Pygmalion

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Pygmalion

• by George Bernard Shaw

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Summary of the Play

• The play begins with Eliza, the poor flower girl,
  going to Higgins and asking him to help her to
  talk like a proper lady
• Higgins and Pickering agree to take her on as
  their own project, and let Eliza live with
  Higgins
• They are able to transform Eliza, with a lot of
  hard work, and convince everyone that she is

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Summary

• a rich, classy, English woman
• Eliza worries what will become of her once
  Higgins is done remaking her and if she will have
  to return to her old life
• Eliza finally realizes that she deserves respect
  and is worthy of it
• Eliza leaves Higgins house and decides to marry
  Freddy, causing Higgins to finally see her as a
  respectable person,

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Summary

• and stop bullying her
• With Pickering's help (financially) Eliza is
  finally able to open her own flower shop, which
  was her dream all along

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Eliza Doolittle

• starts off the play as a poor flower girl
• She whines and is very defensive
• Her biggest wish is to become a lady and speak
  like rich English women do
• Doesnt think much of herself until the end of
  the play
• Marries Freddie and has her own flower shop

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Henry Higgins

• Takes on Eliza as his personal project
• He teaches people how to speak correctly and can
  identify where someone is from just by listening
  to them talk
• He is unmarried and although he bullies Eliza
  sometimes, he is a good man and he tries to help
  her as much as he can

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Colonel Pickering

• He also takes on Eliza as a project
• He is always a gentleman and polite
• He is unmarried, like Higgins
• One of the main reasons why Eliza learns to
  respect herself is because Pickering does
• He is in many ways the opposite of Higgins (he is
  nice, calm, organized) and the characters
  balance each other out

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Other Characters

• Mr. Doolittle Elizas father, does not think
  very highly of Eliza, and is willing to sell her
  for a few pounds. He is poor until the end of
  the play when he inherits money, but is not happy
  once he becomes rich
• Freddy at the start of the play he is running
  around for his mother and sister, clearly there
  only to assist them. He later falls in love with
  Eliza and offers to marry her.

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George Bernard Shaw

• 18561950
• In 1925 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in
  Literature
• Pygmalion was one of his most famous works and
  was turned into the widely popular musical My
  Fair Lady

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Modern/Post Modern Time Period

• 1900-1980
• This time period was the loss of the hero in
  literature, also free verse writing became very
  popular
• Pygmalion (written in 1914) relates to its time
  period in many ways. There is no true hero
  within this play, the main female character
  (Eliza) is whiney, and the main male character
  (Higgins) is a bully.
• The main male and female characters dont end up
  together, which was uncommon before this time,
  and although Eliza underwent a transformation she
  didnt do it very gracefully.

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• At the start of the play, what is Elizas dream?

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• Why did Higgins agree to help Eliza?

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• How does Eliza react to the clothes Higgins gives
  her?

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• What does Eliza throw at Higgins when he
  expresses no concern for her future?

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• Where does Eliza go when she leaves Higgins
  house?