Asked by armando

Read the excerpt from Act I of The Importance of Being Earnest.

Lane. I attribute it to the superior quality of the wine, sir. I have often observed that in married households the champagne is rarely of a first-rate brand.

Algernon. Good heavens! Is marriage so demoralising as that?

This excerpt best illustrates which feature of a comedy of manners?

an example of class differences
a comparison of country and city life
a commentary on marriage
clever wordplay

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
Clever wordplay.

The exchange is a witty, epigrammatic joke—typical of a comedy of manners—using paradox and ironic wit to satirize marriage rather than a literal commentary on class or country/city life.