The interview, which is generally based on a set of assumptions about the nature and purpose of marriage, shows Wilde using the device of satire and effectively inverting the conventional concerns of Victorian respectability. This is exemplified in the way Lady Bracknell asks Jack if he knows “everything or nothing.” Sensing a trap, Jack claims he knows nothing and, to the audience's surprise and delight, is greeted with satisfaction by Lady Bracknell who replies, "I'm glad to hear it." Using this morally paradoxical statement, Wilde suggests that it is the ruling class belief that "knowing nothing" is apparently a desirable characteristic for a potential partner. This epigram therefore reveals that Wilde is once again particularly critical of the upper classes as he presents them as somewhat ridiculous as an extreme lack of knowledge should not be seen as a desired characteristic for a husband. Furthermore, Wilde presents the idea that Victorian marriage is farcical and somewhat absurd and ridiculous, but ironically this obvious satire would have been entertaining to the Victorian audience it was intended to mock and criticize. The playwright uses another moral paradox as Lady Bracknell is in favor of keeping Jack's income in investments rather than land which would obviously be the safer and preferable option. In this and throughout the interview, Wilde presents Lady Bracknell's, i.e. upper class, human endeavor to be pretentious and silly which in its simplest form is a fundamental characteristic of dramatic comedy. As a result, Wilde is able to easily provide humor to Victorian audiences, as well as make particularly serious social criticism – something he achieves all over the world.