discuss the ways in which Wilde presents the characters of Jack and Algernon in the opening of Act One
Mark Scott
Discuss the ways in which Wilde presents the characters of Jack and Algernon in the opening of Act One in ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’
In the opening act of ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’, Oscar Wilde initially introduces the reader to the two main characters, Jack and Algernon. Their behaviour and personality are a key focus within this first scene as well as revealing what kind of language they use when in conversation with each other and with the other characters. The first act overall has little action within it, but Wilde manages to keep the play interesting through the emphasis he places on specific language features. Wilde also builds up an atmosphere which is full of trivialities and also nonsense. These two main topics are referred to on a frequent basis by the characters in the play. But ultimately it’s how Wilde presents the two main characters to the audience that strikes up an element of importance, and within these characters lies Wilde’s true messages to certain subjects like social class, and this will prove to be crucial in order to understand the key concepts of the play.
Straight away we know that Algernon is of a high social class with a wealthy background. The fact that he is in his ‘Morning-Room’ at the start of the scene suggests this as not many people even today would have a certain room, which could only be used in specific times of the day. The room is also ‘luxuriously and artistically finished’ which is yet another clue to Algernon’s wealth. By giving this description at the start of the act, Wilde is giving us the opportunity to make immediate assumptions on the character of Algernon. But as language is the key to the play as whole, it’s going to be a much more accurate way of summarising Algernon as a character. The first inkling we get of Algernon is that he is quite an extravagant person because of his use of language and he also can be quite melodramatic. The first indication of this comes when Algernon talks about his piano playing and says ‘I don’t play accurately-anyone can play accurately- but I play with wonderful expression.’ His choices of words are really quite unnecessary and he could’ve got the same message across by just saying that he played well. The way that he over-elaborates on his piano playing also suggests that he is quite image conscious too because he feels the need to become a dominating presence, and his language even in the early parts of the act imply this. After this extravagance, we then see what Algernon’s life is really like. He begins to place an emphasis on the ‘cucumber sandwiches’ which have been prepared for the visit of Lady Bracknell. This constant reminder of food shows us that food as a whole is quite important in Algernon’s life. But by placing such a heavy emphasis on the sandwiches it is showing us that there isn’t anything important in his life and the conversations about food suggest that Algernon leads a very empty life and doesn’t have a lot to do because he is wealthy. It is also worth noting that Algernon eats all the sandwiches before Lady Bracknell even arrives which then indicates that he is quite a greedy and selfish character as he is only really caring about his food desires.
