The Importance of Being Earnest

Here is Oscar Wilde's most brilliant tour de force, a witty and buoyant comedy of manners that has delighted millions in countless productions since its first performance in London's St. James' Theatre on February 14, 1895.

The Importance of Being Earnest is celebrated not only for the lighthearted ingenuity of its plot, but for its inspired dialogue, rich with scintillating epigrams still savored by all who enjoy artful conversation.

Rich in humor, and memorable characters, Wilde offers a captivating satire of Victorian society and its repressive values and traditions, particularly in the pursuit of love and marriage. To recapture their freedom, the characters liberate themselves by leading double lives.

From the play's effervescent beginnings in Algernon Moncrieff's London flat to its hilarious dénouement in the drawing room of Jack Worthing's country manor in Hertfordshire, this comic masterpiece keeps audiences breathlessly anticipating a new bon mot or a fresh twist of plot moment to moment.

From ancient Greek dramas to great 20th-century masters, Dover publishes low-priced editions of just about every major work of drama, including those by William Shakespeare, Anton Chekhov, and Henrik Ibsen. Bestsellers include A Doll's House, Cyrano de Bergerac, Dr. Faustus, The Importance of Being Ernest, Medea, Oedipus Rex, Pygmalion, Romeo and Juliet, among many others.