English 123 Blog 17

Today we mentioned the last line of the classic novel The Importance of Being Earnest. The line states, " I now realized for the first time in my life the vital importance of Being Earnest." This quote is a play on the word Earnest. The main character's name in the book is Jack and he pretends to be a man named Earnest when he is in London. However, at the end of the novel we realize that his true name is actually Ernest, the name of his late father. The last line of the novel uses the word "Earnest" not "Ernest". The first word means showing depth and sincerity of feeling. The word is very relevant to the story and to life. If a person shows depth and shows sincere feelings then they will not only be better person in life, but a better person that they themselves will appreciate. The importance of Jacks feelings for Gwendolen is that they were sincere, where as her feelings were more towards his name; she thought his name was Ernest. The two characters end up getting married but for entirely different ways, in my opinion. The same goes for Algernon and Cecily. Algernon seems to have earnest, sincere feelings for Cecily, but on the other hand Cecily is entranced by the name Ernest. That leads me to the question what is in a name?

Is a name that important? Does a good name put you ahead of everyone else? In my experience with my name, which I have never heard before, I love the idea of having a unique name. I feel it gives me an edge over other people with more common names because when most people hear my name the question that always follows is, "How did you get to be named Medina?" That question allows me to establish a more personal relationship with the person and they will have a better chance of remembering me, even if they don't remember my name exactly. However, if I were to have a name such as Sara or John Smith people would not be so caught off guard when I introduced myself; they have heard that name countless times before. Therefore, I can semi understand Cecily and Gwendolen's fascination with the name Ernest; it is unique and carries a positive connotation. However, I am not sure I agree with marrying someone because they have a wonderful and exciting name...I am not so sure how long the marriage would last!