Annotate: Showing K&U or language and literary features as well as context. Cross reference with rest of text to show wider K&U of play

Gwendolen: Outside the family circle, papa, I am glad to say, is entirely unknown. I think it is quite as it should be. The home seems to me to be the proper sphere for the man. And certainly once a man begins to neglect his domestic duties he becomes painfully effeminate, does he not? And I don't like that. It makes men so very attractive. Cecily, mamma, whose views on education are remarkably strict, has brought me up to be extremely short-sighted; it is part of her system; so do you mind my looking at you through my glasses?

Cecily: Oh! Not at all Gwendolen. I am very fond of being looked at.

Gwendolen is the confident speaker between her and Cecily, she seems to have a lot more to say regardless of whether Cecily is interested or not. This indicates to us that Gwendolen is from a higher class, she is able to put her views across without interruption from Cecily, it shows that Cecily has respect and that’s why she wouldn’t talk out of turn. Oscar Wilde structures this as one paragraph containing a lot of strong opinions from Gwendolen regarding her family matters. It indicates that. The fact that Gwendolen talks about her family also suggests that she likes talking about herself and thinks everything revolves around her; Whereas Cecily only has one very concise line, this suggests that Cecily is polite and although she has persona, compared to Gwendolen she’s a lot quieter.

Oscar Wilde uses literary devices such as metaphors to help portray Gwendolens character and values, “mamma, whose views on education are remarkably strict, has brought me up to be extremely short-sighted” meaning that she is narrow minded and a lot like her mother. She doesn’t seem to understand a thing that are beyond her reach and that is why she used the term “short sighted”. This also clearly suggests that she values her mother’s opinions and has been brought up to voice her mother’s views rather than thinking for herself. It presents to the audience again that Gwendolen is of a high class because wealthy people often don’t understand things that don’t concern them. “So do mind me looking at you through my glasses?” this creates light humour but it also suggests that she is asking Cecily permission if she could look at the situation from her perspective, it shows us that Gwendolen doesn’t always think about herself.

Inversion is also present within this extract, “the home seems to be the proper sphere for the man” this is quite the opposite to what people’s opinions were during the Victorian era. It was frowned upon if a woman went out to work rather than being at home with the children and fulfilling motherly duties. It was usually the man’s job to go out and support the rest of the family financially. However Oscar Wilde has had the roles reversed, He did this to project his own views to criticise the way Victorian society thinks. It lets the audience think that Lady Bracknell and Gwendolen seem to have more power in their household. Lady Bracknell does come across as a powerful lady that is outspoken.