“I shall always be a flower girl to Professor Higgins, because he always treats me as a flower girl, and always will; but I know I can be a lady to you, because you always treat me as a lady, and always will” (152).
In this quotation the female main character of Bernard Shaw’s play “Pygmalion”, Eliza, evalutes how she is treated by the two male main characters Higgins and Pickering. But her opinion is only partly correct and apart from that she speaks from a one-sided point of view. This essay will try to be more discriminating by looking closer at the view and treatment of Eliza towards Higgins and Pickering. It will also take the attitude of the two towards Eliza into consideration by examining the relationships always from both sides to show how the main characters view and treat each other in the play.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. How Higgins views and treats Eliza
3. How Eliza views and treats Higgins
4. The view and treatment of Eliza towards Pickering
5. The view and treatment of Pickering towards Eliza
6. Conclusion
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines the interpersonal dynamics in Bernard Shaw's play "Pygmalion" by analyzing how the main characters—Eliza Doolittle, Henry Higgins, and Colonel Pickering—perceive and interact with one another throughout the narrative.
- Analysis of Henry Higgins' evolving yet inherently detached attitude toward Eliza.
- Examination of Eliza Doolittle's shifting perception of Higgins as she gains independence.
- Evaluation of Colonel Pickering’s consistent politeness contrasted with his underlying objectification of Eliza.
- Exploration of the power dynamics and social hierarchies presented in the play.
Excerpt from the Book
How Higgins views and treats Eliza
Henry Higgins, a professor of phonetics, gets to know Eliza as a flower girl in the first act. At this point he regards her as a despicable person. And so he does during the whole first part of the play. He listens to how she uses her language and is able to identify that she is from Lisson Grove, because he can analyse her accent and uneducated way of speaking. As he is so well-educated, he considers all people who speak with a lower class accent, especially the dirty flower girl, to be stupid and he looks upon himself as a smarter person. He proudly states: “You can spot an Irishman or a Yorkshireman by his brogue. I can place any man within six miles”(30). Right at the beginning he calls Eliza a “squashed cabbage leaf”(32) and even worse, he says that “a woman who utters such depressing and disgusting sounds has no right to be anywhere – no right to live.”(31). This shows that he really scorns her at that time.
Throughout the play Higgins’ attitude towards Eliza changes noticeably. In comparison to his attitude towards Eliza in the beginning, he regards her at the end still as despicable, but it seems that he treats and views her additionally with some appreciation. He is fascinated by his creation, because he has transformed Eliza from a lower class flower girl to an upper class lady. Higgins is “ein ausschließlich für seine Wissenschaft lebender, in seinem Sozialverhalten gänzlich spontaner, impulsiver Mensch” (Nachwort 192) and therefore he shows at the end that he likes Eliza in a strange way. He sees her as “a tower of strength: a consort battleship“(166), and when she utters that she is going to marry Freddy, he starts laughing ironically and cannot believe it. On the one hand this could show his jealousy and that he really has lovely feelings for her, but on the other hand it could also mean that he wants something better than Freddy for her, because she is the masterpiece that he has created. He confesses: “I like you like this.”(166) and this shows that he does not like Eliza as a person, he likes the fact that she reflects his ability “to re-create a poor, uneducated young woman”(Vesonder 42).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter outlines the focus of the essay, which is to provide a more nuanced analysis of the character relationships in "Pygmalion" beyond Eliza's initial subjective perspective.
2. How Higgins views and treats Eliza: This section explores how Professor Higgins initially views Eliza with disdain due to her social class and language, evolving into a complex appreciation for her as his linguistic masterpiece.
3. How Eliza views and treats Higgins: This chapter traces Eliza's transition from feeling threatened by Higgins to realizing he is the key to her social ascent, ultimately leading to a more confrontational and independent stance.
4. The view and treatment of Eliza towards Pickering: This section highlights Eliza's consistently positive view of Colonel Pickering, whom she perceives as a gentleman throughout the play, despite her realization that he also objectifies her.
5. The view and treatment of Pickering towards Eliza: This chapter analyzes Pickering's consistent politeness toward Eliza and concludes that, despite his manners, he fundamentally treats her as an object of his experiment, similar to Higgins.
6. Conclusion: The concluding chapter synthesizes the findings, noting that while Higgins and Pickering treat Eliza differently, their underlying view of her as a subject of an experiment remains largely the same.
Keywords
Pygmalion, Bernard Shaw, Eliza Doolittle, Henry Higgins, Colonel Pickering, character analysis, social class, linguistics, interpersonal relationships, transformation, manners, gender dynamics, phonetics, Victorian society, literary criticism.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the central focus of this academic paper?
The paper focuses on the interpersonal dynamics in George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion," specifically analyzing how Eliza Doolittle, Henry Higgins, and Colonel Pickering perceive and treat each other.
What are the primary thematic fields covered?
The main themes include social class, the influence of language on social standing, the power dynamics of the mentor-student relationship, and the varying degrees of objectification within the experiment.
What is the main research objective?
The primary goal is to move beyond Eliza’s initial subjective assessment of the men and provide a more balanced analysis of the reciprocal treatment between the characters.
Which methodology is applied in this study?
The author uses a close-reading approach, analyzing character dialogue and interactions across different acts of the play to evaluate shifts in perception and behavior.
What is the core content of the main analysis?
The body of the text breaks down individual relationships: Higgins' transformation of Eliza, Eliza's changing view of Higgins, and the contrasting polite behavior of Pickering compared to the pragmatic, often callous approach of the experimenters.
How can the paper be defined by keywords?
The paper is best described by terms such as "Pygmalion," "character development," "social transformation," "class distinction," and "literary character analysis."
How does Higgins’ perception of Eliza evolve by the end of the play?
While Higgins continues to find Eliza "despicable" in some respects, he develops a form of professional appreciation for her as his successful creation, viewing her as a "masterpiece" rather than an equal human being.
Does Colonel Pickering differ significantly from Higgins in his treatment of Eliza?
While Pickering is consistently more polite and maintains better manners than Higgins, the paper argues that he ultimately views Eliza as a means to an end, just like Higgins does.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Lena Spiekermann (Autor:in), 2007, “You squashed cabbage leaf” - How the main characters view and treat each other in Bernard Shaw’s play “Pygmalion”, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/180520
