EARNEST: REVISION NOTES
ACT 1, PART 1
P.5-17 [LINES 1-383]
UPPER-CLASS SETTING
🍾 Lane: “I attribute it to the superior quality of wine, sir. I have often observed
that in married households the champagne is rarely of a first-rate brand’
(lines 33-35)
Setting - Even though The Importance of Being Earnest begins in the apartment of a
single man, marriage becomes its primary concern quite quickly. Lane’s comment
juxtaposes Algernon’s lavish bachelor lifestyle, characterized by the overconsumption of
champagne and cucumber sandwiches, against the more conservative lifestyle of a
married couple. Though Algernon’s lifestyle is overindulgent and excessive, like that of
dandy, the prospect of marriage and a tamer life looms in the background.
VIEWS ON MARRIAGE
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 1
, 🤵🏻 Lane: ‘That was in consequence of a misunderstanding between myself and
another young person’ (lines 41-2)
Lane’s morality appears less firm as he refers to marriage as a ‘misunderstanding’ rather
than a long-term commitment.
💍 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’ (lines 54-
7)
Satire - Though a hedonistic bachelor himself, Algernon's views on marriage reflect
those of the aristocratic class in Victorian society. Marriages were often arranged
between families, as it was considered important to preserve upper class pedigrees
within these unions. To Algernon, Lane's lackadaisical approach to marriage represents
the "immoral" ways in which he believes members of the lower class engage in unions.
Coming from Algernon, this statement is hypocritical, since he himself often acts fairly
immoral—he lives luxuriously, and often beyond his means, despite being a member of a
wealthy aristocratic family. His tone in this quote is also condescending and classist.
Though he is young and careless with his actions and money, he believes that his
pedigree is enough to know what is best for those with less money and education.
💍 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.’
(lines 106-110)
In this quote, Algernon quips that he calls a marriage proposal "business" due to the
complicated marriage arrangements between members of the aristocratic class during
Victorian England. Marriages, frequently arranged between families to preserve what
were essentially sociopolitical ties, were often more akin to business contracts than to
unions of love. This exchange is exemplary of the relationship between Jack and
Algernon. Jack is more sincere and responsible than Algernon, and Algernon is more
often careless, condescending, and flippant. Jack is also much more of a romantic, and
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 2
, was adopted into the aristocratic class—he does not have a recorded pedigree (that he
yet knows of) and therefore feels less pressure to seek out a marriage for reasons other
than love. However, Gwendolen's aunt does expect her to marry a fellow member of the
aristocracy, and definitely views marriage as more of a business arrangement rather
than a sign of love. It is due to this expectation that Jack's lack of a pedigree will come
to be a problem.
💏 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 I ever
get married, I’ll certainly try to forget the fact.’ (lines 114-9)
Jack accuses Algernon of being "unromantic" when he refers to a marriage proposal as
"business." In this quote, Algernon asserts that while love can be romantic, proposals
and marriage are, by their very nature, not romantic. In Victorian society, marriages were
designed to continue and create economic and social ties between elite families. It was
well-known that these matches were often made for convenience, not for love. Romance
was seen as illicit, fleeting, and frivolous, whereas arranged marriages were more
enduring in terms of financial and social capital. Algernon notes that if he ever gets
married, he will try to "forget" the banalities of the contract, since he would prefer to
enjoy the thrill of romantic relationships in his bachelorhood.
👰🏻♀️ Algernon: ‘Well, in the first place, girls never marry the men they flirt with.
Girls don’t think it’s right’ (line 145)
Paradox - Algernon’s assertion that girls don't marry the men they flirt with rings true,
since aristocratic women had an obligation to marry men who would advance their
family's social status, which often prevented them from marrying for love.
CUCUMBER SANDWICHES?
🥒 Algernon: “Please don’t touch the cucumber sandwiches. They are ordered
specially for Aunt Augusta” (lines 127-8)
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 3
, Algernon and Jack’s voracious appetites reflect their extravagant airs and excessive
lifestyles as dandies. Algernon cannot allow his friend to eat a single sandwich; he must
eat them all. Overeating is also a nervous habit that Algernon leverages when he has to
confront his friend on a contentious topic—infidelity.
BUNBURYING?
🪪 Algernon: “I’ll keep this as a proof that your name is Ernest if ever you
attempt to deny it to me, or to Gwnedolen, or to anyone else” (lines 236-9)
The appearance of the cigarette case and business cards show that Algernon is on to
Jack’s secret, but unwilling to let on that he knows about his friend’s double life. While
Algernon’s presentation of the business cards seem to show his faith in the veracity of
Jake’s fake identity, he only feigns this belief, instead hoping that the presentation of the
cigarette case will compel his friend to tell the truth.
Jack reveals to Algernon that he goes by the name of Ernest in the city, and the name of
Jack in the country. In this quote, Algernon relies heavily on the homophones of
"Ernest," the name, and "earnest," the adjective connoting one who is honest and
sincere to a fault, to tease Jack about his two identities of Ernest and Jack. Jack is older
than Algernon and often acts as if he is more responsible, so Algernon is gleeful to find
his friend caught in a lie, particularly one in which he pretends to be someone whose
name sounds the same as a word that means "honest." The extent of this glee can be
discerned by the number of times that Algernon repeats the name, digging deeper into
Jack's feelings of shame. Wilde uses the wordplay of Ernest/earnest throughout the
play to question the role of true sincerity in Victorian England, a society that prided itself
on a strict code of conduct, stringent morals, and a "stiff upper lip.”
🎩 Algernon: ‘I may mention that I have always suspected you of being
confirmed and secret Bunburyist; and I am quite sure of it now’ (lines 252-3)
Though the meaning of “Bunburyist,” is not entirely clear, Algernon’s use of the term
suggests that he too might be well practiced in the art of deception.
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 4
ACT 1, PART 1
P.5-17 [LINES 1-383]
UPPER-CLASS SETTING
🍾 Lane: “I attribute it to the superior quality of wine, sir. I have often observed
that in married households the champagne is rarely of a first-rate brand’
(lines 33-35)
Setting - Even though The Importance of Being Earnest begins in the apartment of a
single man, marriage becomes its primary concern quite quickly. Lane’s comment
juxtaposes Algernon’s lavish bachelor lifestyle, characterized by the overconsumption of
champagne and cucumber sandwiches, against the more conservative lifestyle of a
married couple. Though Algernon’s lifestyle is overindulgent and excessive, like that of
dandy, the prospect of marriage and a tamer life looms in the background.
VIEWS ON MARRIAGE
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 1
, 🤵🏻 Lane: ‘That was in consequence of a misunderstanding between myself and
another young person’ (lines 41-2)
Lane’s morality appears less firm as he refers to marriage as a ‘misunderstanding’ rather
than a long-term commitment.
💍 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’ (lines 54-
7)
Satire - Though a hedonistic bachelor himself, Algernon's views on marriage reflect
those of the aristocratic class in Victorian society. Marriages were often arranged
between families, as it was considered important to preserve upper class pedigrees
within these unions. To Algernon, Lane's lackadaisical approach to marriage represents
the "immoral" ways in which he believes members of the lower class engage in unions.
Coming from Algernon, this statement is hypocritical, since he himself often acts fairly
immoral—he lives luxuriously, and often beyond his means, despite being a member of a
wealthy aristocratic family. His tone in this quote is also condescending and classist.
Though he is young and careless with his actions and money, he believes that his
pedigree is enough to know what is best for those with less money and education.
💍 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.’
(lines 106-110)
In this quote, Algernon quips that he calls a marriage proposal "business" due to the
complicated marriage arrangements between members of the aristocratic class during
Victorian England. Marriages, frequently arranged between families to preserve what
were essentially sociopolitical ties, were often more akin to business contracts than to
unions of love. This exchange is exemplary of the relationship between Jack and
Algernon. Jack is more sincere and responsible than Algernon, and Algernon is more
often careless, condescending, and flippant. Jack is also much more of a romantic, and
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 2
, was adopted into the aristocratic class—he does not have a recorded pedigree (that he
yet knows of) and therefore feels less pressure to seek out a marriage for reasons other
than love. However, Gwendolen's aunt does expect her to marry a fellow member of the
aristocracy, and definitely views marriage as more of a business arrangement rather
than a sign of love. It is due to this expectation that Jack's lack of a pedigree will come
to be a problem.
💏 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 I ever
get married, I’ll certainly try to forget the fact.’ (lines 114-9)
Jack accuses Algernon of being "unromantic" when he refers to a marriage proposal as
"business." In this quote, Algernon asserts that while love can be romantic, proposals
and marriage are, by their very nature, not romantic. In Victorian society, marriages were
designed to continue and create economic and social ties between elite families. It was
well-known that these matches were often made for convenience, not for love. Romance
was seen as illicit, fleeting, and frivolous, whereas arranged marriages were more
enduring in terms of financial and social capital. Algernon notes that if he ever gets
married, he will try to "forget" the banalities of the contract, since he would prefer to
enjoy the thrill of romantic relationships in his bachelorhood.
👰🏻♀️ Algernon: ‘Well, in the first place, girls never marry the men they flirt with.
Girls don’t think it’s right’ (line 145)
Paradox - Algernon’s assertion that girls don't marry the men they flirt with rings true,
since aristocratic women had an obligation to marry men who would advance their
family's social status, which often prevented them from marrying for love.
CUCUMBER SANDWICHES?
🥒 Algernon: “Please don’t touch the cucumber sandwiches. They are ordered
specially for Aunt Augusta” (lines 127-8)
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 3
, Algernon and Jack’s voracious appetites reflect their extravagant airs and excessive
lifestyles as dandies. Algernon cannot allow his friend to eat a single sandwich; he must
eat them all. Overeating is also a nervous habit that Algernon leverages when he has to
confront his friend on a contentious topic—infidelity.
BUNBURYING?
🪪 Algernon: “I’ll keep this as a proof that your name is Ernest if ever you
attempt to deny it to me, or to Gwnedolen, or to anyone else” (lines 236-9)
The appearance of the cigarette case and business cards show that Algernon is on to
Jack’s secret, but unwilling to let on that he knows about his friend’s double life. While
Algernon’s presentation of the business cards seem to show his faith in the veracity of
Jake’s fake identity, he only feigns this belief, instead hoping that the presentation of the
cigarette case will compel his friend to tell the truth.
Jack reveals to Algernon that he goes by the name of Ernest in the city, and the name of
Jack in the country. In this quote, Algernon relies heavily on the homophones of
"Ernest," the name, and "earnest," the adjective connoting one who is honest and
sincere to a fault, to tease Jack about his two identities of Ernest and Jack. Jack is older
than Algernon and often acts as if he is more responsible, so Algernon is gleeful to find
his friend caught in a lie, particularly one in which he pretends to be someone whose
name sounds the same as a word that means "honest." The extent of this glee can be
discerned by the number of times that Algernon repeats the name, digging deeper into
Jack's feelings of shame. Wilde uses the wordplay of Ernest/earnest throughout the
play to question the role of true sincerity in Victorian England, a society that prided itself
on a strict code of conduct, stringent morals, and a "stiff upper lip.”
🎩 Algernon: ‘I may mention that I have always suspected you of being
confirmed and secret Bunburyist; and I am quite sure of it now’ (lines 252-3)
Though the meaning of “Bunburyist,” is not entirely clear, Algernon’s use of the term
suggests that he too might be well practiced in the art of deception.
EARNEST: REVISION NOTES 4
