First published 1913
Professor Henry Higgins studies speech patterns when he encounters Eliza Doolittle selling flowers on a London street. The arrogant phonetics expert makes a wager that he can teach this working-class woman to speak like a duchess and pass her off in high society within months. Eliza agrees to the lessons, moving into Higgins' home where he drills her relentlessly in proper pronunciation and manners. As the experiment progresses, Higgins treats Eliza like an object to be molded rather than a person with her own desires and intelligence. The transformation succeeds beyond expectations, but Eliza refuses to remain Higgins' creation. She asserts her independence and challenges his assumptions about class and gender. Shaw crafted this story as both entertainment and social criticism, targeting the rigid British class system while exploring questions of identity and human dignity. The play shocked audiences in 1914 with its frank language and unconventional ending that rejected typical romantic resolutions.
Genres: fiction, drama, literary-fiction, 20th-century, class, academia
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, social-commentary
Setting: London
Period: 1914
122 pages · Paperback · Penguin Books