High society was very exclusive, and people who were not in it, criticized it as a terrible thing because they were excluded. In Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, Mrs. Bracknell says, “Never speak disrespectfully of society. Only people who can't get into it do that” (). This line is very satirical, and can be thought of as something true, while also being comical and nonsensical. Wilde uses this line possibly to get laughs from his audience, who are probably of that class. This epigram probably comes from Wilde’s love of aesthetics to hide truth in what is completely “meaningless.” The use of this epigram is to add a thought to the audience while hiding it as a joke, showing his cleverness.
In the late 1800s, England had a very rich high society as did many other European countries, and it could not be entered into by any random peasant. This epigram pokes fun at this idea, as Algernon is clearly not insulting society. He is just trying to be romantic with…show more content… He says possibly the only authentic thing he's said in the play, but Bracknell stops him. Bracknell does this because of her newfound knowledge of Cecily owning a 130,000 pounds and Bracknell finds new value in Cecily. She changes her mind about Cecily after finding this out, telling her she had more potential in society than she once thought. When Algernon says "And I don't care twopence about social possibilities," it is very genuine and adds upon his good qualities, which had been very little before the statement. While Algernon is sincere for the first time, Bracknell takes it as another fallacy, hurting his chances. This juxtaposition is what makes this line funnier than it already is. Out of context, this may not seem as funny as it is after Algernon's confession of love to Cecily. Though Bracknell has complete right to stay this statement because of her class, she is not correct in that Algernon is lying
