George Bernard Shaw - Pygmalion

I saw the movie years and years ago. I just got around to reading the book last week. And what a profound book it is. The argument for example that the "undeserving poor" are no less needy than the "deserving poor." That discussion will make you laugh until you cry. Secondly, it is not the way one behaves that makes her a lady, but the way she is treated.......poetry.Bernard Shaw is not just a talented writer. He is a philosopher. And the book is far from preachy, it is utterly fun.After reading the book, I was anxious to go back and see the film once again. The film holds amazingly true to the book. And of course Audrey Hepburn is excelllent. BUT - Julie Andrews played the part on Broadway, and I can't help but imagine what the film might have been with Julie Andrews - who really does sing. The exquisite Audrey Hepburn actually sings in the film, but much of her singing is dubbed for her.All of that aside - the book is a GEM - and further more It is FREE on kindle !So what are you waiting for ? Download now and experience the splendor of thought mixed with entertainment from the written word.

Stories based on Shaw's Pygmalion are numerous and for good reason. This play's messages about the class distinction in turn of the century England and the struggles of the lower and middle class when faced with the lumbering and obstinate influences of an obsolete nobility reflect through any time period, explaining perfectly well why there seems to be an adaptation every ten years or so (My Fair Lady, Pretty Woman, She's All That, and Selfie to name a few).The story of Eliza and Higgins is not one of love, except the kind of love one feels for their fellows. They are not meant to end up together as Shaw states in the closing essay included in the book. This serves to further show the distinction between the classes and the camaraderie of Higgins and Eliza.

It was very interesting to read the basis of My Fair Lady. Some of the dialog was exactly the same. The ending is different. I looked it up online and read that the ending was quite a controversy when it was put into play form shortly after the book was first published. The end of this book there is an afterward that explains what then happened to all the characters and why a different ending wouldn't have worked. I gave it four stars because I didn't "love" it as I prefer the movie My Fair Lady with all the music and being able to see the beautiful clothes. It was still an insightful and interesting read and actually helped me understand the film better. Enjoy!

If I had not already known this story/play, I might have been disappointed, but the notes at the end made me laugh out loud to consider what was NOT told in the play that I saw. The concluding notes were pretty funny considering how inept everyone seemed to be at doing whatever they needed to do to make a living--much less a success--of their businesses. It is pretty amusing to think of someone resenting being placed in the middle class and then suffering for it by having relatives need one's help. This story has not lost its meaningfulness even in this age.

Read this before of after seeing the film "My Fair Lady" or the 1938 film of the same name. The George Bernard Shaw play, based on the Greek mythical character Pygmalion, is charming, insightful and full of sharp witted humor. A joy to read.

…before it became the world’s language.George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright who wrote “Pygmalion” in 1912. He would win the Nobel Prize in 1925. He was a polemist and a gadfly, challenging much conventional thought. He opposed both organized religion and vaccinations. More people are familiar with this play thanks to the musical My Fair Lady which is largely based upon its central themes, though “the rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain” is never in the original work.Pygmalion is the first name of Professor Higgins, an insufferable, arrogant academic prig. He has developed quite a skill, which he demonstrates throughout the play: identifying someone’s place of origin by their accent. He claimed to be able to spot someone’s birthplace within London to within two miles. As for reforming the English language… and many others would no doubt agree, particularly those who have learned it as a second language: he advocated the use of phonetics.The good professor decides to conduct an “experiment.” During a rainstorm, he meets a Cockney flower girl on the streets. He is so proud of his skills, that he is confident that he can teach her “proper” English (as well as manners) so that in six months, she can pass herself off as a “lady.” Lisa Doolittle is the flower girl, and she does want proper diction lessons in order to better herself. But she does have a mind of her own, and shows it, objecting to the callus way that she is treated, as merely a pawn in Professor Higgin’s experiment. There are several supporting characters, such as Professor Higgin’s mother who largely supports Ms. Doolittle in the conflicts. Meanwhile, her dad, a dustman, sees direct monetary gain in this experiment, not in improving his daughter’s social status, but in hitting the Professor up for a “fiver.”The play is left open-ended. In fact, Shaw devotes the last 10% of the work to speculating on the best possible outcomes after the experiment is concluded, including if it would be best for Ms. Doolittle to marry the Professor, purportedly a confirmed bachelor. Shaw notes: “’When you go to women,’ says Nietzsche, ‘take your whip with you.’ Sensible despots have never confined that precaution to women: they have taken their whips with them when they have dealt with men, and been slavishly idealized by the men over whom they have flourished the whip much more than by women. No doubt there are slavish women as well as slavish men; and women, like men, admire those that are stronger than themselves. But to admire a strong person and to live under that strong person’s thumb are two different things.”Sensible sentiments even, that resonate more than a century later. And I must consider the difficulties of enunciation in another language, and trust I would be able to find a better teacher that the “good” Professor. 5-stars, for Shaw’s work.

This is an amazing look at the transformation of a person blurs the lines between who she was and what she becomes. There is no going back to being a rough, uneducated flower seller for Lizza. Shaw's work demonstrates that sometimes the "creation" far out shines the creator. Still a wonderful play.....and and an excellent study of men's and women's relationships

I've always loved the film My Fair Lady, so was delighted to find the original play as free kindle book. George Bernard Shaw is a wonderful writer, I couldn't put the book down. The story draws you on from page to page until the end. It was amazing just how closely the film followed the original script. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

I enjoyed reading it as a play and felt that I really got to know the characters. The fact that most of the characters were rounded personalities with positive and negative characterstics was refreshing because a lot of authors have a main character who is too good to be true or the opposite where there aren't any redeeming features.I also learned a lot about sematics and how they reflect the characters' behaviour and people's reactions to them.All in all an interesting and informative read.

A funny and witty classic. Surprisingly fresh for a book written over 100 years ago. Shaw's extra notes make it much more a book than the text of a play. Definitely worth a read.

i love this book it is a classic but is still a well written piece and very fun to read if you love the film you will love reading the book as it has more detail.

Better than my fair lady, a sign of the times. More about the class system than elocution lessons.

I have found the book to be more interesting that the film version. I much prefer this as I was able to form my own thought on the different characters.

Really enjoyed Pygmalion, the basis of My Fair Lady. As a play, it is somewhat confusing to read on the Kindle (or at least it was on my early version), because of formatting.

can't really comment on this as i have not read it yet but if it is as good as the play then i shall enjoy it

I have read and reread this short novel a hundred times and have yet to tire of it, since it is free why not try it?

I found this book difficult to read. The way it is written makes it difficult to follow. No My Fair Lady.

I love Pygmalion and already have it in paperback but I fancied reading it again on my Kindle. However there is at least one Act missing and some of the text (particularly the last lines) which have disappeared.5 stars for the play, 2 stars for the Kindle version I'm afraid.

A lovely book.

luv

lovely book !

It could be perceived as being a story of rescuing a common woman from her sorry life however in its simply written way it is basically one of command and control.