The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People
By Oscar Wilde
()
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
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) was a Dublin-born poet and playwright who studied at the Portora Royal School, before attending Trinity College and Magdalen College, Oxford. The son of two writers, Wilde grew up in an intellectual environment. As a young man, his poetry appeared in various periodicals including Dublin University Magazine. In 1881, he published his first book Poems, an expansive collection of his earlier works. His only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, was released in 1890 followed by the acclaimed plays Lady Windermere’s Fan (1893) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895).
Read more from Oscar Wilde
The Wit and Wisdom of Oscar Wilde: Inspiring and Amazing Quotes from an Icon Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Picture of Dorian Gray Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Complete Works Of Oscar Wilde Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Picture Of Dorian Gray Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/550 Great Love Letters You Have To Read (Golden Deer Classics) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 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 stars3/5The 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 ratingsDe Profundis Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/550 Beautiful Christmas Stories Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Importance of Being Earnest: A Play Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Poems Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Blood, Sperm, Black Velvet: The Seminal Book Of English Decadence (1888-1908) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGothic Classics: 60+ Books in One Volume Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsComplete Works of Oscar Wilde Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Penny Dreadfuls MEGAPACK ®: 10 Classic Shockers! Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Complete Fairy Tales of Oscar Wilde Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Oscar Wilde: A Life in Letters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Own Dear Darling Boy: The Letters of Oscar Wilde to Lord Alfred Douglas Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to The Importance of Being Earnest
Titles in the series (100)
Great Expectations Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Secret Garden Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don Quixote Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Little Women Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pinocchio: The Tale of a Puppet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hamlet, Prince of Denmark Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Macbeth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jane Eyre Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Walden, and On the Duty of Civil Disobedience Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Scarlet Letter Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Pride and Prejudice Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Raven Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Much Ado about Nothing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders 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 ratingsRomeo and Juliet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Midsummer Night's Dream Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Paradise Lost Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Red Badge of Courage: An Episode of the American Civil War Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Call of the Wild Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Oedipus Trilogy — Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Twelve Years a Slave Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Four Million: The Gift of the Magi and Other Short Stories Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related ebooks
Portraits of a Few of the People I've Made Cry: Stories Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Study Guide for Yiyun Li's "Immortality" Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Virginity of Famous Men Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lady with the Dog Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Subject Steve: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Solemn Pleasure: To Imagine, Witness, and Write Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5God Says No Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Story of H: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Things to Make and Break Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Arbitrary Stupid Goal Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fatigue Artist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You're Not Pretty Enough Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Portrait of a Lady Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAll the Peaches and Mangoes I Would Sell For You Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow It Was for Me: Stories Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Watermark Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wild Geese Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lifted Veil Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5To Walk Alone in the Crowd: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Peach Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Lolito Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5In My Daddy's Belly: The story of a Transgender Dad giving Birth Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOpen House: A Life in Thirty-Two Moves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5If I Were In a Cage I'd Reach Out For You Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPride and Prejudice Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Brutal Language of Love: Stories Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Dream Life of Balso Snell Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Book of Dahlia: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Juliette, Rising Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dear Money: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Performing Arts For You
A Midsummer Night's Dream, with line numbers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Yes Please Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human and How to Tell Them Better Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Becoming Free Indeed: My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes: Revised and Complete Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Importance of Being Earnest: A Play Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Robin Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5For colored girls who have considered suicide/When the rainbow is enuf Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hollywood's Dark History: Silver Screen Scandals Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Macbeth (new classics) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lucky Dog Lessons: From Renowned Expert Dog Trainer and Host of Lucky Dog: Reunions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Our Town: A Play in Three Acts Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hamlet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Coreyography: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Unsheltered: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Diamond Eye: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Romeo and Juliet Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wuthering Heights Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Trial Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Storyworthy: Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life through the Power of Storytelling Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Dolls House Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Woman Is No Man: A Read with Jenna Pick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Quite Nice and Fairly Accurate Good Omens Script Book: The Script Book Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Best Women's Monologues from New Plays, 2020 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stories I Only Tell My Friends: An Autobiography Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Whale / A Bright New Boise Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Count Of Monte Cristo (Unabridged) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Importance of Being Earnest
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
The Importance of Being Earnest - Oscar Wilde
Present.
ACT 1
Morning-room in Algernon’s flat in Half-Moon Street. The room is luxuriously and artistically furnished. The sound of a piano is heard in the adjoining room. Lane is arranging afternoon tea on the table, and after the music has ceased, Algernon enters.
ALGERNON. Did you hear what I was playing, Lane?
LANE. I didn’t think it polite to listen, sir.
ALGERNON. I’m sorry for that, for your sake. I don’t play accurately—any one can play accurately—but I play with wonderful expression. As far as the piano is concerned, sentiment is my forte. I keep science for Life.
LANE. Yes, sir.
ALGERNON. And, speaking of the science of Life, have you got the cucumber sandwiches cut for Lady Bracknell?
LANE. Yes, sir.
[Hands them on a salver.]
ALGERNON. [Inspects them, takes two, and sits down on the sofa.] Oh! …by the way, Lane, I see from your book that on Thursday night, when Lord Shoreman and Mr. Worthing were dining with me, eight bottles of champagne are entered as having been consumed.
LANE. Yes, sir; eight bottles and a pint.
ALGERNON. Why is it that at a bachelor’s establishment the servants invariably drink the champagne? I ask merely for information.
LANE. I attribute it to the superior quality of the wine, sir. I have often observed that in married households the champagne is rarely of a first-rate brand.
ALGERNON. Good heavens! Is marriage so demoralising as that?
LANE. I believe it is a very pleasant state, sir. I have had very little experience of it myself up to the present. I have only been married once. That was in consequence of a misunderstanding between myself and a young person.
ALGERNON. [Languidly.] I don’t know that I am much interested in your family life, Lane.
LANE. No, sir; it is not a very interesting subject. I never think of it myself.
ALGERNON. Very natural, I am sure. That will do, Lane, thank you.
LANE. Thank you, sir.
[Lane goes out.]
ALGERNON. Lane’s views on marriage seem somewhat lax. Really, if the lower orders don’t set us a good example, what on earth is the use of them? They seem, as a class, to have absolutely no sense of moral responsibility.
[Enter Lane.]
LANE. Mr. Ernest Worthing.
[Enter Jack.]
[Lane goes out.]
ALGERNON. How are you, my dear Ernest? What brings you up to town?
JACK. Oh, pleasure, pleasure! What else should bring one anywhere? Eating as usual, I see, Algy!
ALGERNON. [Stiffly.] I believe it is customary in good society to take some slight refreshment at five o’clock. Where have you been since last Thursday?
JACK. [Sitting down on the sofa.] In the country.
ALGERNON. What on earth do you do there?
JACK. [Pulling off his gloves.] When one is in town one amuses oneself. When one is in the country one amuses other people. It is excessively boring.
ALGERNON. And who are the people you amuse?
JACK. [Airily.] Oh, neighbours, neighbours.
ALGERNON. Got nice neighbours in your part of Shropshire?
JACK. Perfectly horrid! Never speak to one of them.
ALGERNON. How immensely you must amuse them! [Goes over and takes sandwich.] By the way, Shropshire is your county, is it not?
JACK. Eh? Shropshire? Yes, of course. Hallo! Why all these cups? Why cucumber sandwiches? Why such reckless extravagance in one so young? Who is coming to tea?
ALGERNON. Oh! merely Aunt Augusta and Gwendolen.
JACK. How perfectly delightful!
ALGERNON. Yes, that is all very well; but I am afraid Aunt August a won’t quite approve of your being here.
JACK. May I ask why?
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.
JACK. I have no doubt about that, dear Algy. The Divorce Court was specially invented for people whose memories are so curiously constituted.
ALGERNON. Oh! there is no use speculating on that subject. Divorces are made in Heaven—[Jack puts out his hand to take a sandwich. Algernon at once interferes.] Please don’t touch the cucumber sandwiches. They are ordered specially for Aunt Augusta.
[Takes one and eats it.]
JACK. Well, you have been eating them all the time.
ALGERNON. That is quite a different matter. She is my aunt. [Takes plate from below.] Have some bread and butter. The bread and butter is for Gwendolen. Gwendolen is devoted to bread and butter.
JACK. [Advancing to table and helping himself.] And very good bread and butter it is too.
ALGERNON. Well, my dear fellow, you need not eat as if you were going to eat it all. You behave as if you were married to her already. You are not married to her already, and I don’t think you ever will be.
JACK. Why on earth do you say that?
ALGERNON. Well, in the first place girls never marry the men they flirt with. Girls don’t think it right.
JACK. Oh, that is nonsense!
ALGERNON. It isn’t. It is a great truth. It accounts for the extraordinary number of bachelors that one sees all over the place. In the second place, I don’t give my consent.
JACK. Your consent!
ALGERNON. My dear fellow, Gwendolen is my first cousin. And before I allow you to marry her, you will have to clear up the whole question of Cecily.
[Rings bell.]
JACK. Cecily! What on earth do you mean? What do you mean, Algy, by Cecily! I don’t know any one of the name of Cecily.
[Enter Lane.]
ALGERNON. Bring me that cigarette case Mr. Worthing left in the smoking-room the last time he dined here.
LANE. Yes, sir.
[Lane goes out.]
JACK. Do you mean to