Bernard of Clairvaux

An archetype is a character, symbol or behavioral pattern that is basically a universal template for a character that is copied throughout all forms of storytelling. Some archetypes may even transcend cultural differences in stories. Because an archetype speaks to the basic human experience, it communicates meaning and emotion in all forms of literature Picture Rapunzel trapped in her tower, and you'll see one of the most classic and timeless forms of a character archetype: the damsel in…

Pygmalion is a play written by George Bernard Shaw, based on the Greek mythology of the same name. It features a poor, uneducated girl, Eliza Doolittle, who is taken on a journey to become a duchess, to open up a flower shop. She is mentored by a professor, named Henry Higgins. By the end of the play, it is unknown if Liza ever marries Higgins, or a young man named Freddy Eynsford-Hill. As mentioned, as the story comes to a close, it leaves the reader something to think about. Does Eliza…

“The difference between a lady and a flower girl is not how she behaves, but how she is treated”(page 120). In the book Pygmalion written by George Bernard Shaw, the main character Eliza Doolittle started off as a flower girl in the gutter, soon after a man named Henry Higgins a phonetic instructor brought her in and taught her how to speak like a duchess. However, Eliza has changed her outer appearance immensely, she remains the same woman internally. Eliza Doolittle has a very strong…

Eliza Doolittle is a pitiable flower girl, who unfortunately becomes an experimental object of two linguistic gentlemen in Pygmalion. Higgins and Pickering, who are extremely interested in phonetics, share a mutual belief that changing someone’s speech manner and accent is the gist of a life-changing, social transformation. Their criticism of the girl’s dreadful accent generally reflects the inevitable reality of social hierarchy in Britain, where the wrongful partiality of language, social…

How has Priestley used the characters in the play to present his views about the social class system? J.B Priestly used all of his characters to send a specific message to the audience of 1945. The year the play is set, 1912, Hierarchy and class status were what society was built upon making it a crucial aspect in the play. However after World War One and World War Two, the class system was nearly non-existent. This was due to the aristocrats and working class having to work together during both…

Women in the 19th century were seldom independent as gender equality was absent. Independence can be defined as the unwillingness to adhere to the husband’s desire. In Henrik Ibsen’s play A Doll’s House, Ibsen delves into Nora’s journey toward independence as a result from the inconveniences of her seemingly carefree relationship with Torvald. Torvald’s inconsiderate and hurtful criticism toward Nora acts as a stepping-stone toward her independence. Additionally, the revelation of Torvald’s…

The True Power Of Women In Mrs. Warren’s Profession by George Bernard Shaw, the characters presented in the play each depict a Victorian stereotype relative to their gender role during this time period. During the Victorian era, males were privileged and could do whatever they pleased in order to live the life they dreamed of. “The man’s power is active, progressive, and defensive. He is eminently the doer, the creator, the discoverer, the defender. His intellect if for speculation and…

Spotlight – Sociologial Theories 1 “When the Boston Globe’s tenacious “Spotlight” team of reporters delves into allegations of abuse in the Catholic Church, their year-long investigation uncovers a decades-long cover up at the highest levels of Boston’s religious, legal, and government establishment, touching off a wave of revelations around the world” (Road, n.d.). Spotlight is a movie based on real-life events that occurred in 2001and it shows the viewers the obstacles that these…

SA 2: "The Chrysanthemums" is a short story of John Steinbeck which reflects the frustration in the present life of Elisa Allen, strong and proud woman. This frustration arises from not having a child as well as from the dissatisfaction in a romantic relationship with her husband. The only possible way out for Elisa's frustration is her beautiful flower garden where she plants chrysanthemums. The author frequently uses chrysanthemums as a symbol as well as a number of other items in order to…

In George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, he highlights the issue of language in relation to class structure. Borrowing ideas from the Greek myth Pygmalion, Shaw creates character Henry Higgins, a phonetician, who tries to transform the flower-selling, cockney Eliza Doolittle into a lady. While exploring the idea of creation between Higgins and Doolittle, Shaw chooses to focus on their social dimensionality. While Eliza is trained to speak and act like a lady, she does not gain the proper instincts in…