Why are there so many references to “what is to become” of Eliza? Trace these references throughout the play. What broader concern for society might Shaw be expressing?
Eliza's transformation comes as no surprise to the audience of Pygmalion, as it is hinted at--and not so subtly,either-- throughout the entirety of the play. We see the first example of this as Higgins' and Pickerings' discussion about the very possibility of transforming that 'mere flower girl' into a duchess at a dinner party. Later on as we see Eliza's change in dress, we see her slowly transform into the "high class" lady she turns into by the end of Act V.
But while Eliza changes into a beautiful, sophisticated young woman, Shaw wants to point out how nothing is really changing. This is most closely related to by the fact that she is never really treated any differently by Higgins, despite her ending up as more classy and distinguished than even himself.
While Shaw's foreshadowing is not (and certainly was not meant to be) subtle in the slightest, the underlying message he lays in while doing so is hard to see and even more difficult to understand. Shaw, ultimately, wants to show us that her change is false. As he guides the audience through her growth, he hints at the fact that she is not, and never could be a high class woman. One of the ways in which this is presented in the fact that her staunch independence never leaves her, though in most women high in society at this time, it was about being subservient, not being self-sufficient.
So, Eliza is foreshadowed to become a high class woman, though in the under-layers the audience can speculate that this change is false. In essence, Shaw is quite subtly foreshadowing her inevitable resort back to her roots as a street urchin by going off to marry Freddy by doing this.
So what is Shaw's point about all of this? Clearly he is trying to point out that the fairy tales of marrying up in the world and becoming somebody you are not is not a dream that comes true. At least not realistically often enough to expect it to happen to just anyone. Eliza had been given the best possible chance to be anyone she wanted to be, and maybe in the end she got what she wanted by becoming a lady in a flower shop, but the point is that she did not become a high ranking member of society. Perhaps Shaw is trying to exclaim that it really is impossible for somebody that was not born into it. But at the same time, another of Shaw's themes is that no class is really on top. At least not in this society.
Eliza's transformation comes as no surprise to the audience of Pygmalion, as it is hinted at--and not so subtly,either-- throughout the entirety of the play. We see the first example of this as Higgins' and Pickerings' discussion about the very possibility of transforming that 'mere flower girl' into a duchess at a dinner party. Later on as we see Eliza's change in dress, we see her slowly transform into the "high class" lady she turns into by the end of Act V.
But while Eliza changes into a beautiful, sophisticated young woman, Shaw wants to point out how nothing is really changing. This is most closely related to by the fact that she is never really treated any differently by Higgins, despite her ending up as more classy and distinguished than even himself.
While Shaw's foreshadowing is not (and certainly was not meant to be) subtle in the slightest, the underlying message he lays in while doing so is hard to see and even more difficult to understand. Shaw, ultimately, wants to show us that her change is false. As he guides the audience through her growth, he hints at the fact that she is not, and never could be a high class woman. One of the ways in which this is presented in the fact that her staunch independence never leaves her, though in most women high in society at this time, it was about being subservient, not being self-sufficient.
So, Eliza is foreshadowed to become a high class woman, though in the under-layers the audience can speculate that this change is false. In essence, Shaw is quite subtly foreshadowing her inevitable resort back to her roots as a street urchin by going off to marry Freddy by doing this.
So what is Shaw's point about all of this? Clearly he is trying to point out that the fairy tales of marrying up in the world and becoming somebody you are not is not a dream that comes true. At least not realistically often enough to expect it to happen to just anyone. Eliza had been given the best possible chance to be anyone she wanted to be, and maybe in the end she got what she wanted by becoming a lady in a flower shop, but the point is that she did not become a high ranking member of society. Perhaps Shaw is trying to exclaim that it really is impossible for somebody that was not born into it. But at the same time, another of Shaw's themes is that no class is really on top. At least not in this society.