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Read The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People in English, with German beside it
by Oscar Wilde · 1854–1900
"The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People" by Oscar Wilde is a play first performed in 1895. Two young gentlemen lead double lives, each pretending to be named Ernest to escape social duties and win the hearts of their beloveds. Filled with sharp wit and clever wordplay, the farcical comedy gently mocks Victorian society through memorable characters including the formidable Lady Bracknell. The play parodies theatrical conventions while exploring themes of identity, deception, and the absurdities of proper society.
Summary generated automatically by Project Gutenberg.
- Read time
- 94 min
- Words
- 20,703
- Chapters
- 7
- Paragraphs
- 954
- Price
- Free
- Comedy plays
- England -- Drama
- Foundlings -- Drama
- Identity (Psychology) -- Drama
JACK.
JACK.
Yes, I know it is.
Ja, ich weiß, dass er es ist.
But supposing it was something else?
Aber was, wenn er etwas anderes wäre?
Do you mean to say you couldn’t love me then?
Meinst du ernsthaft, dass du mich dann nicht lieben könntest?
GWENDOLEN.
GWENDOLEN.
[Glibly.]
[Geschmeidig.]
Ah!
Ah!
that is clearly a metaphysical speculation, and like most metaphysical speculations has very little reference at all to the actual facts of real life, as we know them.
das ist eindeutig eine metaphysische Spekulation, und wie die meisten metaphysischen Spekulationen hat sie sehr wenig Bezug zu den tatsächlichen Fakten des wirklichen Lebens, so wie wir sie kennen.
JACK.
JACK.
Personally, darling, to speak quite candidly, I don’t much care about the name of Ernest . . .
Persönlich, mein Liebes, ganz offen gesagt, mag ich den Namen Ernest . . . nicht besonders.
I don’t think the name suits me at all.
Ich finde, er passt überhaupt nicht zu mir.
GWENDOLEN.
GWENDOLEN.
It suits you perfectly.
Er passt Ihnen perfekt.
It is a divine name.
Er ist ein göttlicher Name.
It has a music of its own.
Er hat eine eigene Musik.
It produces vibrations.
Er erzeugt Schwingungen.
JACK.
JACK.
Well, really, Gwendolen, I must say that I think there are lots of other much nicer names.
Nun, wirklich, Gwendolen, ich muss sagen, dass ich viele andere, viel schönere Namen für besser halte.
I think Jack, for instance, a charming name.
Ich finde zum Beispiel Jack einen charmanten Namen.
GWENDOLEN.
GWENDOLEN.
Jack? . . .
Jack? . . .
No, there is very little music in the name Jack, if any at all, indeed.
Nein, der Name Jack hat, wenn überhaupt, nur sehr wenig Musik.
It does not thrill.
Er erregt nicht.
It produces absolutely no vibrations . . .
Er erzeugt absolut keine Schwingungen . . .
I have known several Jacks, and they all, without exception, were more than usually plain.
Ich habe mehrere Jacks gekannt, und sie waren alle, ohne Ausnahme, überdurchschnittlich unansehnlich.
Besides, Jack is a notorious domesticity for John!
Außerdem ist Jack eine notorische häusliche Form für John!
And I pity any woman who is married to a man called John.
Und ich bedaure jede Frau, die mit einem Mann namens John verheiratet ist.
She would probably never be allowed to know the entrancing pleasure of a single moment’s solitude.
Sie würde wahrscheinlich nie die hinreißende Freude eines einzigen Moments der Einsamkeit kennen.
The only really safe name is Ernest.
Der einzige wirklich sichere Name ist Ernest.
JACK.
JACK.
Gwendolen, I must get christened at once—I mean we must get married at once.
Gwendolen, ich muss sofort getauft werden – ich meine, wir müssen sofort heiraten.
There is no time to be lost.
Es gibt keine Zeit zu verlieren.
About the author
Oscar Wilde1854–1900
Oscar Wilde was an Irish writer born in Dublin in 1854 and died in Paris in 1900.
All 2 Oscar Wilde books, easiest first →Read it in another language
Questions about The Importance of Being Earnest: A Trivial Comedy for Serious People
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Book details
- Original language
- English
- Translation
- German, machine translation
- Source text
- Project Gutenberg #844
- Licence
- Public domain worldwide
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