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The Importance of Being Earnest

Name: The Importance of Being Earnest
Rating: 4.17 (403423 reviews)
Author: Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde February 14, 1895

4.17 403.4k Ratings

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Synopsis

Oscar Wilde’s madcap farce about mistaken identities, secret engagements, and lovers entanglements still delights readers more than a century after its 1895 publication and premiere performance. The rapid-fire wit and eccentric characters of The Importance of Being Earnest have made it a mainstay of the high school curriculum for decades.

Cecily Cardew and Gwendolen Fairfax are both in love with the same mythical suitor. Jack Worthing has wooed Gwendolen as Ernest while Algernon has also posed as Ernest to win the heart of Jack’s ward, Cecily. When all four arrive at Jack’s country home on the same weekend the “rivals” to fight for Ernest’s undivided attention and the “Ernests” to claim their beloveds pandemonium breaks loose. Only a senile nursemaid and an old, discarded hand-bag can save the day!

This Prestwick House Literary Touchstone Edition includes a glossary and reader’s notes to help the modern reader appreciate Wilde’s wry wit and elaborate plot twists.

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The Importance of Being Earnest

Books similar to The Importance of Being Earnest

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Death of a Salesman

The Merchant of Venice

The Glass Menagerie

Much Ado About Nothing

Othello

Romeo and Juliet

Oedipus Rex

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