The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays

“The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays” brings together Oscar Wilde’s most popular plays which first appeared between 1891 and 1895. Despite his relatively short theatrical career, Wilde’s plays have enjoyed a sustained popularity. A classic satire of Victorian society, “The Importance of Being Earnest” is one of the author’s most frequently performed works. The play trivializes its characters, who through a series of deceptions pretend to be people that they are not in order to escape the burdensome demands of social conventions. “Salome”, originally written in French, is a retelling of the Biblical story of Salome, who requests the head of John the Baptist, Jokanaan in the play, for dancing the dance of the seven veils. “A Woman of No Importance” concerns Mrs. Arbuthnot, a woman who has been scorned by society for having an illicit affair and conceiving a child out of wedlock. “An Ideal Husband” is the story of an up-and-coming politician with a secret past and the blackmail scheme to keep that secret quiet. “Lady Windermere’s Fan” is the tale of Lady Windermere who suspects her husband of infidelity when he takes an interest in Mrs. Erlynne. Largely a collection of high society satires “The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays” brilliantly exhibits Wilde’s dramatic deft. This edition includes a biographical afterword.