January 19, 2018

Didn't get the word play of the title until I was writing out my notes

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. 9/10

And yes the title of this post is true. I 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*

Source: wobcp.org

What's Up Next: The Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson

What I'm Currently Reading: The Portable Nineteenth-Century African American Women Writers

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2 comments:

  1. I actually read this blog. The title drew me in. I'm being earnest with you, earnestly I am. Honesty is the best policy?

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    Replies
    1. So are you going to read it?!

      Also, I'm super shocked that you not only read it but commented as well. I was just talking to Krystle about this because she doesn't read the blog either. lol

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