The Importance of Being Earnest Dramaturg Post #4: The Dramaturgy

Definitions and References

Earnest: to be “serious” or “sincere.” According to Walter E. Houghton, one can be earnest intellectually and morally. 

“To be earnest intellectually is to have or to seek to have genuine beliefs about the most fundamental questions in life… To be earnest morally is to recognize that human existence is not a short interval between life and death… but a spiritual pilgrimage from here to eternity in which he is called upon to struggle with all his power against the forces of evil.”

In the context of the play, the “serious” implications of “earnest” is subtracted by its frequent use and the lack of seriousness in which the word is treated throughout. Jack takes the name of Ernest in the city with the goal of pleasing Gwendolen, subtracting from the “sincerity” of the name. This identity is neither serious nor sincere. Algernon comments on this contradiction in Act one, page 11:

ALGERNON: ...Besides, your name isn’t Jack at all; it is Ernest.

JACK: It isn’t Ernest; it’s Jack.

ALGERNON: You have always told me it was Ernest. I have introduced you to everyone as Ernest. You answer to the name Ernest. You look as if your name was Ernest. You are the most earnest looking person I ever saw in my life. It is perfectly absurd your saying that your name isn’t Ernest.

“Ernest” is the name of Jack’s imaginary younger brother, an identity that allows him to visit the city whenever he pleases. The character of “Ernest” is, as remarked by Cecily, “wicked,” and seeks a life of pleasure. He is the opposite of what is considered “earnest.” When Algernon assumes the identity of this character, it is to fulfill his own desires to meet the lovely Cecily. After announcing “Ernest’s” death upon returning to the country, Jack finds that “Ernest” has been given life via Algernon, and must maintain this image to please Cecily. It is only when faced by both Gwendolen and Cecily that Jack must finally be truthful: neither of them are named “Ernest”, the man has never existed.

GWENDOLEN: ...Where is your brother Ernest? We are both engaged to be married to your brother Ernest, so it is a matter of some importance to us to know where your brother Ernest is at present.

JACK: Gwendolen - Cecily - it is very painful for me to be forced to speak the truth. It is the first time in my life that I have ever been reduced to such a painful position, and I am really quite inexperienced in doing anything of the kind. However, I will tell you quite frankly that I have no brother Ernest. I have no brother at all. I never had a brother in my life, and I certainly have not the smallest intention of ever having one in the future.

For Gwendolen and Cecily, their obsession with the name of “Ernest” is not at all serious. For Gwedolen, she describes the name of Ernest as one that is musical, it is the name of a perfect suitor. She wouldn’t even consider marrying a man who wasn’t named Ernest. In Act one page 21, she explains this in greater detail when Jack suggests his own name in a hypothetical question.

JACK: Personally, darling, to speak quite candidly, I don’t much care about the name of Ernest … I don’t think the name suits me at all.

GWENDOLEN: It suits you perfectly. It is a divine name. It has a music of its own. It produces vibrations.

JACK: Well, really, Gwendolen, I must say that I think there are lots of other much nicer names. I think Jack, for instance, a charming name.

GWENDOLEN; Jack? … No, there is very little music in the name Jack, if any at all, indeed. It does not thrill. It produces absolutely no vibrations … I have known several Jacks, and they all, without exception, were more than usually plain. Besides, Jack is a notorious domesticity for John! And I pity any woman who is married to a man called John. She would probably never be allowed to know the entrancing pleasure of a single moment’s solitude. The only really safe name is Ernest.

Cecily shares similar sympathies, and admits to it being a “girlish dream” to love someone named Ernest.

CECILY: You must not laugh at me, darling, but it had always been a girlish dream of mine to love someone whose name was Ernest. There is something in that name that seems to inspire absolute confidence. I pity any poor married woman whose husband is not called Ernest.

ALGERNON: But, my dear child, do you mean to say you could not love me if I had some other name?

CECILY: But what name?

ALGERNON: Oh, any  name you like - Algernon - for instance…

CECILY: But I don’t like the name of Algernon.

ALGERNON: Well, my own dear, sweet, loving little darling, I really can’t see why you should object to the name of Algernon…. if my name was Algy, couldn’t you love me?

CECILY: I might respect you, Ernest, I might admire your character, but I fear that I should not be able to give you my undivided attention.

The Ernest that Gwendolen and Cecily idealize is the one who is serious and sincere. Both are aghast when they discover that neither of their loves’ names are Ernest. It isn’t until Jack and Algernon admit the wrong of their actions and learn that the men were willing to both be re-christened Ernest that they forgive them. At the end when Jack discovers his true identity as Ernest, at the very least, he has finally learned what it means to be sincere.

Shropshire: a county in England.

Woolton: a very old centre of settlement in northwest Britain. Historically consisted of two distinct areas: Much Woolton and Little Woolton. Little Woolton developed into a wealthy suburb of Liverpool at the turn of the 20th century.

Morning-room: an informal room for receiving morning visitors. Visitors arriving later in the day would be received in the drawing room, which was a more formal room.

Divorce Court: before the mid-19th century, the only way of obtaining a full divorce that allowed remarriage was by a Private Act of Parliament. Divorce was granted by Parliament only for adultery. If the adultery is compounded by life-threatening cruelty, the wife could initiate the divorce, otherwise, the divorce was initiated by the husband. The costs for divorce were very high, so only the wealthy could obtain one. In 1853, a Royal Commission recommended the transferral of divorce proceedings from Parliament to a special court, the Divorce Court. This was achieved through the Matrimonial Causes Act passed in 1857. Wives could now allege cruelty and desertion in addition to the husband’s adultery to obtain a divorce, but otherwise, the grounds for divorce remained the same. 

Scotland Yard: the headquarters of London’s Metropolitan Police.

Tunbridge Wells: a fashionable spa town in Kent, about 30 miles southeast of London. The medicinal springs the town is famous for were discovered in 1606. It became one of the chief resorts of fashionable London society when the Pantiles Parade was paved in 1700. Under the dandy Richard “Beau” Nash (1674-1761), Tunbridge Wells reached its height. In 1889, it became a designated borough, and in 1909, was renamed Royal Tunbridge Wells.

The Albany: a fashionable apartment complex in Piccadilly, London built in the 1770s. It was a popular place to live among bachelors, residents included Lord Byron and future Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone.

French Drama: theatre in France during the 19th century largely consisted of melodramas, which featured stereotyped characters and sensational plots accompanied by suggestive music. These plots focus on morality and family issues, love, and marriage. The plots frequently involved adultery or infidelity, and because of this, French drama was viewed as immoral by the English.

Wagnerian: a reference to Richard Wagner (1813-1883), a German composer. He is best known for his epic operas and his anti-semitic writings. Most notably known for The Ring Cycle (Der Ring des Nibelungen), which consisted of four separate operas tied together by leitmotifs. The combination of literature, music, and visual elements would later influence modern film scores. The music of The Ring Cycle is known for its great volume and imposing sound, and it is in reference to this quality that Algernon comments:

ALGERNON: ...Ah! That must be Aunt Augusta. Only relatives, or creditors, ever ring in that Wagnerian manner.

Expurgations: a form of censorship which involves purging anything deemed noxious or offensive from an artistic work.

Glibbly: nonchalantly, superficially.

Metaphysical Speculation: the pondering of ultimate questions about the universe. In other words, questions that are impossible to answer. In some Western philosophical traditions, metaphysical speculation is considered the basis of any other kind of knowledge. Metaphysical speculation in Europe during the last century was considered to be a weakness. It has been accepted in recent European civilization only in so far as it was confined within the realm of theoretical scientific disciplines, such as quantum mechanics, astrophysics, or more recently, biology. Gwendolen answers Jack’s hypothetical on page 21 of Act one without the seriousness that so often comes with questions of a metaphysical nature:

GWENDOLEN: Ah! that is clearly a metaphysical speculation, and like most metaphysical speculations has very little reference at all to the actual facts of real life, as we know them.

Grosvenor Square: a large garden square in the Mayfair district of London that is the centerpiece of the Duke of Westminster’s property. Wilde lived in Grosvenor Square between 1883 and 1884.

Belgrave Square: the center of Belgravia, a fashionable neighborhood just west of Buckingham Palace.

Liberal Unionist: a splinter group of the Liberal Party that joined with the Conservatives to defeat William Gladstone’s Home Rule Bill of 1886, which would have granted political autonomy to Ireland.

Tories: a political party prevalent through the initial years of the Victorian period. Favored the monarchy and believed that only rich men who owned large plots of land should have the right to vote. Many rich officials belonging to high posts were members of this party. Later became known as Conservatives.

Purple of Commerce: traditionally, “born in the purple.” A phrase that categorizes members of royal families born during the reign of their parent. This was later expanded to include all children born of prominent of high-ranking parents. Lady Bracknell seems to sympathize more with the former categorization, as evidenced in her remark to Jack when inquiring his lineage:

LADY BRACKNELL: Who was your father? He was evidently a man of some wealth. Was he born in what the Radical papers call the purple of commerce, or did he rise from the ranks of the aristocracy?

We have already seen that she supports the Tories, therefore in her views, one who rises from aristocracy is inherently more favorable than one who simply rises from wealth.

Worthing: a large seaside town in England. Formerly a small mackerel fishing hamlet, in the late 18th century it developed into an elegant seaside resort frequented by the wealthy and well-known.

Sussex: a historic county in southeast England.

Victoria Station: a major railway station in the borough of Westminster, London. The unit consists of two combined stations, the Eastern and the Western. The Eastern portion was built for the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway, while the Western portion was built for the London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway. The two were partially merged in 1899 and the station was remodeled over the next decade.

Wedding March: a recessional often played at weddings by German composer Felix Mendelssohn. The “Wedding March” was written in 1842, and is one of the best known pieces from his suite of incidental music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. To this day, Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March” is frequently played at weddings, typically on a pipe organ.

Trivet: a three-footed stand used to support cooking vessels over a fire. The phrase “right as a trivet”, as used by Jack, is a proverbial expression for steadiness.

Gorgon: in Greek mythology, a term referring to one of three sisters (Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa) with snakes for hair that could turn people to stone at the sight of her face. The way Jack uses the word, however, refers to a fierce, frightening, or repulsive woman.

JACK: Her mother is perfectly unbearable. Never met such a Gorgon … I don’t really know what a Gorgon is like, but I am quite sure that Lady Bracknell is one. In any case, she is a monster, without being a myth, which is rather unfair...

Apoplexy: the loss of blood flow to an organ or bleeding into an organ. Typically referring to sudden symptoms of stroke.

Hertfordshire: one of eight counties that surround London.

Moulton: in an earlier version of Earnest, the action was divided into four acts. The character of Moulton, a gardener, was removed when Wilde shortened the action to the three act play we are familiar with today. Another character, Mr. Gribsby, was also removed from the play. Mr Gribsby was a solicitor who tried to arrest Algernon (posing as Ernest) for debts run up by Jack (also posing as Ernest). Despite being removed from the play, Miss Prism makes mention of him at the top of Act two on page 35.

MISS PRISM: Cecily, Cecily! Surely such a utilitarian occupation as the watering of flowers is rather Moulton’s duty than yours?

Egeria: a Latin name (literally, “beauty, grace, joy”). In Roman mythology, Egeria was a nymph who acted as the divine consort and counselor of Numa Pompilus, the second king of Rome. The name of Egeria is used as a name for a female advisor or counselor.

Right, Numa Consulting the Nymph Egeria by Jean Claude Naigeon c. 1791

CHASUBLE: But I must not disturb Egeria and her pupil any longer.

MISS PRISM: Egeria? My name is Laetitia, Doctor.

CHASUBLE: A classical allusion merely, drawn from the Pagan authors.

Alternatively, Egeria (other forms: Etheria or Aetheria) was the name of a woman widely regarded as the author to a detailed account of a pilgrimage to the Holy Land (Itinerarium Egeriae). The historical details provided within the text sets the journey in the early 380s and is the earliest extant graphic account of a Christian pilgrimage. The text is written at the end of Egeria’s journey and addressed to her ‘dear ladies’ back home. The first portion of the text describes her journey from her approach to Mount Sinai (the mountain where Moses received the Ten Commandments) to Constantinople. The second portion of the text describes in detail the liturgical services and observances of the church calendar in Jerusalem.

The Fall of the Rupee: rupees were the currency of Britain’s colony in India. During the time Wilde wrote Earnest, the value of the rupee had been falling in value for several decades.

“As a Man Sows so Let Him Reap”: a New Testament proverb. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7).

Three-volume Novel: a standard form of publishing for British fiction during the 19th century. Books were expensive to print and bind, in dividing a novel into three volumes, demand was created, and the revenue generated from sales of the first volume would fund the printing costs of the later volumes. These novels consisted of complicated plots and typically resolved themselves at the end by the distribution of marriage partners and property. The normal three-volume novel was around 900 pages.

Australia: Australia was first colonized by the British in 1788 in New South Wales. Between the years of 1788 and 1868, convicts were transported from Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies. Previously, convicts would be shipped to the American colonies, but with the start of the American Revolution, an alternative site had to be set. Convicts were sent to Australia as a means of relieving the overcrowding of British prisons. A majority of the convicts were transported for petty crimes. Most convicts, when emancipated, would stay in Australia and join the free settlers, with some even rising to prominent positions in Australian society. (Left, William Buckley’s transportation and escape to live with the Wathaurong in 1803, as depicted by 19th century Aboriginal artist Tommy McRae) Though Australia was no longer a penal colony when Wilde wrote Earnest, it was still widely seen as a place where disreputable family members might be sent, which Jack has threatened to do to “Ernest.”

CECILY: I don’t think you will require neckties. Uncle Jack is sending you to Australia.

ALGERNON: Australia! I’d sooner die.

CECILY: Well, he said at dinner on Wednesday night, that you would have to choose between this world, the next world, and Australia.

ALGERNON: Oh, well! The accounts I have received of Australia and the nexxt world, are not particularly encouraging. This world is good enough for me, cousin Cecily.

Quixotic: derived from Miguel de Cervantes’s novel Don Quixote. Published in two parts in 1605 and 1615, Don Quixote is one of the most influential works of literature from the Spanish Golden Age. The hero, a noble from La Mancha named Alonso Quixano, decides to become a knight after reading too many chivalric romances with the goal of reviving chivalry and serving his nation. He gives himself the title Don Quixote de la Mancha. Quixano does not view the world for what it is, instead preferring to imagine himself living out a kightly story. The word “Quixotic” refers to someone who is exceedingly idealistic, unrealistic, and impractical.

Buttonhole: a flower worn in the lapel of a man’s coat or jacket.

Marcechal Niel: a large, fragrant yellow rose developed in France and first grown in England in 1864. It is named after Adolphe Niel, the marshal of France under Napoleon III.

Misanthrope: a person who dislikes humankind and avoids human society

Neologistic: the introduction or use of new words or new senses of existing words. Chasuble’s distaste in response to Miss Prism’s use of “womanthrope” is due to the clash of Old English and Greek roots.

The Primitive Church: referring to the Early Christian church.

“Manna in the Wilderness”: from Exodus 16, in which food (manna) is said to have miraculously fallen from the heavens to feed the hungry Israelites as they wandered the wilderness.

Christening: the bestowment of a Christian name, usually accompanied by baptism. Leading up to a christening ceremony in the late 19th century, the arrival of the child would be announced in the local newspapers. The ceremony itself wouldn’t be held until the mother had recovered enough to return to society (typically within six weeks of the child’s birth). The child would wear an outfit tailored for this specific occasion (pictured right, 1886). On the day of the christening, the mother would choose the child’s godparents, who would then bestow gifts. The child would finally be given their Christian name and be baptized. Christenings weren’t limited to babies, though the christening of adults was far less common

Society for the Prevention of Discontent Among the Upper Orders: an “order” that parodies the long names of various societies among religious groups.

Rector: in the Anglican church, a type of parish priest. In academia, a senior official in an educational institution. In politics, a rector provinciae was a Latin generic term for a Roman governor.

Portmanteau: a large trunk or suitcase, typically made of stiff leather and opening into two equal parts.

Dog-cart: a light horse drawn vehicle originally designed for sporting with a box behind the driver’s seat to contain one or two dogs (Left, a dog-cart designed exclusively for a driver and a passenger).

Lorgnette: a pair of glasses or opera glasses held in front of a person’s eyes by a long handle.

Dorking: a market town in Surrey, located in southeast England.

Surrey: a county in southeast England.

Sporran: a decorated pouch worn as a piece of male Scottish Highland dress.

Fifeshire: a council area and historic county of Scotland.

Whooping Cough: a highly contagious respiratory tract infection marked by a severe hacking cough followed by a high-pitched intake of breath that sounds like a “whoop.” Before the invention of the vaccine in the 1930s, whooping cough was considered a childhood disease

Measles (German and English Variety): referring to rubeola and rubella. Rubeola (English variety) is an infection mainly of the nose, windpipe, and lungs and is very contagious. Complications in younger children include middle ear infections, pneumonia, croup, and diarrhea. In adults, rubeola is much more severe. Rubella (German variety) is milder, with symptoms that include a low-grade fever, sore throat, and a rash that begins on the face and spreads to the rest of the body. Vaccines for both of these infections weren’t developed until the 1960s.

Mercenary Marriage: the practice in which one partner marries a partner of much greater wealth.

Oxonian: someone who graduated from Oxford University.

Anabaptists: A Christian movement established in 16th century Germany, believed to be an offshoot of Protestantism. Anabaptist means “one who baptizes again.” This was derived from their practice of baptizing persons when they converted or declared their faith in Christ, even if they had been baptized as infants. The Anabaptists were opposed to the baptism of infants because they are not able to make the conscious decision to be baptized. Anabaptists were heavily persecuted beginning in the 16th century by Magisterial Protestants and Roman Catholics because their interpretation of the scripture contradicted official state church interpretations. The Amish, Mennonites, and Hutterites are direct descendants of the Anabaptist movement. 

Celebate: abstaining from marriage and sexual relations, typically for religious reasons.

Perambulator: a baby carriage or pram

 

Bayswater: a district within the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea located in West London.

Gower Street Omnibus: a public carriage (bus). Gower Street is located in the Bloomsbury section of central London.

Leamington: referring to the Leamington Spa in Warwickshire, about 100 miles outside northwest London.

The Army Lists: a collection of the names of British generals who served under the reign of Queen Victoria.

Characters

John “Ernest”  Worthing: the protagonist of this play. He is the guardian of Cecily Cardew and is Algernon’s best friend. He is in love with Gwendolen Fairfax. As a character, Jack is habitually dishonest, evidenced in his practice of taking the name of Ernest in the city, while answering to Jack in the country. Ernest is the name of his imaginary brother. As Ernest, he engages in indulgences that would otherwise be frowned upon in Victorian society. As Ernest, he causes trouble with gratuitous spending and by living a life of pleasure. During the action of the play, however, he comes to town as Ernest not to cause trouble, but to propose to Gwendolen. He visits Algernon with this intention when he finds that his friend had been in possession of his missing cigarette case. Algernon pesters him about the name engraved inside the case, which Jack very reluctantly provides clarification. When Gwendolen and Lady Bracknell arrive, Algernon gives him space for a chance to propose to Gwendolen. She expresses her fantasy of loving someone named Ernest and Jack grows uneasy. He decides that he must return to the country immediately to rechristen himself as Ernest in order to hold Gwendolen’s affections. When Lady Bracknell finds out about her daughter’s engagement to “Ernest,” she immediately begins to interrogate him to determine his suitability as a potential husband for Gwendolen. But when asked about his parentage, Jack cannot provide her an answer. He was abandoned at a railway station inside a handbag as a baby and taken in by an old gentleman who gave him the name of John Worthing.

If Jack wishes to marry Gwendolen, he must produce at least one parent to satisfy Lady Bracknell. He laments at the impossibility of this task when Gwendolen comes to him asking for his country address, which he gives. Jack makes the decision that he is going to “kill” Ernest, seeing that he was about to rechristen himself as Ernest (and because Cecily is too interested in his imaginary brother). Upon returning to the country, Cecily informs him that his “brother” has arrived. His unexpected run-in with Gwendolen later that day forces him to tell the truth for the first time: there never was an Ernest. Just when Jack has faced all his lies, Lady Bracknell arrives to retrieve Gwendolen. With the arrival of Miss Prism and the direct, merciless questioning of Lady Bracknell, Jack learns of his true identity. He is the son of Miss Prism, the younger brother of Algernon, and was, in fact, christened as Ernest. 

Jack’s journey throughout the play is one of discovery and learning the true importance of being Earnest. It isn’t until he was backed into a corner from the lies he had created that he was forced to come clean. He was uncertain of his identity, and in creating a false one, he was able to fulfill the desire of knowing who he is. By the end of the play, after facing his true identity and admitting to his faults, he has finally learned what it means to be “Ernest.”

Algernon Moncrieff: a young dandy who lives for pleasure. He is Jack’s best friend, the nephew of Lady Bracknell, and cousin of Gwendolen. Algernon goes by the nickname “Algy.” He is selfish in that he cares only for the next pleasure he seeks, disregarding the feelings of those whom he has inconvenienced. He cares not for love and sees marriage as strictly business while mocking the social conventions of the time. He has created an imaginary friend, Bunbury, whose extraordinarily poor health allows him to escape whenever he pleases. He and Jack are very similar.

The play opens on Algernon eating the cucumber sandwiches that have been specifically prepared for his Aunt Augusta. When Jack arrives, he teases him with his missing cigarette case in an effort to find out who “Little Cecily” is, but Jack won’t give him an address. When Lady Bracknell invites him to a dinner party that night, he declines with the excuse that Bunbury is ill once again. He allows Jack and Gwendolen space so Jack can propose, but stays back to listen when Gwendolen comes to Jack for his country address. Jack leaves while Algernon revels in his cleverness.

When he arrives at the country address under the name of “Ernest”, he comes face to face with Cecily Cardew and falls in love immediately. Much to his amusement, Jack arrives and tries to kick him out. As he is saying his goodbyes to Cecily, he proposes to her. Upon her expressing her “girlish dream” of loving an Ernest, Algernon decides that he must be rechristened Ernest immediately and runs off to seek Chasuble. When he returns, he finds that Gwendolen has arrived too. He is soon faced with the lies he has told and must admit to them. Cecily forgives him when it’s revealed that he was willing to be rechristened to please her. When Lady Bracknell arrives to fetch Gwendolen, she approves his engagement to Cecily without much hesitation.

Although Algernon began as a character who scoffed at the conventions of love, in the end, he fell prey to one of the most cliched conventions of all: falling in love at first sight. 

Canon Chasuble: a rector at the church in Woolton and a scholar. He is in love with Miss Prism, but because of his position as a celibate, he cannot pursue her as he would like. He is a well-meaning, but occasionally bumbling man.

Merriman: a butler in Jack’s country home.

Lane: Algernon’s stiff and serious manservant. He is described as a “perfect pessimist.” His responses towards Algernon’s inquiries are dry and carry an air of irony about them.

Lady Augusta Bracknell: a lady of high social standing and the voice of authority throughout the play. She is the mother of Gwendolen and aunt to Algernon. Her very character is a caricature of the Victorian upper class ladies with her extremely conservative attitudes and her excessive care for the trivial. She is bold and brash, and the expert of social interactions. Her primary interest is finding a suitable husband for her daughter. She has a very particular list of qualifications for potential candidates, and even carries this list with her when she goes out.

When Gwendolen announces her and Jack’s engagement, she is quick to pull out her list and begin her interrogations. Questions of occupation, political affiliations, education, and income are all of serious importance in her criterion. The subject of family, however, is quite minor. But when Jack admits to her that he is uncertain of his lineage, she declines his proposal to marry Gwendolen. However, she will still allows him a chance if he can confirm his lineage, though she isn’t content with the idea of her daughter marrying “into a cloak-room, and form an alliance with a parcel.”

After Gwendolen retreats to Jack’s country address, Lady Bracknell must follow after her. Upon arriving, she learns that Algernon and Cecily have gotten engaged. She expresses a liking to Cecily after learning of her considerable inheritance and immediately approves of their engagement. She is about to leave with Gwendolen when the mention of Miss Prism stops her. It was Lady Bracknell, with her unmatched interrogation skills, who learns of what happened to the baby that Miss Prism misplaced years ago. That baby being Jack, ultimately helping him to achieve his goal of getting to marry Gwendolen.

Gwendolen Fairfax: a shallow and conventional young woman, Gwendolen is the perfect example of a proper Victorian lady. She is the daughter of Lady Bracknell and the cousin of Algernon. She is in love with Jack, whom she knows as Ernest. She is described as clever, simple, and unspoiled, but her actions complicate these labels.

Gwendolen desires love, but is deeply obsessed with the thought of loving someone named Ernest. She idealizes the connotations of the word associated with the name, but gives little thought to the true character of the person who bears that name. Nonetheless, she is determined to marry Jack.

When she arrives at Jack’s country home, she meets the young Cecily Cardew, whom she takes a liking to immediately. But the moment she mentions that she’s also engaged to Ernest, she becomes cold and exceedingly polite. This escalates until the men in question arrive and reveal the truth. Immediately, she and Cecily make up, friends once again. She is still angry with Jack for lying about his name, but when she learns that he is soon to be rechristened as Ernest, she fully forgives him. When Jack discovers his mother and brother’s identities, Gwendolen’s first concern before their engagement becomes official is the issue of his real name. When he discovers that it is, in fact, Ernest, she is fully ready to accept him as her husband.

Cecily Cardew: a sheltered, naive girl who idealizes the romance behind the name Ernest. She is the granddaughter of the late Thomas Cardew, the pupil of Miss Prism, and is the ward of Jack (whom she refers to as Uncle Jack). Cecily has taken a great interest in Jack’s tales of his “wicked brother” Ernest and has fallen in love with the idea of reforming him.

When Algernon arrives under the guise of the name “Ernest”, she is delighted to finally meet him at last. She quickly falls in love with him, and immediately accepts when he proposes. Her disconnect to reality is shown when she reveals that they have actually been “engaged” for three months already. This engagement occurred through the letters she had written for him, and she even went so far as to buy the engagement ring that he had “selected” for her. With the bits of information she gathered from Jack’s tales, she was able to fabricate an entire story surrounding her imagined engagement to a man who had previously never existed.

When she meets Gwendolen, she is perfectly content in her presence until she learns that she is also engaged to Ernest. She continues to treat her with politeness, but it’s an icy one. She goes out of her way to irritate Gwendolen by giving her the opposite of what she asks for. But when they learn that Ernest wasn’t a real person, they are quick to reconcile, even agreeing to call each other “sister.” Both she and Gwendolen forgive the men for lying to them, especially after learning about what they plan to do. At the end of the play, her engagement to Algernon is approved and they rejoice in Jack’s happiness upon discovering who he is.

Miss Laetitia Prism: Cecily’s tutor. She is in love with Chasuble, but cannot directly express this because of his position as a celibate rector. It is revealed later in the play that she is an acquaintance of Lady Bracknell’s and is Jack’s mother. She is a well-educated woman, but occasionally gets flustered.