The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays (Penguin Classics) by Oscar Wilde (2001-03-01)

This version of play was good and the actors captured the tone of the play well. The actors playing Lady Bracknell, Gwendolen Fairfax and Cecily Cardew were very good. The male characters were portrayed at an acceptable level but not was good as the female characters. I would recommend this version.

This 54-page version does not include the lobster scene, which I saw in an excellent production recently, and would love to read. My book club is gong to discuss this play, and I'm tempted to go through and underline every epigram, just for fun. I wish life was more like this play! If you've never read it, you're in for a treat!

I did not realize I had seen this movie, which is very good. So watch it, but read the book first. It's a silly, cute movie. The book is very good also.. go figure... Ernest in the county or who's his name in the city. I do like him in the country. And the city. Maybe men in the city need to go to the country. You pick'...

The senior play when I was in high school was "The Importance of Being Ernest." I worked behind the stage and had never read the book/play. If you would like to improve your use of English as a language, you must read this. Oscar Wilde certainly had a way with the language. I plan to read it again, perhaps out loud.

well, do you want to read Oscar Wilde's best work of fiction, then read The Importance of Being Earnest. This is rather a booklet with no introduction or preface, just the text of the play, which makes it even easy to read. It gives me a sense of a favourite book which is going always to be my favourite. The cover is just good so I recommend it, but not if you want guidelines and an introduction, this is a book for someone who wants to enjoy the play itself.

This 54-page version does not include the lobster scene, which I saw in an excellent production recently, and would love to read. My book club is gong to discuss this play, and I'm tempted to go through and underline every epigram, just for fun. I wish life was more like this play! If you've never read it, you're in for a treat!

I did not realize I had seen this movie, which is very good. So watch it, but read the book first. It's a silly, cute movie. The book is very good also.. go figure... Ernest in the county or who's his name in the city. I do like him in the country. And the city. Maybe men in the city need to go to the country. You pick'...

The senior play when I was in high school was "The Importance of Being Ernest." I worked behind the stage and had never read the book/play. If you would like to improve your use of English as a language, you must read this. Oscar Wilde certainly had a way with the language. I plan to read it again, perhaps out loud.

well, do you want to read Oscar Wilde's best work of fiction, then read The Importance of Being Earnest. This is rather a booklet with no introduction or preface, just the text of the play, which makes it even easy to read. It gives me a sense of a favourite book which is going always to be my favourite. The cover is just good so I recommend it, but not if you want guidelines and an introduction, this is a book for someone who wants to enjoy the play itself.

Oscar Wilde was so impressed with his own perceived brilliance that he endeavors to demonstrate this brilliance in every sentence. Unfortunately saying something stupid is often interpreted as non-conformity once a reputation for cleverness has been achieved. I think the emperor is naked but people write PhD theses on his clothes.

This play is so silly I was unable to finish it. Netflix keeps recommending it to me and, after starting the book, I can't see why. It is a look at the wealthy, with nothing but time on their hand, being nothing but idle and silly.

I was very hesitant to read as required for Composition and Literature class because I hate drama/playwrights. I was in for a real surprise! This piece of literature was strange, goofy, filled with irony and puns. There is a lot that a reader can take from this piece.

One of my favorite reads. If you are into literature and want to enjoy something in one sitting - this is for you. If you or someone you love is into humour and poetry and can handle something a hundred years old - I highly recommend it.

first, i didn't realize that it was a play i'd be reading. I found that a bit boring and the storyline boring. i read half way through
it and never even finished the book. Guess it just wasn't my "cup of tea". Sorry

The book is in absolutely excellent shape. I can't remember if it was advertised as new or very good shape, but it was like new. No musty smell. Great font. Stiff book. Perfect cover. Couldn't ask for anything more.

Just wanted to read this acclaimed play. It was not as interesting as I thought it would be to read. However, it is considered a classical piee of work , and I want to read a lot of classical pieces in lieu of much of the prpesent works, which may or may not be very worthwhile, but, in any event have not yet stood the test of time

I was very hesitant to read as required for Composition and Literature class because I hate drama/playwrights. I was in for a real surprise! This piece of literature was strange, goofy, filled with irony and puns. There is a lot that a reader can take from this piece.

One of my favorite reads. If you are into literature and want to enjoy something in one sitting - this is for you. If you or someone you love is into humour and poetry and can handle something a hundred years old - I highly recommend it.

Used this for a midterm project in a Costume Design course in University. Love the play and the time period. Wish I could see it performed but I don't think I'll be able to for a while. I would recommend giving this one a chance!

Oscar Wilde is ALWAYS entertaining, whether in his dramatic writings: Portrait of Dorian Gray, An Ideal Husband...but he is SUPERB as writer of comedy, and, for me, nothing topples "The Importance of Being Earnest." It's sublimely intelligent, surprising the funny bone at every corner. Thank you, Oscar Wilde.

The Importance of Being Earnest has always been one of my favorite books ever! I read it out in no time again after downloading the Kindle edition which I found well presented. I thoroughly advise anyone to get it.

Avant-garde literature in the second half of the nineteenth century and into the 1900s seemed to be obsessed with irony. O. Henry stories strike me as the epitome of the ironic style in American literature. In eighth grade we were told that his specialty was "surprise endings." It is true that he liked surprise endings, but a deeper analysis is that all those surprises were formulaic exercises in irony. The hobo is inspired to make a better life for himself and at that very moment he's arrested for vagrancy. The wife sells her hair and the husband sells his watch so they can buy each other expensive gifts that are now useless. (And the title takes a dig at the original Christmas story--oh so ironic). Ambrose Bierce worked over ironic situations from the Civil War with the same cold detachment. The son kills his father on the other side of the war (or does the father kill the son?). The gunner fires a cannon and destroys his own house. "The Red Badge of Courage" is deeply ironic but I think it manages to rise above pure irony. Kate Chopin followed the same formula in her short stories, but I consider "The Awakening" to be a masterpiece of character and tragedy rather than an ironic commentary (the fact that it retells the basic story of "Madam Bovary" may have had a lot to do with that).

I have no problem with irony as a literary device or even as an outlook on life, but taken to extremes I find it tiresome and a moral copout. Oscar Wilde steps into this milieu and writes something of a farce in that "Earnest" has a plot based on mistaken identity/disguises and sort of a comedy of manners, but with a very heavy dose of ironic drawing room banter featuring a bunch of bored people showing off how jaded and cleverly ironic they are. I don't see any character development or any reason to get emotionally involved with these characters. Obviously a lot of reviewers like this style, but I just get bored with it.

If you want to read or see a real farce, I recommend Feydeau. As far as I know, his plays are all short and the ones I've seen are really funny and timeless because they are based on classic farcical situations. And I don't recall any overlay of social commentary. Ionesco's plays are outwardly farcical, though they have a very dark undertone. I think these masters of theater leave Wilde in the dust.

I didn't expect The Importance of Being Earnest to be so much fun! Usually reading a play, instead of seeing a performance, doesn't give me as much enjoyment, but Oscar Wilde's free-wheeling use of language had me laughing out loud. If you enjoy words and clever use of the english language with a little satire thrown in, you'll love this.

This short play is so very funny because it is so well written and right on regarding human behavior. The movie with Colin Firth, Reese Witherspoon and Judi Dench is a must own to watch over and over.

I love this play! My teen is performing it soon! However, we were disappointed that the version we were sent was not an exact match to the picture shown. This has made it harder for her to practice lines, etc. since everyone else's copy had different page numbers for the scene they were working on.

One reviewer complained that the story is 'fluff'. It is also completely implausible. It reminded me of the Marx brothers. I found it thoroughly entertaining and humorous. It's a pretty quick read. Of course, the characters are dated, but that also adds to the fun if you like that kind of stuff. The english is a little challenging so you also get a little brain exercise.

Was just in Paris visiting Wilde's grave, which also inspired me to buy his finest creation.

This book is a perfect example of how people in society potray themselves as dignified individuals while keeping the realization that they play an important role in society. They adjust themselves to fit their own standards, and live up to their character and gender roles of their class and time.