Pygmalion (1938)

 Anthony Asquith & Leslie Howard's "Pygmalion"


I think we all know the story of "Pygmalion," whether you realize it or not. Based on the famous 1913 stage play by George Bernard Shaw, "Pygmalion" tells the story of a linguist professor who turns a lowly street peddler into a duchess. Whether you know this story as "My Fair Lady," "Educating Rita," "Can't Buy Me Love," "She's All That," or even stories with a similar vein like "The Princess Diaries," for example. Regardless of its form, the story is ever-present and always timely. 

The main thematic conceit of the story regardless of the form it takes is that of class division and social mobility. By taking someone from a lower class, along with their lower-class behaviors and mannerisms, and instilling in them the behaviors of the upper class, you begin to draw analysis of the constructs between them. Proper grammar, proper posture, and other 'polite society' notions are all things that are identifiable to a certain realm of social status. 

However, in turn, our protagonist professor receives some lessons of his own. Namely, to treat other people with respect despite their lower social standing, their lack of education, or their proper politeness. Through the collaboration between these two distinctly different economic and social spheres, we begin to attain some sort of understanding of one another. 



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