Russell Jackson states that in The Importance of Being Earnest, "Wilde simultaneously engages and mocks the forms and rules of society" To what extent Is Wilde's work critical of society? The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play written by author, poet and playwright Oscar Wilde in 1894 and premiered at the St James's Theater in London in 1895. The Importance of Being Earnest is the most Wilde's eminent work and renowned for its abundant jokes and entertaining satirical views on Victorian values, marriage and love. He continually mocks the hypocritical and superficial views of the upper classes throughout the play. The play on words in the title, is the initial point of mockery of the true meaning of "Serious", it is seriousness and sincerity, in contrast to the characters, as each individual continually tries to convince society that he is honest with strong morals and be able to respect rigid social rules. Nonetheless Wilde skillfully presents the characters in a way that conveys their moral views as absurd and trivial, Russell Jackson's statement on the play is extremely accurate as through many devices Wilde engaged in and simultaneously mocked the forms and rules of society. Within the play, Wilde mirrors many of the characters, such as Gwendolen Fairfax and Cecily Cardew who, both equally, have a great intention of marrying a man named Ernest. Gwendolen believes she is destined to love someone named Ernest as "There's something about that name that inspires absolute confidence" While Cecily also admits "It was always a little girl's dream of mine to love a man named Ernest." In the third act, the selective women even declare in unison that “the names of Christianity are still an insurmountable basis...... in the center of the card......which were allowed to follow. These points are fundamental in both literary works as they confront the forms of society and mock their values ​​in order to bring about noticeable changes in the attitudes of the time. In conclusion, Wilde's portrayal of Victorian society is deeply critical and although the play is lighthearted and has comedic qualities, Wilde's unmistakable criticism of social norms and values ​​is evident and is one of the first plays to address issues modern, inspiring many other artists to explore and analyze the system in place. Wilde was interested in the forms of society and the superficial nature of the people within it. Lady Bracknell summarizes Wilde's vision of society "we live, I regret to say, in an age of surfaces", echoed by her daughter Gwendolen "in matters of grave importance, style, not sincerity is the vital thing" Jesamine Harvey