In the first act of George Bernard Shaw's play "Pygmalion," we are introduced to several key characters and themes that will continue to unfold throughout the rest of the play.
The main character of the play is Professor Henry Higgins, a phonetics expert who is obsessed with language and speech. Higgins is a highly intelligent and confident man, but he is also rude and dismissive towards those who do not meet his standards of linguistic perfection. He is introduced in the first act as he brags to his friend Colonel Pickering about his ability to transform anyone into a lady or a gentleman just by teaching them how to speak properly.
The other main character introduced in the first act is Eliza Doolittle, a poor flower girl who speaks with a heavy Cockney accent. Higgins and Pickering meet Eliza as she is selling flowers on the street, and they are immediately struck by her strong accent. Higgins sees Eliza as a challenge and offers to transform her into a lady by teaching her how to speak properly.
One of the key themes introduced in the first act is the idea of social class and how it is determined by language and speech. Throughout the play, we see how Higgins and Pickering view Eliza as belonging to a lower social class because of her accent, and how they believe that she can improve her social standing by learning to speak like a lady. This theme is further explored as the play progresses and we see how Eliza's transformation affects her relationships with others and her own sense of identity.
Another important theme in the first act is the idea of transformation and self-improvement. As Higgins and Pickering discuss their plan to transform Eliza into a lady, they argue that she has the potential to become a completely different person if she learns to speak properly. This idea is central to the play's exploration of the power of language and how it can shape our perceptions of ourselves and others.
In conclusion, the first act of "Pygmalion" introduces us to the central characters and themes of the play, setting the stage for the transformation and self-discovery that will unfold throughout the rest of the play. Through its exploration of social class, language, and transformation, "Pygmalion" offers a thought-provoking and entertaining portrayal of the power of language and the complexities of identity.
Full text of "Pygmalion : a play in five acts,"
And on the profits of it I do genuine scientific work in phonetics, and a little as a poet on Miltonic lines. Well, dash me if I do! Take her away at once. The mother is well bred, quiet, and has the habitual anxiety of straitened means. Do you expect us to go and get one ourselves? If we did, would we ever do it? I got to buy her clothes something sinful. I didnt mean to. I am glad to hear it. He said he had been thinking of a shop himself; though it had presented itself to his pennilessness as a small place in which Eliza should sell tobacco at one counter whilst he sold newspapers at the opposite one.
Pygmalion act 1 pdf command
Pickering : if we listen to this man another minute, we shall have no convictions left. You said it was. Never lose a chance : it doesnt come everyday. If you had told me that Mr. He is of the energetic, scientific type, heartily, even violently interested in everything that can be studied as a scientific subject, and careless about himself and other people, including their feelings. The sole comment vouchsafed by him very nearly led to a serious quarrel with Eliza.
Pygmalion Act 1 Summary & Analysis
What else could we do? The Dream of the Moving Statue. A tec taking her down. The look is quite lost on him: he eats his apple with a dreamy expression of happiness, as it is quite a good one. Pygmalion Higgins is not a portrait of Sweet, to whom the adventure of Eliza Doolittle would have been impossible; still, as will be seen, there are touches of Sweet in the play. I daresay his papers, if he has left any, include some satires that may be published without too destructive results fifty years hence.
Act 4
Ow, ccz ye-ooa san, is e? Really, mamma, you might have spared Freddy that. Dont answer back, girl. How could you be so silly, Henry? Pick: you behave yourself. It was interesting enough at first, while we were at the phonetics; but after that I got deadly sick of it. Excuse me, Higgins ; but I really must inter- fere. I thought youd come off it when you saw a chance of getting back a bit of what you chucked at me last night.
Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw Plot Summary
She is perhaps eighteen, perhaps twenty, hardly older. Every week—every day almost—there is some new change. The parlor-maid returns, ushering in Pickering. Freddy finally returns with a cab, only to find that his family is no longer there. Higgins worries about what will happen to Eliza when the "experiment" is over. This being the state of human affairs, what is Eliza fairly sure to do when she is placed between Freddy and Higgins? I have got accustomed to hear you talking about men as rotters, and calling everything filthy and beastly ; though I do think it horrible and unladylike. She is no doubt as clean as she can afford to be; but compared to the ladies she is very dirty.
