The Wit and Wisdom of Oscar Wilde: The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays

Dalma: Missing from my bookshelf

United States on Oct 26, 2023

M.E. Ortegas: Ha llegado en buenas condiciones.

Spain on Oct 24, 2023

T satyanarayana: Oscar Wilde is an well known writer.It is a comedy play containing a few characters and a short play.The way he has concluded it is noteworthy.He comically described the how human nature changes according to their likings.

India on Oct 02, 2023

Hervet InèsHervet Inès:

France on Aug 27, 2023

Luigi: Preso per un esame all’università ma ho voluto tenerlo perché mi è piaciuto molto

Italy on Aug 22, 2023

Kindle Customer: It's Oscar Wide . That has to be enough to read it. Short , sweet and so entertaining. Absolutely loved the unexpected twists and turns. Must read.

India on Jul 14, 2023

Amir Gendy: As I have mentioned before, in my reading to the book, the picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde is the master of metaphor and allegorical symbolism.
**** stars For the simplicity of the idea, and the complexity of the characters.

Dr. Amir Gendy
Surgeon and Author of “BETTER,” “The Future of Medicine and the Fate of Humanity,” and “THE abNORMAL”

United States on Jun 22, 2023

Tracey Mellert: I’ve never read an Oscar Wilde book before but saw that it was a light read- kept me entertained from the beginning until the end! Loved it

United States on Feb 28, 2023

Kenya Starflight: Older literature can be challenging for modern audiences to relate to, especially when it's trying to satirize elements of society at the time that may no longer be relevant. It's often still worth reading in order get a feel for the time period... and sometimes it can still be funny and even surprisingly relevant today. And such was the case with "The Importance of Being Earnest," a play written by the inimitable Oscar Wilde. Just as amusing and cutting today as it was when it was first written, it's a surprisingly enjoyable jaunt that I'd love to see onstage someday.

British society men Jack and Algernon often find themselves bored by their everyday lives, and so each has their own alter ego -- Jack lives a double-life, going by Earnest while in London and Jack while visiting his home in the country, while Algernon has invented a perpetually-sick friend to serve as a handy alibi. But when two lovely women catch each man's eye -- and each lady finds themselves falling in love with the completely fictitious Earnest -- the stage is set for a comedy of errors that will find double identities exposed for all to see.

Being written in script format, it's hard to judge...

United States on Nov 14, 2021

Michael Birman: Oscar Wilde made his initial reputation as the master of the epigram: the trenchant and mordant, roughly haiku length flashes of insight into the comic absurdity of the world. No one in English Literature before or since has ever displayed such an effortless mastery of wit. "All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That's his."

The Importance of Being Earnest not only flaunts Wilde's most inconsequential plot, it is also crammed with his funniest epigrams and wittiest bon mots. This 1895 three-act comedic tour-de-force was an immediate hit in London. The comic word-play was a sensation amongst audiences who flocked to see this brilliant manifestation of Wilde's epicene witticisms. Here was a glittering example of London's avant-garde in the 1890's. Much like the play Hair in the 1960's, it was a signature of the times that no self-respecting sophisticate could miss. Wilde enjoyed himself immensely during this apex of his fame. Unfortunately, his reputation was quickly eclipsed by the scandal that engulfed him and his work. It took several decades for that reputation to be rehabilitated. The Importance of Being Earnest seemed to float above...

United States on Oct 06, 2008