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    The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Novel for Serious People
    Unavailable
    The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Novel for Serious People
    Unavailable
    The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Novel for Serious People
    Ebook154 pages1 hour

    The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Novel for Serious People

    By Charles Osborne, Oscar Wilde and Barry Humphries

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    The Importance of Being Earnest shows a full measure of Oscar Wilde's legendary wit, and embodies more than any of his other plays, his decency and warmth. This edition contains substantial excerpts from the original four-act version which was never produced, as well as the full text of the final three-act version, selections from Wilde's correspondence, and commentary by George Bernard Shaw, Max Beerbohm, St. John Hankin, and James Agate.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateOct 27, 2015
    ISBN9781250101662
    Unavailable
    The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Novel for Serious People
    Author

    Charles Osborne

    Charles Osborne was born in Brisbane in 1927. He is known internationally as an authority on opera, though has had a lifelong passion for Agatha Christie’s works. His previous books include The Life and Crimes of Agatha Christie.

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    Reviews for The Importance of Being Earnest

    4/5

    51 ratings88 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Oscar Wilde is a very witty Sass Master. This was a great comedy, and I'm sure it'd be even better on stage.
    • 5/5
      This is a hilarious and quick play centered around two couples and the name Ernest.
    • 5/5
      After encountering references to this play in a book I recently read, I decided it was high time I "took in the play", which was rather easy to do with access to the audiorecording of a L.A. Theatreworks production. Now I understand why this play is considered by some to be the apogee of Wilde's work and such a wonderful precursor to the English farcical comic novel style perfected by P.G. Wodehouse. An entertaining Victorian story of courtship and manners, assumed names, mistaken lovers and the epitome of the "dragon" aunt. A whimsical mayhem romp!
    • 5/5
      As scrumptious a play as was ever penned.
    • 2/5
      zeer flauw, vol klassieke Wilde-oneliners. Misschien moet ik het nog eens herlezen.
    • 5/5
      After what feels like a millennium, I have read The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde and I totally get the hype now. Oscar Wilde's play focuses on two men who independently of the other have invented alternate personas that allow them to cut loose without (hopefully) any repercussions. One of the men has created Ernest who is by all rights a scoundrel and his creator has finally decided to do away with him so that he can settle down and get married. The problem is that his friend (the other deceitful man) has decided to take on the mantle of Ernest so that he can win the heart of a girl that he's just met. (I recommend reading this in one sitting because otherwise you're liable to get confused.) Wilde uses word play and absolutely ridiculous circumstances to discuss the folly of youth and poke fun at the whims and fancies of people who believe they are really truly in love even if they don't truly know the other person. For instance, the two women of the play are determined that they will only marry someone named Ernest but as it turns out no one is named Ernest there is a bit of a kerfuffle. After all is said and done, no one comes out on top and everyone is depicted as foolish and unimpressive. It was thoroughly amusing and I guess now I'll have to see the movie that was based on it. :-P If you haven't read it yourself and you'd like a quick, fun read this will do just the trick. 9/10I was staring at the book's title and then it hit me: "Oh because it's about two men proclaiming to be Ernest and they do it will all earnestness." *facepalm*
    • 5/5
      So glad I had to read this for my AP British Literature class. This satire of Victorian England made me laugh more than most books and plays I have read. The humor is just unbeatable... I can't wait to read more from Oscar Wilde!
    • 5/5
      Probably Oscar Wilde's most famous play, and certainly one of his best works. The story revolves around a couple of society gentlemen who have fallen in love with women who have the idea that they should marry a man by the name of Ernest. Since neither of the young men are named Ernest, this leads to a lot of pretense, and suddenly the world is blessed with two Ernest Worthingtons. The resolution might seem somewhat contrived, but since the entire play is a satire, this can be forgiven, since it is intended to appear that way. A fun work, and a quick read.
    • 5/5
      I love this more with each rereading...
    • 2/5
      zeer flauw, vol klassieke Wilde-oneliners. Misschien moet ik het nog eens herlezen.
    • 5/5
      An entertaining play full of wit and charm. I found myself laughing out loud now and then, wearing a constant smile. I thoroughly enjoyed the absurd humor and cleverly entangled story line.
    • 5/5
      This play is a delight. It's filled with Oscar Wilde's wonderful humor. The only thing that could be better than reading this gem is seeing it performed live.
    • 4/5
      A classic.
    • 5/5
      I've read the screen play.
      It is an absolute gem of characterisation and dialogue. Full of humour and wit and worth reading again every once in a while. An uplifting experience I can't recommend highly enough.
      Go ahead and treat yourself, it not a lot to buy on ebook readers.
    • 4/5
      This farce follows the entanglements of two men, each posing as a man named "Earnest" in order to woo a woman. It's the only written work that's ever had me laughing out loud in public--Oscar Wilde is an incredibly witty man. He makes great use of snappy banter, the occasional satirical reference to real-world social issues, and puns (such as the one in the title itself), but never comes on too strong, as many comedies can tend to do. If you've never read Wilde before, this is an excellent place to start.
    • 4/5
      Okay, so this was both shorter and dumber than I thought it would be, as well as being a play instead of prose. It starts with a conversation between two friends, both of whom are guilty of bunburying -- having two identities, one in the country and one in the city, as an excuse to get out of things they don?t want to do. And of course, romantic hijinks ensue.I?m actually very happy I read this after a few books like Pride and Prejudice? it?s an absurd take on all those little misunderstandings, complicated family relations, and forbidden love triangles.Recommendation: Fans of absurdities and romantic comedies.Feels: Lighthearted, trivial, exaggerated.Favorites: The word ?bunburying,? and the cucumber sandwiches.
    • 1/5
      A cute little trifle, just a middle-of-the-road blip, though. At least now I can say I?ve been exposed to it, and exposure is good - unless you?re arrested for it, or die from it.
    • 5/5
      So very thoroughly enjoyable!!!It has much of the same style of humor of Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors, so if you enjoyed that, this is almost a guaranteed win.
    • 5/5
      I felt I needed a lighter read, and this was time for a re-read of this classic play that I have loved since childhood, one of my all time favourites. Huge portions of the dialogue are imprinted on my mind, and I can hear and see the actors in the 1952 film version as I am reading. Wonderful stuff (though I still get Jack and Algernon mixed up in my mind, probably as they are both trying to be earnest!)
    • 5/5
      This comedy reminds me of a episode of Friends.

      Making fun of human nature at it's most ridiculous moments. It is a play about nothing just everyday moments.

      I absolutely loved this theatre version of the play done by the LA Theatre company. Funny, Funny, Funny

    • 5/5
      This drama is absolutely fantastic! It is fast-paced, wonderfully witty, replete with double entendres, and full of rapid about-faces. The moral of the story, of course, is never to forget "the importance of being ernest"!
    • 5/5
      So funny! Did it as a high school play
    • 4/5
      This is a well-known classic which I've seen on screen but don't think I had previously read the original play. A free e-book edition encouraged me to try it, and I was surprised at how easy it was to read despite the stage directions and dramatic format.

      The story is a satirical jab at the silliness of society at the end of the 19th century, featuring two men who invent fictitious lives in order to escape from their families for a while. Two girls fall in love with them, but insist that they can only ever love men called Ernest...

      I found myself smiling a few times, and irritated at others by the trivialities of upper-class society - but then that's the point of it, really. It's not a long play, and I read it in just a couple of days. Well worth reading, in my view.
    • 5/5
      The single longest joke set-up in history. Brilliant.
    • 5/5
      This is one of my absolute favorite plays! I remember reading this in high school and instantly adoring the dialogue and the dry wit. And of course the nonsense.This particular copy is the same I had in high school, but I never read any of the supplemental material included. The most interesting of these was the original fourth act which was apparently never produced. Think of it as a series of deleted scenes, but the best is the scene where a creditor shows up looking for "Ernest" for the large debt he owes and gets mixed up in the name game Algernon and Jack are playing. It's a funny scene, but in the end unnecessary because the jokes are used earlier. It does explain Jack's later reference to the champagne Algy drinks, which isn't shown in the final version.There are also a series of critical reviews throughout the years, the first from George Bernard Shaw after the original performance. It's interesting reading.
    • 5/5
      One of my favorites of all time. Still hilarious after all these years. There may be something wrong with you if you do not enjoy this smartly written tale. His use of the english language is parallel to none. Saw my mother in law play Lady Bracknell once and it was pure delight. Could read, listen and watch this tale millions of times and still enjoy.
    • 4/5
      A very entertaining play by Wilde, with his typical wit and witticisms and oxymoronic statements.
    • 4/5
      The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde; (4*)The Importance of Being Earnest seems to start as a play about truth but quickly becomes a play about the false through the classical "simply a misunderstanding". The two male leads, Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff, use imaginary friends they invent to avoid the boring and weekly family engagements. These imaginary friends lead to eventual confusion between them and the women they love. This misunderstanding is only half the fun though. Wilde mocks the ill portrayed English Aristocracy of the late 19th century; poking fun at not only their etiquette but also their stubborn and unpractical tendencies, their immoral behavior, and their exploitation of the lower classes. Very rarely do comedies strike to the heart of the matter and say something as meaningful as Oscar Wilde did with this great play of his.Wilde gives new meaning to the terminology irreverence and farce.His views on the virtues of having a satirically empty head as written by one understanding this is the funniest I have ever read. His characterization of the English upper class as both idle and clueless most likely came very close to the truth.But he wraps it all up happily (for most) and leaves us with a great laugh. Well done, Wilde!
    • 2/5
      I didn't like this play at all. Wilde's humor is known for being witty and sharp tongued, but nothing was funny. The plot isn't bad, but his characters were just so bland it ruined the story for me. The ending was horrid for me, like I get that his point was to laugh at the fact that plays wrap up in neat little packages and he was trying to point out how ridiculous that is, but it was just pathetic, it just made his play look bad.
    • 4/5
      Just so funny, Oscar Wilde was definitely not a fan of toffs. If you've never read a play before start here, you won't regret it.