Does Eliza Become a Lady in In George Bernard Shaw’s ‘Pygmalion’

HIGGINS [with the look of confusion on his face]: Fine thank you, Eliza we need to…

From around 1750 to 1900 Britain went through major changes or transformation in industry, agriculture and transportation that affected everybody’s lives. For some it generally improved their lives, however not all were so lucky. The industrial revolution brought with it many changes good for some and bad for others.

Document 11 shows that in 1875-1900 there were about 18 famines and 26 million deaths by the famines. Therefore, when we look at the whole picture, it with shows that while the health and life improved dramatically, British

The Fabian Society was formed in 1884 and was Britain’s most influential socialist society. The Fabian society believed in collective ownership and that it could solve the problems of industry. They also believed that the expansion of ownership and state direction of production could be achieved gradually, peacefully, and democratically. These Fabian ideals worked great for Britain in pre-wartime because it was an Imperialist nation and

Everyone traded so that they could get all of the essential goods that they needed to survive.

In Shaw’s speech, she questions America’s identity as a true republic because of the inability to escape the past conceptions of woman’s place in society, and she uses logic to argue the necessity of moving forward to create equality for all types of people, regardless of gender or race. She claims that all people should be equal in a republic. Therefore, America is only partially a republic because women are not given the same rights as men nor the right to vote. Although she belittles the character of the founding fathers “who succumbed to the same sort of prejudices that had driven them from

There are two different versions. The first version is Shaw’s version. Assuming to position Eliza in a real-life situation, Shaw seems to treat Eliza as an ambiguous character, thus the ending is indefinite. Through Eliza’s effort, she has gradually bridged the gap between herself and the life of the upper class people. Nonetheless, she has to face the dilemma: she may either continue to seek independence by making money on her own or be forced to get married to a rich nobleman. The vague ending has carried an implicit message: the female independence and unfair social relationships are yet to be

Social class can be thought of as a very important indicator of who a person is.

Higgins tries to take all of the credit for Eliza’s transformation into a lady. In his mind, Eliza did nothing and without him, she would not have been able to accomplish this task. Mr. Higgins continues to express his dominance by telling Eliza what to do even though she does not work for him. Eliza does not like the way that Mr. Higgins treats her and leaves his house, angrily. After searching for Eliza, Mr. Higgins finally finds her and tells her that he paid for her services and she needs to finish her job. In this way, he treats her as if she is

from the start to at the end, and the changes of Eliza, the main theme

Pygmalion, by George Bernard Shaw, describes Shaw’s viewpoint on social class distinctions in the 1900s by describing characters of the upper, middle, and lower classes in the play. Through the characters’ descriptions, language, and actions, the distinction between classes becomes very prominent. Similarly, Galileo, by Bertolt Brecht, describes Brecht’s take on the social class structure during Galileo’s time and how the differences between classes affected Galileo’s opportunity to do scientific research. Both plays depict a society ruled by the upper-class and a lack of coherence among the upper, middle, and lower classes that leads to eventual conflict. In both Pygmalion and Galileo, the authors highlight the advantages and disadvantages of the different social classes in order to critique how the relationships between people from different classes affect their interactions with each other.

First, Britain had some tremendous natural attributes. It was naturally endowed with many deposits of coal and iron ore, which were used heavily in the early stages of factory production. In addition, Britain was situated at a critical point for international trade. Its position between the United States and the rest of Europe allowed them to have a serious impact in all matters of trade.

She is there to take lessons for her speech. Colonel Pickering offers to pay full expenses for Higgins to tun Eliza into a lady and pass her off as a duchess. Higgins accepts.

In the Victorian England period, how a person is viewed by society determines everything. What kind of jobs are available, who it is ok to marry, and even who is acceptable to interact with. How a person is viewed can change their life for better or for worse, and sadly women during this period must work twice as hard as their male counterparts to get the crucial social respect needed to succeed in their societies. How a person appears and how they dress plays a big part on how someone is viewed, but flower-girl-turned-duchess Eliza Doolittle must learn the hard way that just because a person fits the outside criteria of a lady does not exactly mean she would be treated as so, by society and most of all her mentor Henry Higgins. Throughout the play, Pygmalion, By George Bernard Shaw, the author makes the theme of prejudice against women very apparent by the way they are treated in society and the unreasonable expectations they are held up to, making it very difficult for women like Eliza Doolittle to move up in society and be seen as equal in the eyes of those above them.

“Pygmalion was written to challenge the class system, traditional stereotypes and the audience’s own views.”