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Get every literary device explanation for The Importance of Being EarnestPlus so much more...
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Irony
Explanation and Analysis—Earnest vs. Ernest:
An ongoing source of irony in The Importance of Being Earnest is the relationship between the name "Ernest" and its homophone, the word "earnest." Throughout the play, both Gwendolen and Cecily express their desire to marry a man named Ernest, and in Act 1, Part 2, Gwendolen explains to Jack why Ernest is the only "safe" name for a husband:
Gwendolen: We live, as I hope you know, Mr. Worthing, in an age of ideals... and my ideal has always been to love someone of the name of Ernest. There is something in that name that inspires absolute confidence.
In Act 2, Part 2, Cecily tells Algernon her reasons for wishing to marry a man named Ernest, and they are remarkably similar to Gwendolen's:
Cecily: You must not laugh at me, darling, but it has always been a girlish dream of mine to love someone whose name was Ernest. [Algernon rises, Cecily also.] There is something in that name that seems to inspire absolute confidence. I pity any poor married woman whose husband is not named Ernest.
These scenes are both instances of dramatic irony. The name Ernest "inspires absolute confidence" in both women, who seem to believe that being named "Ernest" is equivalent to actually being "earnest." The audience, on the other hand, knows that Jack created the character of Ernest as a means to escape his responsibility and live a dandy's life in the city. Regardless of whether it is Jack or Algernon taking on the role, Ernest is always a symbol of deception rather than sincerity.
Cecily's confidence in the name Ernest is especially ironic, since all she knows of her guardian's brother is that he is always getting into trouble. As an individual, Ernest is neither safe nor trustworthy, which is why Cecily is attracted to him in the first place, but she still regards his name as a sign of his good character. This proclamation is also an instance of foreshadowing—at the end of the play, Lady Bracknell forbids Algernon from being baptized and prevents him from taking on the name of Ernest, which causes Cecily to end up as the "poor married woman" she earlier pitied.
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