. The performance by L.A. Theater Works (starring James Marsters) had me laughing aloud, delivering the lines with excellent comic timing and all the appropriate absurdity. As an audio-only performance, the listener might expect to feel cheated in not being able to see the actors, but it's a testament to Oscar Wilde's writing and the performers that nothing was lost in this rendition. My only quibble was the inclusion of an interview with the director afterward:It simply wasn't interesting.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A play about the importance of being earnest in life and in love. A humorous travesty on the social roles and standards of men and women in the Victorian Era.A great way to humorously introduce students to Victorian era standards and regulations for both men and women.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dear, dear Oscar. I don't know a play that gets away with being less a story than a collection of quips and epigrams and skewerings of the attitudes held by heavily bearded and/or crinolined people in dark clothes as handily as this one does. NB, apparently contemporary with publication "Is he earnest?" was gay slang for "Is he gay?" (later replaced by "Is he musical?"), but Sir John Gielgud assures us that any queer readings are only in our sex-obsessed imaginations. Everybody, treat the serious trivially and the trivial seriously today.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A fun play that made me laugh a few times.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This comedy reminds me of a episode of Friends.
Making fun of human nature at it's most ridiculous moments. It is a play about nothing just everyday moments.
I absolutely loved this theatre version of the play done by the LA Theatre company. Funny, Funny, Funny - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5a blend of hilarity and double speak... quit the woodhousian affair.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5English language as art!
- 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: 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: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This merely 60 page comedy of errors had me chuckling quite a few times and was finished in one sitting. Book is full of quotable quotes which themselves are insight into timeless nature of humour (just like recently red Three Men in a Boat).
- 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: 5 out of 5 stars5/5One of my favourite plays, you can't beat Wilde for acerbic wit tied in with social commentary. I was in this play as the darling Miss Cecily Cardew, and remember the great problems we all had at first in managing to get through our lines without laughing!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5One of my favorite plays. A wonderful comedy about society, appearance, and the importance of earnest.
- 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 stars5/5I felt I needed a lighter read, and this was time for a re-read of this classic play that I have loved since childhood, one of my all time favourites. Huge portions of the dialogue are imprinted on my mind, and I can hear and see the actors in the 1952 film version as I am reading. Wonderful stuff (though I still get Jack and Algernon mixed up in my mind, probably as they are both trying to be earnest!)
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5There's not a lot of depth to this play. Though Wilde does take on the Victorian notions of responsibility, respectability and...well...earnestness, you won't find strikingly real characters that will stay with you, nor any deep and revelatory social messages. What you will find, however, is one of the best assemblies of laugh out oud moments in the English language. Lady Bracknell, alone, had me in stitches for the entire play with her observations on orphans ("To lose one parent, Mr. Worthing, may be regarded as a misfortune. To lose both looks like carelessness.") to her theories of education ("I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural ignorance.").The invented relatives, the mistaken identities, the long-lost foundling, the Tartar of an aunt who controls the purse strings—all of them are sewn together in a way that seems so familiar because they've been a part of our comedic vocabulary ever since Shakespeare. Yet, Wilde's gift is that they don't seem hackneyed nor trite. I think the only downside is that the lawsuits over the play stopped Wilde from writing any more, and that's a loss.
- 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: 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: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A splendidly funny book. If I wasn't at work while reading this (through e-mail from dailyreader.net) I would have found myself laughing quite loudly. The only thing I wish it had done better is not ended. I hope one day to get to see this on stage perhaps. Great play, funny stuff.
- 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 stars5/5Fantastic. I admit I was a Wilde newbie, and now I'm kicking myself for not reading this sooner. Super short read (60 pages on my Nook) and they flew by. Not the usual play read, that's for sure (Ugh Shakespeare). Thoroughly enjoyed the wit and banter between the characters and fascinated by Wilde's life in general. Loved.
- 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: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I just watched a movie version of this play the other day and, although I like Rupert Everett, Colin Firth and Dame Judi Dench, I found some of the embellishments for film too fanciful and distracting. The music was fun but didn't quite fit the period. I decided to read the play in order to really enjoy the language and wit as penned by the author, although I'd much rather spend an evening at the theater watching the original. If you've never experienced it, I cannot overstate the importance of seeing "Earnest".
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Okay, so this was both shorter and dumber than I thought it would be, as well as being a play instead of prose. It starts with a conversation between two friends, both of whom are guilty of bunburying -- having two identities, one in the country and one in the city, as an excuse to get out of things they don’t want to do. And of course, romantic hijinks ensue.I’m actually very happy I read this after a few books like Pride and Prejudice… it’s an absurd take on all those little misunderstandings, complicated family relations, and forbidden love triangles.Recommendation: Fans of absurdities and romantic comedies.Feels: Lighthearted, trivial, exaggerated.Favorites: The word “bunburying,” and the cucumber sandwiches.