Rainy evening in London. A group of people had gathered under the portico of the church. They all waited for the rain to stop. Only one man paid no attention to the weather. He calmly wrote down something in his notebook. Later, a young man named Freddie joined the assembled group. He tried to find a taxi for his mother and sister, but he did not succeed.

His mother sent him again to look for transport. Running away, Freddie accidentally knocked out a basket of flowers from the hands of the girl who was selling them. Picking flowers, she long and loudly resented. The man, looking at her, continued to write quickly. It was professor of phonetics Henry Higgins. By pronunciation, he could determine in which place in England a person was born and lived. Higgins got into a conversation with a middle-aged man, Colonel Pickering.

In the morning, yesterday's flower girl appeared at the house of Henry Higgins. Eliza Doolittle, that was the name of the girl, came to the professor and offered to teach her to speak correctly for money. The owner of the flower shop promised to hire her if she got rid of her street vocabulary. The colonel and the professor decided to make a deal: if Higgins could make a lady out of a street mess, then Pickering would pay for the girl's education. Eliza stayed at the Higgins house. The next day, a new guest visited the professor. It was Alfred Doolittle, Eliza's father. He came to demand compensation from Higgins for his daughter. To get rid of him, the professor paid the money he asked for.

Several months have passed. The girl turned out to be a diligent student and achieved great success. The first test of Eliza's knowledge was a social reception at the professor's mother. As long as the conversation touched on the weather and health, everything went well. But when those present changed the subject of the conversation, all the rules and manners were forgotten by the girl.

Only Professor Higgins managed to correct the situation by intervening in the conversation. Higgins' mother did not like her son's experiments. She stated that human life is not a toy, it must be treated with care, but the son laughed it off. Freddie was also present. He was delighted with the girl and could not even imagine that this was a street flower girl.

Six months have passed. Higgins and the colonel received an invitation to a ball at the embassy. Eliza went with them. At the ball, the girl was presented as a duchess. Her attire and manners were impeccable, no one doubted her social position.

The professor was pleased with the bet he won and did not pay attention to the mood of his student. Over the months, Higgins had grown accustomed to having Eliza as an unobtrusive assistant in all his affairs. But on this day, when strangers appreciated her manners and wit, the girl wanted Higgins to notice these changes in her.

In the morning, the professor discovered that the girl was missing. Everyone was alarmed by her disappearance. Later, Eliza's father appeared. It was hard to recognize the former scavenger in a neatly dressed man. Alfred Doolittle reported that he had become a wealthy man. In this he was helped by the American founder of the Moral Reform League. Who told the American about the poor scavenger, Alfred did not know. But he tried to live honestly, even decided to legalize relations with a woman with whom they had lived for a long time.

Eliza arrived at dinnertime with the professor's mother. The woman was pleased that the girl's father had the opportunity to take care of her. Higgins was against her leaving. He invited Eliza to become his assistant. The girl said nothing and left with her father. But Higgins was sure she would come back.

Bernard Show

Pygmalion

A novel in five acts

Characters

Clara Einsford Hill, daughter.

Mrs Einsford Hill, her mother.

Passerby.

Eliza Doolittle, flower girl.

Alfred Doolittle, Eliza's father.

Freddie, son of Mrs Eynsford Hill.

Gentleman.

Man with notebook.

Sarcastic passer-by.

Henry Higgins, professor of phonetics.

Pickering, colonel.

Mrs Higgins, Professor Higgins' mother.

Mrs Pierce, Higgins' housekeeper.

Several people in the crowd.

Housemaid.

Act one

Covent Garden. Summer evening. Rain like a bucket. From all sides, the desperate roar of car sirens. Passers-by run to the market and to the church of St. Paul, under the portico of which several people had already taken refuge, including old lady with daughter Both are in evening wear. Everyone peers with annoyance into the streams of rain, and only one Human, standing with his back to the others, apparently completely absorbed in some notes that he makes in a notebook. The clock strikes a quarter past eleven.

Daughter (stands between the two middle columns of the portico, closer to the left). I can't take it anymore, I'm all cold. Where did Freddie go? Half an hour has passed and he's still gone.

Mother (to the right of the daughter). Well, not half an hour. But still it would be time for him to fetch a taxi.

passerby (to the right of the elderly lady). Don't expect it, lady: now, after all, everyone from the theaters is coming; he couldn't get a taxi before half past eleven.

Mother. But we need a taxi. We can't stand here until half past eleven. It's just outrageous.

Passerby. Yes, what am I doing here?

Daughter. If Freddie had even a shred of intelligence, he would have taken a taxi from the theater.

Mother. What is his fault, poor boy?

Daughter. Others do get it. Why can't he?

Flying in from Southampton Street Freddie and stands between them, closing the umbrella, from which water flows. This is a young man of about twenty; he is in a tailcoat, his trousers are completely wet at the bottom.

Daughter. So you didn't get a taxi?

Freddie. Nowhere, even die.

Mother. Oh, Freddy, really, really not at all? You must have searched badly.

Daughter. Ugliness. Will you order us to go get a taxi ourselves?

Freddie. I'm telling you, there isn't one anywhere. The rain came so unexpectedly, everyone was taken by surprise, and everyone rushed to the taxi. I walked all the way to Charing Cross, and then the other way, almost to Ledgate Circus, and saw no one.

Mother. Have you been to Trafalgar Square?

Freddie. There are none in Trafalgar Square either.

Daughter. Have you been there?

Freddie. I was at Charing Cross Station. Why would you want me to march in the rain to Hammersmith?

Daughter. You haven't been anywhere!

Mother. True, Freddie, you are somehow very helpless. Go again and don't come back without a taxi.

Freddie. I'll just get soaked to the skin in vain.

Daughter. But what are we to do? Do you think we should stand here all night in the wind, almost naked? It's disgusting, it's selfish, it's...

Freddie. Okay, okay, I'm going. (He opens his umbrella and rushes towards the Strand, but on the way he runs into a street flower girl, in a hurry to take shelter from the rain, and knocks a basket of flowers out of her hands.)

At the same moment, lightning flashes, and a deafening peal of thunder seems to accompany this incident.

Flower girl. Where are you going, Freddy! Take your eyes in hand!

Freddie. Sorry. (Runs away.)

flower girl (picks up flowers and puts them in a basket). And also educated! He trampled all the violets into the mud. (He sits on the plinth of the column to the right of the elderly lady and begins to shake and straighten the flowers.)

She is by no means attractive. She is eighteen or twenty years old, no more. She is wearing black straw hat, badly damaged in her lifetime by London dust and soot, and hardly familiar with a brush. Her hair is of some mouse color, not found in nature: water and soap are clearly needed here. A reddish black coat, narrow at the waist, barely reaching the knees; underneath, a brown skirt and a canvas apron are visible. Shoes, apparently, also knew better days. Without a doubt, she is clean in her own way, but next to the ladies she definitely looks like a mess. Her features are not bad, but the condition of her skin leaves much to be desired; in addition, it is noticeable that she needs the services of a dentist.

Mother. Excuse me, how do you know my son's name is Freddie?

Flower girl. Oh, so this is your son? There is nothing to say, you raised him well ... Is this really the case? He scattered all the flowers around the poor girl and ran away, like a nice little one! Now pay up, mother!

Daughter. Mom, I hope you don't do something like that. Still missing!

Mother. Wait, Clara, don't interfere. Do you have change?

Daughter. No. I only have a sixpence.

flower girl (with hope). Don't worry, I'll have change.

Mother (daughter). Give it to me.

The daughter is reluctant to part with the coin.

So. (To the girl.) Here's some flowers for you, my dear.

Flower girl. God bless you, lady.

Daughter. Take change from her. These bunches cost no more than a penny.

Mother. Clara, they don't ask you. (To the girl.) Keep the change.

Flower girl. God bless you.

Mother. Now tell me, how do you know the name of this young man?

Flower girl. And I don't know.

Mother. I heard you call him by his first name. Don't try to fool me.

Flower girl. I really need to deceive you. I just said so. Well, Freddie, Charlie - you have to call a person something if you want to be polite. (Sits down beside his basket.)

Daughter. Wasted sixpence! Really, mother, you could save Freddie from this. (Squeamishly retreats behind the column.)

Elderly gentleman - a pleasant type of old army man - runs up the steps and closes the umbrella, from which water flows. He, like Freddie, has completely wet trousers at the bottom. He is in a tailcoat and a light summer coat. She takes a free place at the left column, from which her daughter has just moved away.

Sheltered from the rain, an elderly lady with her daughter, dressed in evening dresses are waiting for Freddie, the lady's son, to find a taxi and pick them up. Freddie appears, having not found a free taxi. On the way, he runs into a street flower girl and knocks a basket of violets out of the girl's hands. The flower girl is upset because her violets are missing. She asks standing next to Colonel to buy a bouquet. He hands her the change in his pockets, but he does not take the flowers. One of the passers-by pointed out to the flower girl a gentleman who was writing something in a notebook, perhaps a denunciation of her. The man assured everyone that he was not from the police. He amazed people with his ability to determine the origin of each by pronunciation.

The Colonel showed interest in his abilities. This is the creator of the "Universal Higgins Alphabet", Henry Higgins. And Colonel Pickering turns out to be the author of the scholarly book Spoken Sanskrit. The man lived in India for a long time, and came to London in order to meet Higgins. When the girl once again asks to buy flowers from her, Higgins throws coins into her basket and leaves with his new acquaintance.

At home, Higgins demonstrates to the colonel his most interesting phonographic equipment. Yesterday's flower girl comes to him, introducing herself as Eliza Doolittle. She wants to take phonetics lessons from him, because with her pronunciation she can’t get a suitable job. The Colonel urges Higgins to prove that he can turn a flower girl into a duchess in a few months. Higgins also finds this offer very tempting.
After a couple of months, he brought Eliza to his mother's house to determine if she could already be introduced into secular society.

Mrs. Higgins's guest that day was Mrs. Einsford Hill with her son and daughter. It was they who then stood under the portico of the cathedral when they first saw Eliza. They never recognize the flower girl. Eliza talks and behaves like a high society lady, but when talking about her life, she uses such expressions that everyone around is simply amazed.

Both experimenters, the colonel and the professor, finally take Eliza to a high society reception, where she is a great success. Everyone takes the girl for a duchess. In the end, Higgins wins the bet. First of all, he enjoys the fact that this experiment, from which he managed to get very tired, is over. He does not pay any attention to Eliza and her state of mind. Eliza looks tired, she is sad, not knowing what will happen to her next.

She runs away from home at night. Higgins and Pickering go to the police to find the fugitive. Without Eliza, Professor Higgins feels like he's out of arms. Eliza's father, who came, reproaches Higgins that he had to radically change his life. It turns out that Higgins wrote to the American millionaire, who founded branches of the Moral Reform League everywhere, that the simple scavenger, Doolittle, is the most original moralist in England. So he bequeathed to Dolittle before his death an impressive share in his trust, if he would lecture in his League.
Eliza agreed to return to Higgins if he asked her forgiveness. The professor decided that now the girl behaves more worthy than when she carefully watched his things, brought him slippers.
Most likely, Eliza will live in Higgins' house, as she managed to become very attached to him, and he to her, and everything will go on as before.

Please note that this is only summary literary work "Pygmalion". This summary omits many important points and quotes.

This work tells how two linguists taught the correct English pronunciation to a simple girl selling flowers on the streets of London. Eliza, as the girl was called, entered high society and became one of the most fashionable and interesting ladies, whom many young rich women began to imitate. The girl falls in love with one of her teachers, and the reader has reason to think that they are destined to be together.

The main idea of ​​the play is that those who were lucky enough to be born noble and rich are not always better and smarter than those who do not belong to high society.

Read the summary of Bernard Shaw Pygmalion

In London, at the entrance of the theater, several people took shelter from the rain. It's a high society family called Hill who wants to leave the theater in a taxi. A mother and daughter are afraid that the rain will ruin their dresses and wait until their son and brother named Freddie finds a taxi. Poor Freddy can't seem to find a car for them.

In the same place, two famous people are waiting for the rain. scientific works linguists, one named Professor Higgins and the other Mr. Pickering. They know about each other's work and are lucky enough to get to know each other. Near the theater next to them is a simple unkempt girl named Eliza selling flowers.

While all these people are trying to find a taxi and leave, one of the men accidentally pushes the girl and she drops her flowers. The girl swears, and linguists talk about her pronunciation. One inadvertently thrown phrase of Professor Higgins makes the girl seriously think about her life. The professor said that a short time could teach a girl such a pronunciation that she would be hired in the most fashionable flower shop in London.

The next morning, Eliza managed to find Mr. Higgins. She wants to learn right English language to work in good location. The professor doesn't want her money, but the idea seems interesting to him, besides, Mr. Pickering wants to experiment and wants to have an argument with him.

Professor Higgins leaves Eliza at his house and entrusts her to his housekeeper. His bet with Mr. Pickering is to teach the girl to talk like a duchess.

Eliza's father appears, the scavenger who came to Mr. Higgins, for her. An amusing dialogue ensues between them, in which the scavenger strikes Mr. Higgins with originality of thoughts and judgments.

A month later, Professor Higgins, wanting to conduct an experiment, introduces Eliza to his mother in order to understand from her reaction whether the girl will be accepted in the world. There, she is accidentally introduced to the Hill family. This is the same family that stood at the entrance to the theater on a rainy day.

Of course, they do not recognize in a beautiful fashion girl that same mess and have a conversation with her. At first, Eliza speaks like a real lady, and then, carried away, she begins to use familiar expressions and talks about her life. Everyone thought it was fashionable social jargon. Mrs. Hill's daughter even tries to imitate Eliza's mannerisms, and her son, Freddie, falls in love with her.

After some time, friends represent Eliza in high society, where she receives attention. Professor Higgins realizes that he has won his bet.

When Eliza realizes that she was taught, dressed up and taken out only for the sake of experience, she throws his own shoes at Higgins. He turned her life upside down, and did not even notice how she fell in love with him!

Eliza leaves the house, and Higgins feels completely lost without her.

Eliza's father, Mr. Doolittle, deserves special attention. He is just a scavenger, but he has very original ideas about morality. Jokingly, Higgins casually mentioned to one of his millionaire friends that Mr. Doolittle was one of the most entertaining and original moralists in England.

The millionaire included Dolittle in his will on the condition that he lecture on morality and ethics. And now Doolittle has become rich, but has lost his freedom. He has to wear fashionable clothes, lecture on morality and, most importantly, live by the burdensome rules of a decent society. As the former scavenger lectures on morality and ethics, he himself will now have to tie the knot. family life with the woman with whom he had previously lived just like that.

In the end, Eliza returns to Higgins, and the reader is led to believe that the two will be happy.

Picture or drawing Bernard Shaw - Pygmalion

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The play takes place in London. On a summer evening, the rain pours like a bucket. Passers-by run to Covent Garden Market and to the portico of St. Pavel, where several people have already taken refuge, including an elderly lady with her daughter, they are in evening dresses, waiting for Freddie, the lady's son, to find a taxi and come for them. Everyone, except for one person with a notebook, peers impatiently into the torrents of rain. Freddie appears in the distance, having not found a taxi, and runs to the portico, but on the way he runs into a street flower girl, hurrying to take cover from the rain, and knocks a basket of violets out of her hands. She bursts into swearing. A man with a notebook hurriedly writes something down. The girl laments that her violets have disappeared, and begs the colonel standing right there to buy a bouquet. The one to get rid of, gives her a change, but does not take flowers. One of the passers-by draws the attention of a flower girl, a sloppily dressed and unwashed girl, that a man with a notebook is clearly scribbling a denunciation of her. The girl starts whimpering. He, however, assures that he is not from the police, and surprises everyone present by accurately determining the origin of each of them by their pronunciation.

Freddie's mother sends her son back to look for a taxi. Soon, however, the rain stops, and she and her daughter go to the bus stop. The Colonel takes an interest in the abilities of the man with the notebook. He introduces himself as Henry Higgins, creator of the Higgins Universal Alphabet. The colonel turns out to be the author of the book Conversational Sanskrit. His last name is Pickering. He lived in India for a long time and came to London specifically to meet Professor Higgins. The professor also always wanted to meet the colonel. They are about to go to dinner at the Colonel's hotel, when the flower girl again begins to ask to buy flowers from her. Higgins tosses a handful of coins into her basket and leaves with the Colonel. The flower girl sees that she now owns, by her standards, a huge amount. When Freddie arrives with the taxi he finally hailed, she gets into the car and, slamming the door shut, leaves.

The next morning, Higgins demonstrates his phonographic equipment to Colonel Pickering at his home. Suddenly, Higgins' housekeeper, Mrs. Pierce, reports that a certain very ordinary girl wants to speak with the professor. Enter yesterday's flower girl. She introduces herself as Eliza Doolittle and says that she wants to take phonetics lessons from the professor, because with her pronunciation she cannot get a job. The day before, she had heard that Higgins was giving such lessons. Eliza is sure that he will gladly agree to work off the money that yesterday, without looking, he threw into her basket. Of course, it is ridiculous for him to talk about such amounts, but Pickering offers Higgins a bet. He incites him to prove that in a matter of months he can, as he assured the day before, turn a street flower girl into a duchess. Higgins finds the offer tempting, especially since Pickering is willing, if Higgins wins, to pay the entire cost of Eliza's education. Mrs. Pierce takes Eliza to the bathroom to wash.

After a while, Eliza's father comes to Higgins. He is a scavenger, a simple man, but impresses the professor with his natural eloquence. Higgins asks Dolittle for permission to keep his daughter and gives him five pounds for it. When Eliza arrives, already washed and wearing a Japanese robe, the father does not even recognize his daughter at first. A couple of months later, Higgins brings Eliza to his mother's house, just in time for her appointment. He wants to know if it is already possible to introduce a girl into secular society. Mrs. Higgins is visiting Mrs. Einsford Hill with her daughter and son. These are the same people with whom Higgins stood under the portico of the cathedral on the day he first saw Eliza. However, they do not recognize the girl. Eliza first behaves and talks like a high-society lady, and then moves on to a story about her life and uses such street expressions that all those present are only amazed. Higgins pretends this is the new social jargon, thus smoothing things over. Eliza leaves the gathering, leaving Freddie ecstatic.

After this meeting, he begins to send Eliza ten-page letters. After the guests leave, Higgins and Pickering vying, enthusiastically tell Mrs. Higgins about how they work with Eliza, how they teach her, take her to the opera, to exhibitions, and dress her. Mrs. Higgins finds that they treat the girl like a living doll. She agrees with Mrs. Pierce, who believes that they "don't think of anything".

A few months later, both experimenters take Eliza to a high-society reception, where she has a dizzying success, everyone takes her for a duchess. Higgins wins the bet.

Arriving home, he enjoys the fact that the experiment, from which he has already managed to get tired, is finally over. He behaves and talks in his usual rough manner, not paying the slightest attention to Eliza. The girl looks very tired and sad, but at the same time she is dazzlingly beautiful. It is noticeable that irritation accumulates in her.

She ends up throwing his shoes at Higgins. She wants to die. She does not know what will happen to her next, how she will live. After all, she became a completely different person. Higgins assures that everything will work out. She, however, manages to hurt him, unbalance him and thereby at least a little revenge for herself.

Eliza runs away from home at night. The next morning, Higgins and Pickering lose their heads when they see that Eliza is gone. They even try to track her down with the help of the police. Higgins feels without Eliza as without arms. He does not know where his things are, nor what he has scheduled for the day. Mrs. Higgins arrives. Then they report about the arrival of Eliza's father. Doolittle has changed a lot. Now he looks like a wealthy bourgeois. He lashes out indignantly at Higgins for the fact that through his fault he had to change his way of life and now become much less free than he was before. It turns out a few months ago Higgins wrote to a millionaire in America, who founded branches of the Moral Reform League all over the world, that Dolittle, a simple scavenger, is now the most original moralist in all of England. He died, and before his death, he bequeathed to Dolittle a share in his trust for three thousand annual income, on the condition that Dolittle would give up to six lectures a year in his Moral Reform League. He laments that today, for example, he even has to officially marry the one with whom he has lived for several years without registering a relationship. And all this because he is now forced to look like a respectable bourgeois. Mrs. Higgins is overjoyed that a father can finally take care of his changed daughter the way she deserves. Higgins, however, does not want to hear about "returning" Dolittle Eliza.

Mrs. Higgins says she knows where Eliza is. The girl agrees to return if Higgins asks her forgiveness. Higgins is in no way agreeing to go for it. Eliza enters. She expresses gratitude to Pickering for his treatment of her as a noble lady. It was he who helped Eliza change, despite the fact that she had to live in the house of a rude, slovenly and ill-mannered Higgins. Higgins is smitten. Eliza adds that if he continues to "push" her, she will go to Professor Nepin, Higgins' colleague, and become his assistant and inform him of all the discoveries made by Higgins. After a burst of indignation, the professor finds that now her behavior is even better and more dignified than when she looked after his things and brought him slippers. Now, he is sure, they will be able to live together no longer just as two men and one stupid girl, but as "three friendly old bachelors."

Eliza goes to her father's wedding. Apparently, she will still live in Higgins' house, because she managed to become attached to him, as he did to her, and everything will go on as before.

retold