Pygmalion as a Problem Play
Explanation of best quotes of Pygmalion
1
1) “Of
Course! I do, you little fool. Five minutes ago you were like a millstone round
my neck. Now you are a tower of strength: a consort battleship. You and I and
Pickering will be three old bachelors instead of only two men and a silly
girl.”
The above lines are
spoken by Higgins in G.B.shaw’s play Pygmalion, Act V. After the
Ambassador’s Party Eliza exchanges hot words with Higgins and leave the place.
The next morning Higgins and Pickering starts search for Eliza and finds her in
his (Higgins) mother’s house. Higgins becomes furious but Eliza was very formal.
She asks him to apologise to her as now she was not afraid of Higgins and could
do without him. Higgins responds that he also wants to apologise and get
reconciled to her. Sometime back he thought that Eliza was a great burden on
him, but now she has become independent and confident. Now she was so strong
that she could protect others. Eliza was like an armed ship which protects
other ships during war. He said that so far in his house there were two old
bachelors and a silly girl. Now she has become so strong that Eliza, Pickering
and Higgins would be three old and strong bachelors. Therefore, the above lines
throw light on the relationship between Higgins and Eliza and the power of
knowledge.
2) “Would
the world ever have been made if its makers had been afraid of making trouble?
Making life means making trouble. There’s only one way of escaping trouble: and
that’s killing things. Cowards you notice are always shrieking to have
troublesome people killed.”
These lines are spoken
by Higgins in G.B.Shaw’s play Pygmalion, Act V. After the
Ambassador’s Party in which Eliza succeeded in winning bet for Higgins, there
was an exchange of hot words between them. The next morning in Higgins mother’s
house he asks Eliza what grievances she has against him. To this Eliza replied
that she was happy as a flower girl and in creating her he created a lot of
troubles for her. Higgins explains her, if something new is created the trouble
is created side by side. If God wished to avoid trouble he would not have
created the world. If life is created there is bound to be trouble. And this
can only be avoided by killing people. As such, cowards who can’t face trouble
are in favor of killing persons. Training Eliza was like creating a new
person. Hence, she is bound to have troubles and face them boldly. Therefore,
the aforesaid words show the genuine truth of life. Any new experiment or the
new creation is accompanied by a set of troubles.
3) “Well,
the matter is Sir that you can’t take a girl up like that as if you were
picking up a pebble on the beach.”
The lines mentioned
above are spoken by Mrs. Pearce in G.B. Shaw’s play Pygmalion,
Act II. Higgins brings Eliza, a flower girl to his house for transforming her
according to upper class. With a burst of orders for Mrs. Pearce to bath Eliza,
wrap her in brown paper until new clothes arrive and burn her rags, Higgins
launches the transformation of Eliza. Mrs. Pearce chides him for not
considering the girl or her feelings, as he plans of handling her like an
object without life, just similar of picking any pebble on the beach.
Throughout the play Mrs. Pearce is the voice of caution, frequently asking
Higgins what is to become of Eliza once he has finished his teaching. She knows
that where language is concerned, Higgins is prone to charging ahead with a
plan without thinking of after-effects. By the above lines Shaw wants to bring
forth the emotions, concern and feelings the people share in lower class.
4) “Oh,
that! Mere Alliteration, Mrs. Pearce, natural to a poet.”
These words are spoken
by Higgins in G.B.Shaw’s play Pygmalion, Act II. Higgins decides
to keep Eliza in his house and train her to speak refined and cultured English
and also the manners of upper class. Mrs. Pearce requests Higgins to set a good
example before Eliza. He must not swear and use words such as ‘bloody’ before
her. Though Eliza uses such words but she should not hear the same from him.
Mrs. Pearce reminds Higgins that the very morning he applied it to the boots,
butter and brown bread. Higgins is now fully exposed. It is proved that he is
in a habit of using words like ‘bloody’ very frequently. Higgins excuses by
telling that he used ‘bloody’ to the boots, butter and brown bread because as a
poet it was natural to him to use the figure of speech called Alliteration.
Further, he clarifies the word starts with letter ’b’ with which boots, butter
and brown bread also begins. The use of alliteration comes naturally to a
person like him who has a poetic temperament. Therefore, by this Shaw brings
forth the intelligent, cunning and over smart character of Higgins.
5) “Who
asked him to make a gentleman of me? I was happy. I was free. I touched pretty
nigh everyday for money when I wanted it, same as I touched you, Henry Higgins.
Now I’m worried; tied neck and heels, and everybody touches me for money.’
The above lines are
spoken by Alfred Doolittle in G.B.Shaw’s play Pygmalion. Act IV. Doolittle
is angry with Higgins because of his new found riches. He does not want to be
rich because he does not want the responsibilities that befriends with
richness. He tells Higgins that when he was poor, he only had to ask for money
and no other work. Now, he has money and also a number of responsibilities.
However, Doolittle is now reluctant to bear these responsibilities and prefers
his former life. He was quite content with his poor life. Therefore, Shaw
brings forth the emphasizing distinction between the higher class and the lower
class, the attitude related to work and responsibilities.
6) “Don’t
ask me. I’ve been away in India for several tears: and manners have changed so
much that I sometimes do not know whether I’m at a respectable dinner table or
in a ship’s forecastle.”
The above mentioned
lines are spoken by Colonel Pickering in G.B.Shaw’s play Pygmalion;
Act III. During the training of Eliza, Higgins and Pickering took her to Higgins’s
mother’s house so that she could judge whether Eliza is learning proper
etiquettes or not. It was found that her pronunciation and accent were perfect
but Eliza used many expressions like “’Walk! Not bloody likely” which were not
ladylike. Mrs. Hill was shocked though her daughter clarified that was modern
way of talking. On this Mrs. Hill asks Pickering his views. However, he cannot
express any opinion regarding modern manners. He remained in India for several
years and during this period the standard of manners has changed a lot. Moreover,
while sitting at a dinner table in a respectable house Pickering found people
talking and behaving like illiterate and uncultured sailors. That is, people in
modern times swear and use unparliamentary words even in high class society.
Therefore, by the above lines Shaw brings forth the illusion in Pickering as he
finds high class people speak similar words as that of low class.
7) “Yes,
for the first three minutes. But when I saw we were going to win hands down, I
felt like a bear in a cage, hanging about doing nothing. I tell you, Pickering,
never again for me. No more artificial duchesses. The whole thing has been
simply purgatory.”
The above lines are
spoken by Higgins in G.B.Shaw’s play Pygmalion; Act IV. At the
Ambassador’s Party Eliza was successful in creating a good impression of her as
a Princess. On returning home Pickering talks about the party which was
interesting and above all Higgins wins his bet. Higgins replied that the party
was interesting during the first three minutes when he saw Eliza creating a
wonderful impression. His mission was successful and surely he won the bet, but
later the party became boring to him. He felt like a bear kept in a cage, which
cannot come out according to his wish. Higgins stayed there doing nothing at
all. Further, he makes it clear to Pickering that he will never take any
assignment of this kind. That is, training of ordinary girl and making her
duchess. Just as in purgatory the souls have to undergo some suffering in order
to be purified to step in heaven. In the same way, he and Eliza suffered during
these months. Therefore, Shaw here throws light on the character of Higgins.
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