The Importance of Being Earnest MCQs
1. What is the subtitle of The Importance of Being Earnest?
A. A Melodrama of Manners
B. A Serious Drama for Trivial People
C. A Trivial Comedy for Serious People
D. A Modern Farce
2. Who is the author of The Importance of Being Earnest?
A. Samuel Beckett
B. Oscar Wilde
C. Lord Byron
D. George Bernard Shaw
3. Which of the following characters is a Justice of the Peace (J.P.)?
A. Algernon Moncrieff
B. Reverend Canon Chasuble
C. John Worthing
D. Lord Bracknell
4. Who is Lady Bracknell’s nephew?
A. John Worthing
B. Algernon Moncrieff
C. Mr. Cecil Graham
D. Mr. Hopper
5. What is the profession of Reverend Canon Chasuble?
A. Priest
B. Rector
C. Deacon
D. D.D. (Doctor of Divinity)
6. Who is Cecily Cardew’s governess?
A. Lady Bracknell
B. Gwendolen Fairfax
C. Miss Prism
D. Mrs. Erlynne
7. What is the name of Algernon Moncrieff’s manservant?
A. Merriman
B. Parker
C. Lane
D. Gribsby
8. What is the name of John Worthing’s butler in the country?
A. Lane
B. Parker
C. Merriman
D. Gribsby
9. Where does Act I of the play take place?
A. The Garden at the Manor House
B. Algernon Moncrieff’s Flat in Half-Moon Street, W.
C. Drawing-Room of the Manor House
D. Lord Darlington’s rooms
10. Where does Act II of the play take place?
A. Algernon Moncrieff’s Flat
B. Drawing-Room of the Manor House
C. The Garden at the Manor House, Woolton
D. Morning-room in Lord Windermere’s House
11. Where does Act III of the play take place?
A. Algernon Moncrieff’s Flat
B. The Garden at the Manor House
C. Drawing-Room of the Manor House, Woolton
D. Lord Darlington’s rooms
12. The play is set in what time period?
A. The Victorian Era
B. The Edwardian Era
C. The Present
D. The 1920s
13. What city is the primary setting for the play?
A. Paris
B. Dublin
C. London
D. Tunbridge Wells
14. What instrument does Algernon play at the opening of the play?
A. Violin
B. Flute
C. Piano
D. Oboe
15. What does Lane tell Algernon about his piano playing?
A. He plays accurately.
B. He plays with wonderful expression.
C. He plays too loudly.
D. He didn’t think it polite to listen.
16. What food item does Algernon order specially for Aunt Augusta, but eats himself?
A. Tea-cake
B. Bread and butter
C. Cucumber sandwiches
D. Muffins
17. According to Lane, why do servants invariably drink champagne at a bachelor’s establishment?
A. They are given permission.
B. It is customary.
C. To the superior quality of the wine.
D. To celebrate their master’s good fortune.
18. What is Lane’s view on marriage?
A. It is a miserable state.
B. He believes it is a very pleasant state, though he has little experience.
C. It leads to financial ruin.
D. It is only for the upper classes.
19. Jack Worthing comes to town to do what?
A. Conduct business
B. Escape his country life
C. Propose to Gwendolen
D. Visit his ailing friend, Bunbury
20. What does Algernon consider the “very essence of romance”?
A. Love at first sight
B. Passionate declarations
C. Uncertainty
D. Long engagements
21. What object does Jack accidentally leave at Algernon’s flat?
A. His watch
B. His diary
C. His umbrella
D. His cigarette case
22. What inscription is found inside the cigarette case?
A. “To dearest Ernest from Gwendolen”
B. “From little Cecily with her fondest love to her dear Uncle Jack”
C. “To my beloved brother Ernest”
D. “From a grateful ward to her guardian”
23. What is Jack’s real name in the country, and what name does he use in town?
A. Ernest in country, Jack in town
B. John in country, Ernest in town
C. Jack in country, Ernest in town
D. John in country, Jack in town
24. What is “Bunburying,” according to Algernon?
A. Writing bad poetry
B. Flirting with married women
C. Having an invaluable permanent invalid friend as an excuse to avoid social obligations.
D. Living a double life under an assumed name.
25. Why does Jack invent a “wicked younger brother” named Ernest?
A. To have a companion for his ward, Cecily.
B. To have someone to blame for his own misdeeds.
C. To adopt a high moral tone as a guardian and get up to town.
D. To receive financial assistance from him.
26. What does Algernon say about the truth?
A. The truth is always simple.
B. The truth is rarely pure and never simple.
C. The truth is subjective.
D. The truth is boring.
27. What does Algernon say about women who flirt with their own husbands?
A. It is a sign of deep love.
B. It is very charming.
C. It is scandalous and like washing one’s clean linen in public.
D. It shows they are bored.
28. What does Jack intend to do with Ernest if Gwendolen accepts his proposal?
A. Introduce him to Cecily
B. Reform him
C. Kill him off (say he died)
D. Send him to Australia
29. How does Lady Bracknell ring the doorbell?
A. Like a gentle chime
B. In a Wagnerian manner
C. Like a distressed animal
D. Like a postman
30. What is Gwendolen’s ideal for a potential husband?
A. Wealth
B. Good looks
C. The name Ernest
D. A high moral character
31. What is Lady Bracknell’s initial reaction to Jack’s proposal?
A. Delight
B. Indifference
C. She informs Gwendolen that she is not engaged.
D. She demands to meet his parents.
32. How old is Jack?
A. Twenty-one
B. Twenty-five
C. Twenty-nine
D. Thirty-five
33. What is Lady Bracknell’s view on modern education?
A. It is essential for society.
B. It promotes critical thinking.
C. It is radically unsound and produces no effect in England.
D. It encourages self-expression.
34. What is Jack’s annual income?
A. Five thousand pounds
B. Between seven and eight thousand a year
C. One hundred thousand pounds
D. Very little
35. What does Lady Bracknell say about land as an investment?
A. It is highly profitable.
B. It provides great pleasure.
C. It gives one position but prevents one from keeping it up.
D. It is essential for a family estate.
36. Where does Jack own a town house?
A. Half-Moon Street
B. Curzon Street
C. Belgrave Square
D. Grosvenor Square
37. What is Lady Bracknell’s opinion of Jack losing both his parents?
A. It is a tragedy.
B. “That seems like carelessness.”
C. It is a common occurrence.
D. It makes him ineligible.
38. Where was Jack found as a baby?
A. In a basket on a doorstep
B. In a church pew
C. In a hand-bag in the cloak-room at Victoria Station.
D. In a garden under a rose bush
39. What item led to Jack’s surname?
A. A receipt for a hand-bag
B. A ticket to Brighton
C. A first-class ticket for Worthing
D. A map of Sussex
40. What is Lady Bracknell’s reaction to Jack’s origin story?
A. She finds it amusing.
B. She sympathizes with his misfortune.
C. She views it as displaying contempt for family life.
D. She sees it as unconventional but acceptable.
41. What does Lady Bracknell advise Jack to acquire as soon as possible?
A. More money
B. A town house on the fashionable side of Belgrave Square
C. Some relations, particularly at least one parent.
D. A better understanding of social etiquette
42. What does Algernon say about women and their mothers?
A. They rarely resemble them.
B. All women become like their mothers; that is their tragedy.
C. They always try to be different.
D. Mothers inspire their daughters.
43. How does Jack plan to explain his brother Ernest’s death?
A. Drowned at sea
B. A severe chill in Paris
C. A duel
D. A tragic accident
44. What does Algernon say is the only thing that never contradicts him?
A. A mirror
B. His dog
C. A brick wall
D. His imagination
45. What is the address of Jack’s country house?
A. Half-Moon Street
B. Curzon Street
C. The Manor House, Woolton, Hertfordshire
D. Belgrave Square
46. What literary form does Miss Prism admit to having written?
A. Poetry
B. A short story
C. A three-volume novel
D. An autobiography
47. What is Cecily’s opinion on novels that end happily?
A. She enjoys them.
B. They depress her so much.
C. She finds them realistic.
D. She thinks they are instructional.
48. What is Cecily doing at the beginning of Act II?
A. Reading her German grammar
B. Watering flowers
C. Writing in her diary
D. Practicing piano
49. What subject does Miss Prism think Cecily should omit from her studies?
A. The Gold Standard
B. The Fall of the Rupee
C. International Trade
D. Agrarian Reform
50. According to Miss Prism, why did the Primitivé Church not last?
A. Lack of funding
B. Too much intellectual debate
C. Its rules were against matrimony.
D. It was too strict.
51. How does Jack arrive at the Manor House in Act II?
A. In a carriage
B. On horseback
C. Dressed in the deepest mourning
D. Unexpectedly happy
52. What is the reported cause of Ernest’s death?
A. A tragic accident
B. A severe chill
C. Apoplexy
D. A broken heart
53. What does Jack wish to do that afternoon?
A. Get married
B. Travel abroad
C. Be christened
D. Write a novel
54. How does Algernon introduce himself when he first meets Cecily?
A. As Algernon Moncrieff
B. As her cousin
C. As her cousin Ernest
D. As a friend of Jack’s
55. What is Cecily’s opinion of her guardian, Jack, being so serious?
A. She finds it admirable.
B. She thinks he cannot be quite well.
C. She believes it shows his sense of duty.
D. She finds it a sign of weakness.
56. What does Cecily accuse “Ernest” (Algernon) of being if he’s not wicked?
A. Dishonest
B. Hypocritical
C. Deceiving them all in an inexcusable manner.
D. Leading a boring life.
57. How long has Cecily believed she has been engaged to Ernest?
A. One month
B. Three months
C. Six months
D. A year
58. What does Cecily keep in a box tied with blue ribbon?
A. Mementos from Ernest
B. Photographs of Ernest
C. Letters from Ernest (which she wrote herself)
D. Jewellery
59. Why did Cecily break off her engagement with Ernest, according to her diary?
A. He behaved badly.
B. He was unfaithful.
C. To make it a “really serious engagement.”
D. She found him boring.
60. What is Cecily’s “girlish dream” for her future husband’s name?
A. Charles
B. John
C. Ernest
D. Algernon
61. Who arrives at the Manor House seeking Mr. Worthing?
A. Lady Bracknell
B. Miss Prism
C. Gwendolen Fairfax
D. Lord Bracknell
62. What is Gwendolen’s view on the proper sphere for a man?
A. Society
B. Business
C. Politics
D. The home
63. What evidence does Cecily produce to prove her engagement to Ernest?
A. A letter from Ernest
B. Her diary entry
C. A ring
D. A telegram
64. What is Gwendolen’s opinion on style versus sincerity?
A. Sincerity is vital.
B. Both are equally important.
C. Style, not sincerity, is the vital thing.
D. Neither matters much.
65. What happens when Cecily offers Gwendolen sugar for her tea?
A. Gwendolen accepts politely.
B. Gwendolen refuses, but Cecily puts four lumps in.
C. Gwendolen accepts with gratitude.
D. Gwendolen makes her own tea.
66. What is the immediate reaction of Gwendolen and Cecily when they realize both men are posing as “Ernest”?
A. They become angry at the men.
B. They leave the house separately.
C. They put their arms around each other’s waists for protection.
D. They demand an explanation.
67. What do the two girls decide is an “insuperable barrier” to marriage?
A. Their lack of wealth
B. Their bad character
C. Their real names (neither is Ernest)
D. Their deceptive behavior
68. What do Jack and Algernon both decide to do?
A. Get new names legally.
B. Get christened under the name Ernest.
C. Convince the girls to change their preference.
D. Abandon their aliases.
69. How do Jack and Algernon explain their deceptions?
A. Jack pretended to have a brother to see Gwendolen.
B. Algernon pretended to be Jack’s brother to meet Cecily.
C. Both of the above.
D. They stammer and offer explanations about wanting to see the girls.
70. What is Algernon’s justification for eating muffins?
A. He is not hungry.
B. When he is in trouble, eating is the only thing that consoles him.
C. He always eats muffins at this hour.
D. He is trying to annoy Jack.
71. How does Lady Bracknell acquire information about Gwendolen’s flight?
A. She overheard conversations.
B. She bribed Gwendolen’s maid.
C. She received a telegram.
D. Jack informed her.
72. What does Lady Bracknell say about Algernon’s “invalid friend Mr. Bunbury”?
A. He seems to be recovering.
B. It is time he decided whether to live or die.
C. She finds his condition tragic.
D. She offers to send him a physician.
73. How does Algernon explain Bunbury’s death?
A. He was caught in a revolutionary outrage.
B. He died of a severe chill.
C. He “exploded.”
D. He died peacefully in his sleep.
74. How much fortune does Cecily possess?
A. Fifty thousand pounds
B. About a hundred and thirty thousand pounds.
C. Her guardian controls all her wealth.
D. She has no personal fortune.
75. What is Lady Bracknell’s changed opinion of Cecily after learning of her fortune?
A. She still finds her rustic.
B. She finds her suitable for Algernon.
C. She now considers Cecily “a most attractive young lady.”
D. She thinks Cecily is too young.
76. On what grounds does Jack initially refuse consent for Algernon to marry Cecily?
A. Algernon’s lack of money.
B. Algernon’s dubious social standing.
C. Algernon’s untruthful and immoral character.
D. Cecily is too young.
77. When does Cecily legally come of age?
A. Twenty-one
B. Twenty-five
C. Thirty-five
D. She is already of age.
78. How does Jack propose to resolve the deadlock over the marriages?
A. By leaving the decision to the women.
B. He will consent if Lady Bracknell consents to his marriage.
C. By offering Algernon more money.
D. By consulting Dr. Chasuble.
79. What shocking item does Lady Bracknell demand to know about from Miss Prism?
A. A valuable heirloom
B. A lost manuscript
C. A baby of the male sex
D. Her lost jewels
80. What was found in the perambulator when it was discovered?
A. The baby
B. Money
C. The manuscript of a three-volume novel.
D. Letters
81. What did Miss Prism confess to doing in a moment of “mental abstraction”?
A. Losing the perambulator.
B. Placing the manuscript in the bassinette and the baby in the hand-bag.
C. Forgetting the baby at home.
D. Leaving the baby in the cloak-room.
82. Where did Miss Prism leave the hand-bag containing the infant?
A. At her lodgings
B. In the vestry
C. In the cloak-room of Victoria Station.
D. In a cab
83. What does Jack realize after Miss Prism identifies the hand-bag?
A. He is not related to Algernon.
B. He was the baby Miss Prism placed in the hand-bag.
C. Miss Prism is his estranged mother.
D. His surname is not Worthing.
84. Who is Jack Worthing’s biological mother?
A. Miss Prism
B. Herodias
C. Lady Bracknell
D. Lady Bracknell’s poor sister, Mrs. Moncrieff.
85. What is Jack Worthing’s relation to Algernon?
A. They are cousins.
B. They are unrelated.
C. Algernon’s elder brother.
D. They are distant relatives.
86. What was Jack’s Christian name, the same as his father’s?
A. Jack
B. John
C. Algy
D. Ernest John
87. What book does Jack consult to find his father’s name?
A. A family bible
B. A historical record
C. The Army Lists of the last forty years.
D. A peerage directory
88. What is Jack’s final realization and statement at the end of the play?
A. The importance of family.
B. The importance of love.
C. “the vital Importance of Being Earnest.”
D. The absurdity of life.
89. What happens to the three couples at the very end of the play?
A. They remain uncertain.
B. They are rejected.
C. They embrace their respective partners.
D. They decide to postpone their marriages.
90. Who is Mr. Gribsby in the deleted scene?
A. A debt collector
B. A lawyer
C. A solicitor
D. All of the above
91. What is the amount of the debt against Mr. Ernest Worthing?
A. £500
B. £762.14.2
C. £1000
D. £200
92. Which establishment is the debt owed to?
A. Willis’s
B. The Albany
C. The Savoy Hotel Co. Limited
D. The Grand Hotel
93. Where does Algernon claim he always dines?
A. At the Savoy
B. At his club
C. At Willis’s
D. At his aunt’s house
94. What is Gribsby’s opinion on how the debt will likely be settled?
A. By Algernon himself.
B. That relatives usually pay.
C. By taking Algernon to prison.
D. Through an inheritance.
95. How does Miss Prism react to the large bill for eating?
A. She finds it extravagant.
B. She calls it “grossly materialistic.”
C. She thinks it’s a justifiable expense.
D. She is indifferent.
96. What does Dr. Chasuble call the bill?
A. A sign of prosperity.
B. A “painful proof of the disgraceful luxury of the age.”
C. He believes it’s fraudulent.
D. He advises payment.
97. Where would Algernon be imprisoned if he doesn’t pay?
A. The city jail
B. Holloway
C. The Tower of London
D. Newgate Prison
98. What is Algernon’s objection to being imprisoned at Holloway?
A. It is too far from London.
B. He refuses to be imprisoned in the suburbs for dining in the West End.
C. The conditions are poor.
D. It would ruin his reputation.
99. Who offers to pay Algernon’s bill?
A. Miss Prism
B. Gwendolen
C. Lady Bracknell
D. Cecily
100. Who ultimately pays “Ernest’s” (Algernon’s) bill?
A. Algernon himself
B. Cecily
C. Jack
D. Lady Bracknell
101. Who are Parker and Gribsby?
A. Two separate solicitors
B. Two different clients
C. The same person, with different names for different business.
D. Two aliases used by Algernon.
102. What does Algernon demand of Gribsby after the bill is paid?
A. An apology
B. That Gribsby and the officer walk to the station.
C. A refund for the cab.
D. That he never return to the Manor House.
103. What is Miss Prism’s opinion of Jack paying for the cab?
A. It is commendable.
B. It is expected.
C. She thinks it quite foolish.
D. It shows true brotherly love.
104. What is Dr. Chasuble’s response to Miss Prism’s view on generosity?
A. Prudence is always best.
B. The heart has its wisdom as well as the head.
C. Logic must prevail.
D. One must consider consequences.