The Importance of Being Earnest

     In the comedy, The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde characterizes his characters as shallow and rather superficial. These character traits portray the common stereotype of people in the Victorian Age.  In Wilde's satirical comedy, these characters make the physical journey from Hertfordshire to the Manor House of Jack Worthing in the countryside. The shallowness and hypocrisy of these characters is revealed when all of the characters join together at the Manor House. The physical journey that these characters take and what occurs at their destination reveals the meaning of the work as a whole: the dangers of shallowness and lies.
     Algernon is the first to show up at the Manor House in attempt to become engaged to Jack Worthing's ward, Cecily. Algernon disguises himself as Ernest, the fictional brother of Jack who is believed to have relations with Cecily. Jack has created Ernest for the pure purpose of being able to leave his rather dull life behind in the country and travel to London to enjoy himself. So, what begins as a lie Jack created, suddenly erupts before both Algernon and Jack's eyes when Algernon discovers that Jack is also at the manor attempting to win over Gwendolyn Fairfax under the name of Ernest. Through much confusion, chaos, and deception it is revealed to Gwendolyn and Cecily that Ernest really does not exist and that they were being deceived the entire time. The journey from Hertfordshire led all these childish and trivial people to convene in one place and this is how the secret of Ernest was leaked. The comedy and stupidity of the characters adds to the satirical tone of the play. The chaos that the secret of Ernest creates conveys the dangers of lying but also how common it was among the superficial people of the time period.
     The way that Gwendolyn and Cecily react is also a factor in portraying the shallowness of the time period. These two woman have never been acquainted  until they make the journey to Jack's manor house in the country. Here, the women find out that they have been supposedly in love with the same fictional man. Gwendolyn herself marveled at purely the name Ernest and was not pleased with the name Jack. Cecily had also imagined Ernest and her engagement and life together in her journal. Both of these are examples of the stereotype of people in the Victorian Age. The women attempt to act calm, collected, and polite with one another once they have found out that they have been in love with the same man, this again reveals their foolishness and superficiality. Also, the fact that the women decide to forgive the men because they are both changing their name to Ernest is outrageous but at the time characteristic of the personality of women. Overall, the journey and meeting between these two women encompasses the personalities of two typical women in the Victorian Age depicting their foolishness and one-dimensional personalities.
     Ultimately, the journey the characters make from Hertfordshire to the country estate is how the false character of Ernest is revealed. This journey is how the chaos begins and the characters' shallowness shines through even brighter. Algernon and Jack are caught telling lies and being deceptive, common in the time period but also causing havoc with their families and those that they love. Also, the superficiality of the women of the time period is revealed by the meeting of Gwendolyn and Cecily and their decision to remain with Algernon and Jack as long as they are both christened under the name of Ernest. Comedy is infused throughout and the characters are perfect satirical examples from the time period.