Telvin Walker

Ms. Jacobs

Victorian Poetry & Prose

ENG 432

Annotated Bibliography

Bastiat, Brigitte. "The Importance of Being Earnest (1895) by Oscar Wilde: Conformity and

Resistance in Victorian Society." NC LIVE. NC LIVE, Oct. 2010. Web.

This source breaks down the importance of maintaining the high social class throughout

the course of the play and also the era. This source breaks down the idea of maintaining social

class through the play and how it has a great impact. The Importance of Earnest is a play that

displays all of that. This play is surrounded around the concept of the social class and maintain

the high level of success.

This importance of this source is that it is making the relationship between the concept of

social class advancement to the play by oscar Wilde "The Importance of being Earnest".

Throughout the course of the play, there are many character who stay witin their social class but

there are also some characters who are clearly defined as being below a certain class who still

plays the field as equal. For example, Lane is only Algernon's maid but when he speaks to Jack,

he talks to him as if they are equals. This shows the resistance within social classes and that call

for advancement within the social class. This source helps to greatly explain the call to grow into

another class or to simply resist another from entering.

Boos, Florence. "Introduction: The Literature of the Victorian Working Classes." NC LIVE.

Philological Quarterly, Spring 2013. Web.

 This source explains the importance of the working class during the Victorian Age and

how their role had a huge impact on society. The working class during the Victorian Era wanted

to always have hopes of moving up in the upper classes. Through hard work and determination,

they would potentially move up.

This source helps explain the literature that was expected during this time period. During

the Victorian Age, everything was about working and advancing to the next level of social class.

The concept of work during the Victorian Age was really important, it was one of the

determining factors in the social class structure. Depending on the job/career a person had, their

social class was chosen for them. For example, with Lane he is a maid, clearly he is a servant and

with him having the title of maid/servant he is automatically placed in a lower social class than

the rest of the characters.

Peak, Anna. "Servants and the Victorian Sensation Novel." NC LIVE. Johns Hopkins University

Press, Autumn 2014. Web.

This source helps the reader understand the importance of the Victorian Sensation Novel.

This source basically helps the reader to understand that Victorian Era literature is a mixture of

Romance and Realism. These two help drive the plots of Victorian literature. This source of

useful because the reader would have a deep understanding of Victorian literature.

The importance of this source is that it explains that Victorian Age literature is a

combination between romance and realism. This source helps the reader understand that typically

all themes of dealing Victorian literature has to deal with some realistic issue. The reason why

social class structure is a theme throughout many Victorian literature works is because it was a

issue that they were dealing with on a daily basis. During that time period, many people cared

about who they associated themselves with. Social class structure was one of they greatest issues
during that time period. Peak would be able to go into great detail about the need for realistic

issues throughout the Victorian text especially dealing with social class structure.

Robson, Catherine, and Carol T. Christ. "The Importance of Being Earnest." The Norton

Anthology: English Literature. Vol. E. New York: Norton, 2012. 1733-777. Print.

The Victorian Age.

This is the actual source that the class has used to read the actual work of The Importance

of Being Earnest. This book would analyze Victorian Literature as an entirety, but most

importantly the work by Oscar Wilde. This play was very convincing during the Victorian Era

and it played huge role during that time period.

This source is very important because its the main source that is being evaluated. The

overall theme of "social class" is presented all throughout this play. Oscar Wilde is able to

convey the importance of social class through the many characters that are involved throughout

the course of this play. Throughout the course of the play, there are many references made about

the importance of class and role in society. For example, Lady Bracknell is clearly a person who

cares about the importance of social class. When Jack is being interviewed, Lady Bracknell is

firing questions at him concerning his career, family and even his wealth that he has made so far.

Clearly the theme of social class is shown explicitly through this play.

Spring, David. "Aristocracy, Social Structure, and Religion in the Early Victorian Period."

JSTOR [JSTOR]. Indiana University Press, Mar. 1963. Web.

This source is important simply because this source is actually explaining the importance

of aristocracy and the role that it played during the Victorian Age and also throughout this play.
This play is shrouded in the maintaining of the social class and growth. The importance is to

maintain the high-level of social class and nothing less.

This source is really important for the fact is that it explains the aristocracy epidemic that

swallowed the early Victorian Age time period. David Spring, would not only analyze the

importance that social class played through out the Victorian Age, but also the concept of greed

within the higher class. In the text it states "... they are likely to give pride of place to something

called Regency which also left small room for virtue in the upper class". This quote basically

explains how the overall goal during the Victorian Age was to go higher in the social classes but

most importantly to stay there. Thats why in the play, Lady Bracknell was basically trying ensure

that he would keep his wealth if he was to marry. People cared too much about their social status

rather than enjoying the life that they were given.