‘THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST’ – ENDING: Loose Ends
( source: http://www.gradesaver.com/the-importance-of-being-earnest/q-and-a/loose-ends665/ )
Question:
Couple things bothering me about this play . . .:
1. Jack is marrying his first cousin.
2. At the end of the play, Cecily seems to forget all about her insistence on marrying
a man named Earnest.
3. If Gwendolen is the daughter of Lord and Lady Bracknell, why is her last name
Fairfax?
Suggested answers:
1. The play is set in the late Victorian era in England and during that era it was really
common for a man to marry his cousin. It was actually considered a good
thing, because it ensured that wealth stayed within the family. In fact, in those
days, there were a lot of birth defects from people marrying their own family
members, but no one understood modern genetics.
2. Hi,
Actually, I think Earnest just pretends to find out that his name is Earnest when
he looks up his family name in the book at the end. So, his name really isn't
Earnest... he just gets everyone to believe it!
...
the same thing happens in the newer film of the play. Jack sees the name
"John" in the book but lies and says the name is Earnest. The script for the
play, however, does not indicate that Jack is lying. This change is a director's
decision.
...
I think Wilde was being ironic when Cecily seemingly forgets her earlier
obsessions with the name Ernest... just wanted to show how fickle people can
be!
3. As far as point 3 goes, in Victorian England members of the nobility would often
be granted the title of Lord or Lady (Ladyship was usually bequeathed
automatically to the Lord's wife). The name that followed his title would be that
of a place in England, hence the monikers Lord and Lady Bracknell. In this
play Lord and Lady Bracknell would still possess a surname, but have become
known by their titles. Gwendolen, as their daughter, is inelegible for an
automatic title, thus retaining 'Fairfax' as a surname.