Define Bunburying as Wilde uses it in the play.

• A. Creating a fictitious person to avoid social duties or responsibilities.
• B. Adopting a second name to avoid detection.
• C. Moving to another country to escape obligations.
• D. Pretending to be an old friend to gain favors.

Answer: (A)

Bunburying is the practice of inventing a fictitious person to have a plausible excuse for avoiding social duties. In The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde shows characters creating an imaginary friend named Bunbury whose supposed needs or emergencies justify them skipping engagements and escaping obligations. The term functions as a playful label for a secret double life built on harmless-seeming lies that let the characters enjoy freedom while still keeping up appearances. The other options miss the point: it isn’t about adopting a second name, moving to another country, or impersonating an old friend; it’s about fabricating a fake person to avoid responsibilities.