The Importance of Names

Last week, I read The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde's much celebrated 1895 comic play. The play has a fictitious character by the name of Ernest, which two men claim to be, but neither really is. Of course the name Ernest (not earnest) means truthful, so there is an open irony, which is funny. But it's quite interesting that the names of other characters, names without such obvious intended meanings, also have something to tell.

Names are seldom meaningless. In some cases a name's selection is quite obvious: as Wilde's Ernest. Or in A Passage to India (E.M. Forester) Ms. Quest is out there soul-searching, literally questing. In other cases, a name doesn't directly label a character, but the reader absorbs a feeling of what the character is about.  A good example is the protagonist Pip in Great Expectations (Charles Dickens). The name Pip doesn't really mean anything (I even searched to be thorough!), but the moniker does have a a derogatory feel to it, especially when we see the rustic boy growing up to be a gentleman. Pip is a continuous reminder of his lowly descent.

In most cases, I've found that even when a writer uses commonplace names, there is always something behind it. I think, it's more about giving a finishing touch, like a painter labouring over a shadow which no one will really think about, but which nevertheless will give that much-valued finesse to the artwork.

So, coming back to the example we began with, there are seven characters in all in the play (excluding Lane and Merriman, who have small parts).  I'm going to discuss them all one by one. [For a quick synopsis check out: http://www.shmoop.com/importance-of-being-earnest/summary.html.] First, there is the lead character Jack Worthing, in appearance a responsible, sober man (who actually lives a dual life as Ernest, an ill-reputed young man). So the name Jack, an English version of John, derived from Hebrew Jehovah, which literally means 'god has favoured' is the perfect name for his sober self. Then there is of course the surname Worthing, which sort of hints at his affluence, which was certainly an important measure of a man's 'worth' in the Victorian society. (The name Worthing, by the way, is given to him because he was found in Worthing station... but I'm not gonna give it away as someone might not have read the play yet.)

Jack's friend, Algernon Moncrieff, also lives a dual life. But unlike Jack, Moncrieff doesn't have another fake identity. Perhaps that is because Algernon (from Aux Gernons, an epithet of Baron William de Percy, 1096-1099) literally means 'man with mustaches', which are sometimes worn to disguise one's face! [I was not able to trace the roots of Moncrieff.]

Name meanings are especially helpful in studying the contrast between the two outwardly similar female characters: Gwendolen Fairfax and Cecily Cardew. Both women are indolent and light-hearted in the important matters of marriage and they both fall for two very similar men. But there are slight differences: Gwendolen has more exposure of society, which has made her practical in matters of the heart, whereas Cecily lives in a lonely country house and is prone to fantasize about love. No surprisingly, their names befit them: The suffix 'Gwen' in Gwendolen's name, literally means 'white-skinned'.  Fairfax means 'fair-haired'.  In contrast, Cicily means 'blind' and Cardew is a derivative of an English village name, which means 'dark fortress'. So Gwendolen is enlightened and Cecily ignorant? Surely seems that Wilde had something like that in mind since Gwen is the one who gets to marry the real Ernest!

The names of minor characters are also interesting: Lady Augusta (venerable) Bracknell (Brack: from Dutch brak, meaning 'worthless' + nell: a form of Helen, literally 'weak-spirited person') is perhaps respected in the materialistic Victorian society, but in fact has little worth as a person. Miss Prism, somebody who literally 'deflected' the course of Jack's destiny. Dr. Chasuble (outer vestment worn by priests) in the end decides to end his celibacy. Because celibacy really was a chasuble for him, that could be taken off, and not a deeply held belief.

So this is all about the importance of names in fiction. It's always a good idea to search name meanings and roots when reading fiction because that gives so much more depth to character analysis.

Happy reading!