ESCUELA OFICIAL DE IDIOMAS


Rosa Cid
5º - A -

 

 

 

One of the main characters, Algernon, is the British dandy stereotype. He represents a group of the upper class society in which a bachelor man could do everything except not to keep the manners. He is ingenious and cynic and seems to be disillusioned by the society of his time , like Wilde himself. He indulges himself by living in a way that he really despises. It is for that reason that he has invented " Bunburyism "  to be able to escape from the observance of the rules.

 On the contrary, Lane, his manservant is the perfect butler. He has assumed his role, and does not mind about the hints that his master drop at him, even when he says that lower class have no sense at all of moral responsibility.

Ernest (Jack) seems to me more earnest than Algernon, in spite of the pun that gives the name to the play. There is no doubt he has a dual personality: Ernest in town and Jack in the country, but he is not aware of being dishonest. In fact, the only matters which he cares about are to marry Gwendolen, and looking after his pupil, Cecily. This two things tend to appear perfectly correct in every society, at every time. The point is in my opinion, he does not know his backgrounds which causes on him a feeling of insecurity.

 Lady Bracknell is the character who best pictures the Victorian society, where social conventions were the most important issue. She fights for preserving the moral values in which she believes. A values, on the other hand, that appear to be on the decline.
 

Gwendolen , as many feminine roles in other plays of  Wilde, is merely plain, except maybe for her mordacity. On the contrary, Cecily is all kindness and sweetness. She has such a  childish nature that she writes down in a diary the most important happenings of her life, even those that have never occurred as her engage with Jack’s brother Ernest.

 Finally, the rest of the characters: Miss Prism, Reverend  Chasuble, etc., are just extras.

 

- Critic -