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The Importance of Being Earnest
By Oscar Wilde

In The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde uses word play in reference to the word “earnest.� Throughout his play, Wilde focuses on the matter of who is the most sincere or “earnest� and who is actually the person whose name is Ernest. The two main characters, Algernon Moncrieff and Jack Worthing, both claim to be Ernest for deceptive reasons. Wilde develops his characters Algernon and Jack in order to portray them as hypocritical to the definition of earnest, which is “serious in intention, effort, and purpose.�
The protagonist of the play, Jack Worthing, calls himself Ernest in town and Jack in the country because he wants to create two identities. He is in charge of his ward, Cecily Cardew and he wants to create a caring and mature image of himself. He tells Cecily that he has an immoral and roguish brother in town named Ernest, who is always in need of saving from the vices of society. However, in town Jack is......

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Approximate Word Count: 768
Approximate Pages: 4 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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