Author Question: Describe Jacks tone. Does he seem amused with Lady Bracknell, nervousabout the interview, or ... (Read 127 times)

mrsjacobs44

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 500
Describe Jacks tone. Does he seem amused with Lady Bracknell, nervousabout the interview, or genuinely eager to please her?
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

How would you characterize Lady Bracknell? What are her chief concernsin interviewing her daughters suitor? Find examples from the text to support your argument.
 
  What will be an ideal response?



ju

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 325
Answer to Question 1

Jack, as developments make clear, is a very clever and urbane young man, and as such he can hardly help being amused, to some degree, by the formidable personage before him. He is of course eager to please her, but how genuinely so? After all, he is pursuing his own interest, not hers; pleasing her is a means to his end, not an end in itself. And he is clearly nervous about the interview: his first answer is I must admit I smoke, as if he is afraid that the admission will count against him, and he answers her question about whether he knows everything or nothing only after some hesitation, suggesting that he is trying to decide which response is more likely to make a favorable impression on her.

Answer to Question 2


  • She is haughty, domineering, and, to say the least, opinionatedall qualities that are conferred and reinforced by her wealth and social position. She is, as the saying goes, certain of certain certainties; in this respect, she might put one in mind of the comment made by the moody Scottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle about a much more genial and secure contemporary: I wish I were as certain of anything as Tom Macauley is of everything.



Her chief concern about Jack as a potential husband for her daughter is his social acceptabilityhis background, his parentage, his income and holdings, the fashionability of his address. The emphasis is entirely on outward things, such as propriety and property. Her questions are also quite interesting for the kinds of things that seem not to concern her very much, such as his personality, his character, and especially his feelings for Gwendolen.



Related Topics

Need homework help now?

Ask unlimited questions for free

Ask a Question
 

Did you know?

Throughout history, plants containing cardiac steroids have been used as heart drugs and as poisons (e.g., in arrows used in combat), emetics, and diuretics.

Did you know?

Only one in 10 cancer deaths is caused by the primary tumor. The vast majority of cancer mortality is caused by cells breaking away from the main tumor and metastasizing to other parts of the body, such as the brain, bones, or liver.

Did you know?

Many supplement containers do not even contain what their labels say. There are many documented reports of products containing much less, or more, that what is listed on their labels. They may also contain undisclosed prescription drugs and even contaminants.

Did you know?

The tallest man ever known was Robert Wadlow, an American, who reached the height of 8 feet 11 inches. He died at age 26 years from an infection caused by the immense weight of his body (491 pounds) and the stress on his leg bones and muscles.

Did you know?

Fungal nail infections account for up to 30% of all skin infections. They affect 5% of the general population—mostly people over the age of 70.

For a complete list of videos, visit our video library