hing can do so much for how someone is perceived. Apart from the way people dress, they are also defined by the way they speak. In Pygmalion the way people converse is a very important part of the play, not least because the structure of it is based on the fact that Eliza can't speak "properly" and Higgins can teach her how. It was obviously considerably important to speak well at that time, which is emphasized by Shaw over and over again. The play even starts with Higgins criticizing the way that Eliza speaks, because it is not only up to standard compared to "proper" English it will also resultantly keep her in the gutter for the rest of her days. He expresses that he could teach even someone with such dreadful pronunciation within 3 - 6 months, this already means that whether you can speak adequately or not doesn't actually mean anything, if you can be taught how to in such a short period of time. Noticeably Shaw doesn't make it a must to speak correctly, this is probably for the reason that a lady or gentleman, although would preferably have to have good English, would not necessarily have perfect English to be accepted into the upper class. I think that language is a very important part of our society, whether it should be or not, is another question. Some people seem to judge one's first appearance and they don't look past what they see. Mr. Higgins never saw Eliza as more than a flower girl, even though she had been a lady all along. Language is a powerful thing; it can make you a duchess or a flower girl, a bum or a high society gentleman...or at least appear to be.Pygmalion also looks at middle class morality through the characterization of Mr. Doolittle, Eliza's father. Mr. Doolittle is a "common dustman", an indolent man who spends his time drinking alcohol at the local pub. He is not too proud to beg for money, even from Eliza. Moreover, he lives with a woman to whom he is not married. When Henry Higgins writes to a ...
