Note: I'm taking a shot in the dark with the whole blogging thing; I read some very unique (and good) student blogs on their books as examples so I hope to achieve something that at least makes some sense.
Shaw's play Pygmalion takes place in London during a time when social classes were easily distinguished by dress, speech, and means of transportation. In the beginning of the play, a sudden storm forces all those unable to find an empty cab (or those who cannot afford one) to seek shelter near a church. A poor flower girl sells flowers; average bystanders wait for the rain to stop, and snooty, high-class mother and daughter send their son/brother to fetch a cab. The flower gir1 (Eliza) becomes upset after trying to sell a flower to a gentleman (Pickering) and believing the man taking notes (Henry Higgins) is a "copper's nark" which I interpreted to be like an undercover policeman. I was surprised that the girl could become so afraid of being reported. Reported for what? Trying to make some money to live off of? Am I missing something or is this the way society was? I'm not quite sure. Maybe Eliza is just very sensitive. Or maybe back then it was considered arrestable for poor people to try and sell goods to higher class, maybe society was just like that. I'll have to keep reading, I suppose, to get a better understanding.
Anyway, Higgins isn't an undercover cop like Eliza and the other people thought; he is merely a man who can depict a person's place of origin from his/her speech patterns. He is copying down how people are talking to study later. When the crowd realizes his talent, Higgins is challenged to figure out where passerby's are from, and he does so with little difficulty.
Anyway, Higgins isn't an undercover cop like Eliza and the other people thought; he is merely a man who can depict a person's place of origin from his/her speech patterns. He is copying down how people are talking to study later. When the crowd realizes his talent, Higgins is challenged to figure out where passerby's are from, and he does so with little difficulty.
On another note, I'd like to address my opinion that maybe the societal structure of the early nineteen hundreds isn't so different than that of our present society. This is represented by the pyramid-diagram shown to the right. However, while the structure may be similar, the interactions between classes are very different than they were a hundred years ago. In today's world, social classes are a lot more tolerant of each other and get along easier. The barriers between classes aren't as prominent. This is not to say every millionaire would be okay being friends with a homeless person, but it happens more than it would have a hundred years ago, during the time of which Pygmalion takes place. It is interesting to read this piece of literature and compare societal behaviors from different time periods.
