In the play, “Lady Windermere’s fan” produced in 1892, Oscar Wilde reveals the materialistic characteristics and pretentious values in a wealthy society and their tendency to stay only among similar statuses.

Through a short, trivial conversation he illustrates the arrogance that people living in prosper and affluence carry and the little amount of care they give to the lower class. Going hand in hand with the satiric conversation insulting the upper society’s views, Wilde also points out the disparity between genders and gender roles showing the inequality between the two in an unbalanced society.

Wilde’s expression of irony begins right away with Duchess of Berwick’s opening line as she greets Lord Darlington with pleasure and kindness with the cliche, “How do you do, Lord Darlington” then shifts to saying, “You are far too wicked”. The juxtaposition in this line highlights the fakeness of the situation and the triviality in her greeting. It also portrays her conceited personality as she shows no hesitation and remorse in sharing her brutal opinions.

Additionally, the Duchess of Berwick’s prideful nature is shown as she recalls a memory about “bad tea” that she claimed to be”undrinkable” and she states arrogantly, “I wasn’t at all surprised.” mocking Lady Markby and her family who are presumably a lower class than Duchess. Duchess of Berwick represents the materialistic values of the wealthy as she, with her pride up high, condescendingly converses with the characters.

We can also witness the selective characteristics of a wealthy society that appreciates a notable title and material possessions over a wholesome personality and intelligence. Lord Darlington states,”Nowadays to be intelligible is to be found out.” emphasizing their prioritization of values and greed.

Additionally, Lord Darlington states at the end of the passage,” It is a dangerous thing to reform any one, Lady Windermere.” which emphasizes their egotistical qualities as they are too stuck up to change and believes that they are better and higher in authority than the lower class society.

Wilde additionally swaps the roles of man and woman in the play as Lord Darlington, the only supposed man in the passage, is indifferent to the womans’ condescending remarks about him. This is important as it was unusual for man to disregard disrespect especially from women and not care about being proper or admired.

As we saw in the beginning with Duchess of Berwick calling Lord Darlington too “wicked” to get introduced to her daughter, Lady Windermere makes a similar comment by stating, “Lord Darlington is trivial.” This ironic comparison between the swapped gender roles in man and woman is also employed to mock the comical characters and the satiric society it portrays.

<David Yang / N. Hollywood High 12th>