Act 1 Summary
It is 11:15 p.m. on a summer evening in Covent Garden, and rain is coming down in torrents. A mother is taking shelter under the portico of St. Paul’s Church with her daughter while her son tries to find a cab to take them home. Mother, son, and daughter are all of upper-class appearance and wearing evening dress. At this time, none of the characters are named. Their names appear in the script after being mentioned in dialogue. They are, in fact, Mrs. Eynsford Hill, her son, Freddy, and her daughter, Clara.
Freddy has failed to find a cab and is rushing away to try to find one in the Strand when he bumps into a flower seller, scattering the contents of her basket over the pavement. She remonstrates with him angrily. Shaw at first attempts to reproduce her dialect phonetically, using the Roman alphabet (“Ow, eez ye-ooa san, is e?” for “Oh, he’s your son, is he?” etc.), but quickly gives up, explaining that this method of trying to represent the sound of her accent must be “unintelligible outside London.” Mrs. Eynsford Hill gives the girl sixpence for the flowers, much to Clara’s disgust.
The girl tries to sell a flower to a gentleman standing nearby, but a bystander points out to her that there is a man with a notebook who appears to be writing down their entire conversation. By this time, a crowd has gathered. Most of them, including the girl, assume that the notetaker is a police agent. This arouses their hostility, and the girl vociferously protests that she has harmed no one.
The general suspicion only increases when the notetaker identifies what part of London all the bystanders come from. They challenge him to try the same trick with the gentleman, thinking that he will not dare to “take liberties” with a member of the upper classes. The note taker, however, promptly identifies the gentleman with the words “Cheltenham, Harrow, Cambridge, and India,” meaning that he comes from the town of Cheltenham, was educated at Harrow School and Cambridge University, and has since lived in India. The gentleman confirms that the notetaker is correct and asks him if he does this for his living at a music hall.
The rain stops, and everyone leaves the church portico except the notetaker, the gentleman, and the flower girl. The notetaker then explains that he was able to identify the origins of the gentleman, the flower girl, and everyone else through his knowledge of phonetics, the “science of speech.” He has made a particular study of London dialects and can place any Londoner within two miles, “sometimes within two streets.” He explains that he makes his living by teaching people of low social origins who have made a lot of money to speak the upper-class English appropriate to their new station in life. He boasts that in three months, he could teach even the flower girl to speak such perfect English that he could pass her off “as a duchess at an ambassador's garden party” or even get her a job in a flower shop, which would require even better English.
It transpires that the notetaker is not only of the same social class as the gentleman—the two also share an interest in phonetics and are aware of each other’s work. The gentleman is Colonel Pickering, author of “Spoken Sanskrit,” and the notetaker is Professor Henry Higgins, author of “Higgins’s Universal Alphabet.” The two men quickly become friends and go to the Carlton Club, where Pickering is staying, to have supper together. As they leave, the flower girl...
(This entire section contains 843 words.)
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(who still has not been provided with a name–the audience has to wait until act 2 to learn that she is Eliza Doolittle) asks Pickering to buy a flower, saying that she is short of money for her lodging. Higgins calls her a liar, pointing out that she previously claimed to be able to change half a crown (two shillings and sixpence in pre-decimal coinage, when a pound or “sovereign” was twenty shillings).
Eliza is furious with Higgins and flings her flower basket at his feet. As she does so, the church clock strikes, and Shaw’s stage directions explain that Higgins hears in this “the voice of God, rebuking him for his Pharisaic want of charity to the poor girl.” He throws a handful of coins into her basket as he and Pickering depart. Eliza is astonished to find that Higgins has thrown quite a large sum of money into her basket, including a half-sovereign (ten shillings)—an amount it would normally take her at least a couple of days to earn by selling flowers. At this point, Freddy Eynsford Hill finally returns with a cab, only to find that his mother and sister left some time ago when the rain stopped. However, Eliza decides to use a fraction of her newfound wealth to take the cab home and grandly tells him that she will take it off his hands, leaving Freddy feeling quite bewildered.
Expert Q&A
What is the dramatic importance of the Eynsford-Hill family in Act 1 of Pygmalion?
In Act 1 of Pygmalion, the Eynsford-Hill family introduces key social dynamics and foreshadows future plot developments. They represent the Victorian upper class, with Mrs. and Miss Eynsford-Hill displaying snobbish attitudes. Freddy, their son, is portrayed as kind but easily controlled by the women. His interaction with Eliza, who later becomes his love interest, hints at future relational developments and highlights class distinctions and gender roles.
What is the major difference in Freddy's attitude toward Eliza between Act 1 and now?
Freddy's attitude towards Eliza changes significantly from Act 1 to Act 3. Initially, he is overwhelmed by Eliza's irate and challenging nature during their first encounter. By Act 3, however, he is captivated and infatuated by her transformation into a poised and pragmatic woman. Freddy goes from being a passive observer trying to please his female relatives to actively seeking Eliza's company, indicating a shift towards admiration and romantic interest.
What does Act 1 of Pygmalion reveal about Eliza's character?
Act 1 of Pygmalion reveals Eliza's character as a poor, unkempt flower seller with a strong Cockney accent, highlighting her lower-class status. Despite her shabby appearance and poor hygiene, Shaw notes her features are as regular as those of upper-class women, emphasizing the role of class in her situation. She is seen as a nuisance by some, yet a subject of interest for Higgins, and garners sympathy from bystanders for her struggle to make a living.
In Pygmalion, what effect does Shaw achieve by referring to characters as Mother, Daughter, etc. in Act I?
By referring to characters with descriptive labels like Mother and Daughter in Act I of Pygmalion, Shaw creates a comedic and stereotypical tone, engaging the audience with familiar archetypes. This method highlights key characters like The Note Taker and The Flower Girl by emphasizing their occupations, which are central to the story. It also piques curiosity about how these roles relate to the unfolding narrative, emphasizing the link between occupation and character development.
Characterization of the Flower Girl in Act One of Pygmalion
In Act One of Pygmalion, the Flower Girl, later revealed as Eliza Doolittle, is portrayed as a poor, uneducated street vendor with a strong Cockney accent. Her speech and manners reflect her lower social status, but she exhibits a sense of dignity and resilience despite her circumstances.
The significance and importance of Act 1 in the play "Pygmalion."
Act 1 of "Pygmalion" establishes the social themes and character dynamics central to the play. It introduces Professor Higgins and Eliza Doolittle, setting up their contrasting backgrounds and the class distinctions that will be explored. This act also foreshadows the transformative journey Eliza will undertake, highlighting the themes of identity and societal expectations.
