NON-AFRICAN DRAMA OSCAR WILDE: The Importance of Being Earnest Analyse the deceptive nature of Algernon.

Answer Details

Deception is the mainspring of Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, and no one practises it more artfully than Algernon Moncrieff. His inventions and impostures drive much of the comedy and embody Wilde's satire on the double lives of respectable Victorians.

The invention of Bunbury. Algernon's masterpiece of deception is the imaginary invalid friend "Bunbury", whose perpetual ill-health provides Algernon with an excuse to escape tiresome social duties whenever he pleases. Whenever a dull dinner threatens, Bunbury conveniently falls dangerously ill in the country. Algernon proudly defends this "Bunburying" as a necessary art, revealing him as a habitual and unrepentant deceiver.

Detecting Jack's own deception. Algernon's sharp eye for pretence is shown when he uncovers his friend Jack's double life. From the inscription in Jack's cigarette case, he deduces that the sober "Ernest" of town is the "Jack" of the country, and that Jack has invented a wicked brother Ernest as his own excuse for escaping to London. Algernon is thus both a deceiver and an exposer of deception.

Impersonating Ernest. Algernon's boldest fraud is to travel down to Jack's country house and present himself as the fictitious brother Ernest Worthing. Under this false name he courts Jack's young ward, Cecily Cardew, winning her affection through a lie about his very identity. He deceives both host and beloved for his own pleasure.

Deception in small things too. His appetite for trickery extends to trifles: he devours the cucumber sandwiches meant for his aunt while pretending they are unavailable, and coolly denies the evidence. His dishonesty is a settled habit of a charming, idle young man.

The point of his deceptions. Wilde uses Algernon's cheerful lying to satirise a society obsessed with appearances, in which respectable people lead secret double lives. Yet the play's irony is that Algernon's deception turns out well; his assumed name "Ernest" becomes, absurdly, almost true, and his courtship of Cecily ends happily.

Conclusion. Algernon is a witty, engaging and thoroughly deceptive character whose Bunburying, false identity and casual dishonesty propel the plot and voice Wilde's mockery of Victorian hypocrisy. His deception is presented not as villainy but as the delightful cunning of a young man who finds truth a great deal too dull.