Lesson in Shaws Pygmalion Essay - 566 Words

Lesson in Shaws Pygmalion Writing Pygmalion in a Play format allowed Shaw to present his often-disputable views to an extended audience in a convenient, enjoyable format. By using this means to put over his message the audience is having a good night out at the theatre, as well as being taught a lesson. Society was changing at an alarming rate and Shaw wanted to make sure his audiences were pushed into thinking about issues such as imminent feminism, the class system and the importance in the way we speak. These were all relevant issues when the play was 1st performed in 1914. Taught a Lesson to the audience Cross over Entertained the audience Role Reversal ============= In 1914 the attitude towards the†¦show more content†¦English accent asked she would think what I nice young man. Shaw also thought that it still wasn?t enough to have excellent pronunciation but abysmal grammar (as shown in Mrs Higgins? @ home scene) Tension ======= - Tension between Male and Female. Link role reversal and Humour. - Tension when you?re waiting for Eliza to say a mistake. E.g., Mrs Higgin?s @ home day and Ball-not as much as the @ home day as she learns from that experience. - These are both examples of dramatic Irony (knowing more than the people on stage and anticipating her reactions. Class With Pym Shaw can show the diffences in class by showing the audience the appaling conditions of Eliza?s home at Angel court and comparing with the ralaxation of life @ Wimpole Street. Shaw also shows the different values of the class structure by using the character of Alfred Doolittle. He says that working class are free and honest, whilst upper class have false values eg. Believe that purly because they had social status and wealth they were superior to the classes beneath them. Shaw belevied that this view should and will change. Settings ======== - Mrs Higgins House = Up to date furniture eg. Big Ottoman and oil paintings, ornaments simply yet elegant writing table, Chippendale and Elizabethan chairs and a piano. Tells us she?s elegant and fashionable even though she not into younger up-to-date fashion. - V.Show MoreRelatedAnalysis Of George Bernard Shaw s Pygmalion2617 Words   |  11 PagesSocial standing is central to the plot of George Bernard Shaw’s play â€Å"Pygmalion†. The portrayal of class identity in Shaw’s play appears to be a criticism of the distinctions between high society and the poorer classes in Victorian England. Shaw’s aim was to portray how the upper-crust of Victorian society viewed the lower classes, as evidenced by Higgins’ treatment of Eliza upon her first visit to his laboratory; Higgins treats her as though she is too stupid to understand that he is insulting herRead MoreShaws Pygmalion Essay823 Words   |  4 PagesShaws Pygmalion Pygmalion can be classified as a comedy. 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In George Bernard Shaws Pygmalion, we see the main character, Eliza Doolittle transformed from an ill-mannered Cockney flower girl into a high society debutante with the help of some elocution lessons provided by Mr Henry Higgins, a professor of phonetics and financed by his well-travelled friend, Colonel Pickering. Higgins expects that he can teach Eliza enoughRead MoreCharacterisation of Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgins in Shaws Pygmalion1730 Words   |  7 PagesPygmalion is written by dramatist, playwright and critic George Bernard Shaw in the year 1912 and was first published in the year 1913. The drama revolves around three main characters – Eliza Doolittle, Professor Henry Higgins and Colonel Pickering – who are all striving towards the same goal. That is, they want to be able to pass Eliza off as a Duchess rather than the flower girl from the London slums that she actually is. It starts as just a bet on the part of the Professor and the Colonel, butRead MoreTh e Life and Career of George Bernard Shaw Essay797 Words   |  4 PagesJuly 26, 1856 in Dublin, Ireland. His parents were mother Lucinda Elizabeth Garly and father George Carr Shaw. His father and grandfather were both alcoholics. His mother was from Carlow. She was a musically gifted and taught singing and music lessons (Kunitz 1268). Bernard was the third and youngest sibling in his family. He had two older sisters (Weintraub 655). Bernards fathers and grandfathers alcoholism caused Bernard to hate both alcohol and tobacco. His abstaining from drugs also led