Satirical Dualities and the Victorian Paradox Propounded By Oscar Wilde in ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’

Abstract

The 1890s saw a change in Victorian Literature where plays began to present vivid social conditions in a picturesque manner. Written by Oscar Wild in 1895, The Importance of Being Earnest is one such play that discusses the Victorian society of England in a satirical manner. He attacks the follies and foibles and employs humour, paradoxes and epigrams. Social issues are addressed in the play and the structure of the play was largely influenced by French theatre, melodrama, social drama and farce. Oscar Wilde was also a proponent of the Aesthetic movement, which celebrated art for art’s sake. The Importance of Being Earnest is one such piece of entertainment which delights its contemporary audiences.