2. Presented by: Brit (Jack&Algy), Elisheva (Cecily), Tierney (Gwendolen)
The Importance of
Being Earnest
Lines 1609-1748
By: Oscar Wilde
3. The Hired Help
• Merriman is seen as lesser than
• Servants during this time period
were paid quarterly
• Could be dismissed from their jobs
without warning or notice
• They were to keep their mouths
shut over family matters
• The longer that a servant stayed
with a particular family, the better
off they were
4. Frenemies to enemies back to friends?
• The girls uphold social
expectations when they first
meet (being fake)
• Women were seen as delicate
and unable to make decisions
for themselves
• Towards the end of their
conversation they become
enemies—making them both
question the men that they are
to marry
5. What is in a Name?
• Only want to marry the guys
because of the name Earnest
• A name—even in today’s society—
can have specific money, land,
investments attached to it
• Men and women would marry for
social status—not love
6. Work Cited
• Avictorian.com. "Servants and the Servant Question." Avictorian.com. AngelS, 1997. Web. 27
Apr. 2016.
• Thomas, Pauline Weston. "A Woman's Place In C19th Victorian History." A Woman's Place in
Victorian Society. Fashion-Era, 2014. Web. 27 Apr. 2016.
