Some critics have suggested that Wilde began his writing projects by accumulating a group of epigrams he wished to explore. (Often, these sayings about life were widely known but not really examined closely.) He turned these hackneyed phrases upside down to suggest that, although they knew the clichés, most British audiences did not stop to think about how meaningless they were. For example, "Divorces are made in heaven" (a corruption of the familiar "Marriages are made in heaven") suggests that divorce contributes to happiness — perhaps a greater truism than the familiar phrase given the tenor of Victorian society. Wilde makes fun of peoples' trivial concerns over social status when he says, "Nothing annoys people so much as not receiving invitations."
Wilde's use of language as a tool for humor continues with his hilarious puns. A pun is a wordplay that often involves differing understandings of what a word means and how it is used in a given context. In speaking of dentists and their impressions, Jack says, "It is very vulgar to talk like a dentist when one isn't a dentist. It produces a false impression." Algernon counters, "Well, that is exactly what dentists always do." False teeth, dental impressions to mold them, and social impressions are all wrapped up in this pun. In a society where turning a phrase and witty repartee were considered much-admired skills, Wilde was at his best.
