Summary Of "Pygmalion" by George Bernard Shaw

"Pygmalion" is a play by George Bernard Shaw, first presented on stage in 1913. The play is a social critique that centers on the themes of class, social mobility, and the power of language. It is also considered a romantic comedy, although Shaw himself saw it as a commentary on British class structure and the possibility of transformation through education.

Summary

Act I: The play opens on a rainy night in Covent Garden, where several people are taking shelter, including Professor Henry Higgins, a phonetics expert, and Colonel Pickering, a fellow linguist. They meet Eliza Doolittle, a poor flower girl with a strong Cockney accent. Intrigued by her, Higgins boasts that he could teach her to speak so well she could be mistaken for a duchess at an ambassador's garden party. This remark sparks the central plot of the play.

Act II: Eliza takes up Higgins' challenge and visits him the next day, offering to pay for speech lessons so she can work in a flower shop. Higgins, excited by the opportunity to prove his theories about language and social mobility, agrees to take her in and transform her into a lady, with Colonel Pickering covering the costs of the experiment.

Act III: Several months pass, and Eliza's transformation is tested at Higgins' mother's house, where she is introduced to society. The test is generally a success, though Eliza's conversation is somewhat limited to two topics: the weather and health. Despite this, she manages to impress the guests with her poise and pronunciation.

Act IV: The ultimate test of Eliza's transformation comes at an ambassador's garden party, where she is completely indistinguishable from the high-born guests. Despite this triumph, Eliza feels lost and without purpose, having been caught between her old life and her new one. She confronts Higgins, feeling used and unappreciated.

Act V: The play concludes with a clash between Eliza and Higgins. Eliza has proven that she can live without Higgins by selling flowers in a shop, and she asserts her independence. Higgins, for his part, fails to understand Eliza's feelings, treating their experiment and her transformation as purely academic. The play ends ambiguously, with Eliza declaring her independence from Higgins, but Shaw leaves their future relationship and Eliza's fate open to interpretation.

Themes and Analysis

"Pygmalion" explores the themes of transformation and identity, questioning the role of language and class in determining one's place in society. Shaw challenges the British class system, suggesting that the distinctions between classes are arbitrary and can be transcended through education and personal will. The play also examines gender roles and the dynamics of power in relationships, particularly in the ways Higgins views and treats Eliza not as an individual but as an object for his experiment.

Though often remembered for its romantic plot elements, especially as popularized by the musical adaptation "My Fair Lady," Shaw's original play is a more complex exploration of social issues, personal identity, and the limits of transformation.