The Importance of Being Earnest

Synopsis

The Importance of Being Earnest, is a play criticized as humorous exposure of social obligations with out any social message. While this Play has climaxed the writing career of the author Oscar Wilde, this also marked the end of his personal life by exposing his double life for which he was sent for imprisonment.

John Worthing believed to be an illegitimate child, has been adopted by a wealthy gentleman Thomas Cardew. John is taking care of Hertfordshire estate and also being the guardian of Cecily Cardew, granddaughter of Thomas Cardew. To freak out from his gentleman life, John has created a fictitious brother and named it as Ernest Worthing.  Cecily Cardew is obsessed with Ernest Worthing whom she never met, but believes his guardian John( whom she calls Jack uncle) will help her to marry him.

John meets his friend Algernon Moncrieff to whom he is known as Earnest only. John is in love with Gwendolen Fairfax, the cousin of Algernon Moncrieff, who is also obsessed with the name Ernest Worthing and wants to marry.  Algernon Moncrieff accidentally reveals a letter from John’s bag, which is written by Cecily, mentioning his name as Jack Uncle. Algernon questions him and finally John reveals to him about his fictitious brother.

Meanwhile knowing his identity as illegitimate child, Gwendolen’s mother is not agreeing to marry his daughter to John, but like to get her married to Earnest. Algernon goes to Hertfordshire and pretend himself as Earnest and meets Cecily to marry her. John is now in an embarrassing situation to reveal his fiction brother, but unable to do so. Being the guardian of Cecily, he puts a condition to Algernon that he will accept Algernon’s proposal to marry Cecily , only if he can help him to marry Gwendolen.

The rest of the play is climaxed with both pairs getting married after founding John is not an illegitimate child, but really a brother of Algernon.

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