Pygmalion is a typical play of George Bernard Shaw. It has a sound plot. Plot is the arrangement of events and incidents having causal connection. The action of the play takes place in London. It is raining continuously. In order to protect themselves from rain pedestrians take shelter into a Portico of St. Paul’s church. Clara is also there with her mother. Freddy is the brother of Clara. He has gone to engage a cab for his mother and sister. In the portico, there are two men whose names are Mr. Higgins and Mr. Pickering. A flower girl also comes to take refuge, So Freddy dashes her violently. As a result of this, all her flowers are scattered from the basket. The mother of Freddy pays six pence to the flower girl for compensation to the loss of her flowers. Mr. Higgins is sympathetic to the flower girl. He is a professor of phonetics. Mr. Pickering is another gentleman these who is expert of oriental languages.
Mr. Higgins is of the view that people with bad pronunciation has no right to live. He decides to teach phonetics to the flower girl so that she may Qualify for the job of lady’s maid and shop assistant in a florist’s shop. Mr. Higgins and Mr. Pickering go together for dinner. Freddy comes with a taxi for his mother and sister who have gone to bus station. This taxi is engaged by the flower girl. It is on this taxi that she comes to her house which is situated in the Buckingham palace area. The name of the flower girl is Eliza. She lives in a single room. It is extremely damp and out of repair. Her bed is wretched. The language laboratory of Mr. Higgins is situated in Wimple Street. Mr. Higgins and Mr. Pickering are carrying on some experiment soon, Mrs. Pearce comes and informs about the arrival of the flower girl. On being called, the flower girl expresses her desire to get lesson in elocution. By learning correct pronunciation, she wants to improve her status. The flower girl, whose name is Eliza, wants to get a job as sales-woman in a floristic shop.
Mr. Higgins accepts her as one of his pupils and assures to make her speak like a duchess within six months. As per instruction of Mrs. Higgins, Eliza is conducted to a bed-room in the third floor of the house. This room is too good for her Mrs. Pearce now takes her to the bath-cum- dressing room. There she is very finely dressed after bath. In her new dress. Eliza looks very smart. Soon, Allred Doolittle, the father of Eliza, comes in the laboratory of Mr. Higgins. He is satisfied only to take two notes of five pound each. Eliza is so much changed now that her father takes her to be a Japanese lady when he sees her at the door. But Mrs. Pearce helps him to recognise her. Mr. Higgins tells his mother how he has been able to change the status of Eliza from a flower girl to a lady within a very short period. Clara and Freddy are the daughter and son of Mrs. Eynsford Hill. Freddy fall in love with Eliza at the very first sight.
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Mr. Nepmmuck was previously a student of Mr. Higgins. He was a master of as many as thirty six language. He works as an interpreter to her Excellency. He invites Eliza, Mr. Higgins and Mr. Pickering at the Embassy. All go there and they are soon called by the ambassador. Eliza becomes successful in this test. Her success is the success of Mr. Higins. All three return to their residence with satisfaction. Mr. Higgins and Mr. Pickering are bachelor. Both want to get the hands of Eliza in marriage. At night, Mr. Higins misbehaves Eliza. This offends her greatly. Naturally. she rejects the proposal. She wants to marry Freddy alone because she has got true love from him. Eliza expresses her sense of indebtedness to Mr. Higgins because it was from him that she learnt nice Manners. At the end of the play, Eliza, goes to the church along with Mrs. Higgins where her marriage ceremony with Freddy is to be solemnised.
The close study of the play convinces us that it has a sound plot. All the above incidents of the five acts of the play are related to one another. They have logical link or causal connection. The poor position of the flower girl and her desire to improve her status is the main motive of the play. Mr. Higgins who is a professor of phonetics held her greatly in improving her status. With his helps, she learns refinement and speaks as fluently as a duchess. Mr. Higgins wants to marry her. But as he does not love her sincerely, she rejects the proposal. As she gets true love from Freddy, she marries him in the church. Thus, we see that this play has a well-knit structure and organic plot.
