Question

Algernon. Lane’s views on marriage seem somewhat lax. Really, if the lower orders don’t set us a good example, what on earth is the use of them? They seem, as a class, to have absolutely no sense of moral responsibility. –The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde Which features of a comedy of manners are present in the passage? Check all that apply.
a. witty wordplay
b. an illustration of class differences
c. an emphasis on appearances over morality
d. a commentary on marriage
e. the differences between country and city life

Answer 1

The Importance of Being Earnest, written by Oscar Wilde and first performed in theaters around 1895, at the height of the Victorian Era, was probably the one and only work written by this author that was a trivial comedy that sought to criticize through satire and farce that views that Victorian society had on marriage and relationships. He not only makes fun of things that for society were very important at the time, like marriage, but he also trivialized the institutions and society in itself. The two most important characteristics of this play are the use of farce and satire, but also the witty dialogues with which the characters trivialize evertything.  

In this particular passage, where Lane, Algernon´s butler, is reflecting on the reality of marriage and his previous conversation with his master, he makes this statement after his master has made it clear that he does not care about his previous married state and comments on how little he cares about the institution of marriage and how lowly he thinks of that way of life. It is almost a criticism, a jugdement on Algernon´s poor analysis of the married state of life, which extends also into a critism of the way in which Algernon´s social class views the institution of marriage and its importance. In this passage, then, you can see the use of words in a witty way to attract the audience, also a very strong position on social differences between lower and higher classes and also a standing on appearances vs true morality. This is why the correct choices are thus: a, b and c.  

Answer 2

The correct answers are B) an illustration of class differences and D) a commentary on marriage.

The features of a comedy of manners that are present in the passage are an illustration of class differences and a commentary on marriage.

Oscar Wilde wrote the play "The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People" that has its inaugural date on February 14, 1895. The play refers to the old customs of Victorian manners in London and satirizes formal institutions such as marriage.