Hi Catherine, as all of us know, Wilde was the master of irony, the commentary you are stressing is just another sarcastic element put in the lips of the most conservative character of the work. The exact moment in which lady Bracknell say this clause is really a key turning moment in the plot of the argument; she is known to be a very materialistic person who only cares for appearances, so it is not strange the fact that Wilde uses this sarcastic sentence with this character. With this commentary she wants to get herself away of the group of materialistic people, but we all really know that she is one of them. I hope this can help you, bye.
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