Short Summary
Two young men — Algernon Moncrieff in London and Jack Worthing in the country — both use the fictional alias 'Ernest' to escape social obligations. When both pursue women who have vowed to marry only a man named Ernest, their deceptions collide. A handbag, a missing baby, and a very determined dowager later, Jack discovers he actually was christened Ernest all along — a resolution Wilde makes deliberately absurd, suggesting earnestness matters less than the performance of it.
Detailed Summary
Jack Worthing lives a double life. In the country, he is a responsible guardian to young Cecily Cardew, stern and respectable. In London, he poses as his irresponsible younger brother 'Ernest' — a convenient fiction that allows him to escape rural propriety whenever he chooses. In reality, Jack has ...