ABSTRACT
The Importance of Being Earnest stands out as a product of the self-confident Oscar Wilde of the early 1890s, but it also reflects the caution that tempered his writing after he experienced harsh critical responses to the initial, novella length version of The Picture of Dorian Gray. From the brand perspective, one can see how the play's subtle distinctions in attitude and behavior take us beyond predictable responses. Recourse to the social context from which the play emerged gives analytic guidance that is more precise. Wilde's public persona had existed, indeed had thrived, because of its ability to move back and forth between the margins of society and the centers of its social institutions. Invoking Wilde's brand, however, does more that give one a clearer sense of individual characterization in The Importance of Being Earnest. It makes more apparent the struggles within the play for Darwinian preeminence.
