Class and Names in Pygmalion, Act I

One of the most interesting aspects of the first act of Pygmalion is that of class, and it’s relation to characters’ names.  It is fascinating not because it is there, but because it is so pointedly obvious– arguably to the point of being satirical.

The characters in Act One represent a stereotypical cross-section of English society at that time.  There are the Aristocrats– Freddy, his mother and his sister– as well as the middle class academic Henry Higgins.  There is Colonel Pickering, whose academic and military experiences allow him to span a gap between the aristocratic and the middle classes, and then, of course, there is Eliza Dolittle, the lower class flower girl.

The importance of class in the play is illustrated by the fact that all of the characters are initially known by epithets that either directly or indirectly point to their social statuses.  The Mother and the Daughter, being upper class, are known solely by their familial positions, because those are their only places in society.  The Flower Girl, being lower class, must work for a living and is therefore known by her job title.  The Gentleman, obviously, is exactly what his name indicates, while the Note Taker, while middle class and therefore known again by his activity, is also an academic, as the act of taking notes suggests.  Only Freddy seems to be immune to the classification– a fact which proves significant as more about his character is revealed later in the play.

Even the characters’ proper names seem to have social significance.  Henry Higgins is a name for an “Everyman” if I’ve ever heard one, yet the surname Higgins means “Intelligent.”  Eliza’s surname, Dolittle, can be taken as a descriptive for the stereotypical view taken by the English of the period toward the lower class.  The poorest in English society at that time were typically viewed as lazy and idle.  Colonel Pickering’s name is especially interesting.  Firstly, the combination of a officers’ title with the name speaks of both high birth– because at the time only aristocrats became officers in the English military– and of intelligence– because of two famous Victorian astronomers, Edward and William Pickering.  Freddy, who falls from aristocrat to shopkeeper during the prologue of the play, seems destined for his change in fortune due to the fact that his name, as Eliza explains during Act I, is a common term for an unknown, average man.

The Irreplacable Books

“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”
― Marcus Tullius Cicero

In his article "Books and Other Fetish Objects," James Gleick describes the thrill a bibliophile or historian can get from handling an old text.  He is quite right-- It is a thrilling experience.  However, merely handling any book can be an experience in itself.  There is something that makes one feel comfortably blissful while holding a book, and despite the good qualities of digital texts, this feeling is something that they cannot replace.  Gleick wonders in his article if the ease of e-texts are "an example of 'be careful what you wish for?'"  I am inclined to have the same concern.

Recently, I was scandalized when someone said he couldn't wait for the day when libraries focused on ebooks and were fully online.  Libraries?  Entirely digitized?  No more books?!  I found the thought so horrible that it actually made me a little sick to my stomach, and I replied to my acquaintance that I hoped I never saw that day. 

I can't imagine a world without books.  I agree fully with Jorge Luis Borges that "...Paradise will be a kind of library," and by that same token I believe a world without books would be a living Hell.
  

Don't misunderstand me.  I believe that digital books certainly have their uses.  An e-reader would be exceptionally useful on a long airplane trip, for example.  Digital sources can be more easily searched, and therefore are a blessing and a boon to any student or researcher. However-- despite my working as an IT tech-- I do not agree with the common philosophy that newer is always better.  I don't think books ought to be completely replaced.  The idea of a world without them is both distasteful and frightening to me.  I believe that libraries would loose a lot of their beauty and charm in they became no more than E-Book Rental Stations-- if, indeed there was any need to have a physical building at all.

The fact is that while, as I've said, digital texts have their virtues, they also have their drawbacks-- which most people foolishly tend to over look.  Besides the fact that e-readers lack the comforting presence and stately appearance of books, they are also short-lived.  Technology, by it's very nature, moves forward quickly, and thus the e-reader one pays $300 for will be out-dated within only a few years.  A person who bought an e-reader five years ago, when nearly every MicroSoft-related gadget was compatible with Windows XP, may find that their e-reader will not work with their new Windows 7 laptop.  Beyond that, their is the fact that machines-- all machines-- wear down over time.  E-readers and computers are no different.  Even if they do not become obsolete, they will eventually crash.

Of course, I might be a little bias.  Bibliophile is a very accurate term for me, as I am admittedly addicted.  I simply can't get enough books.  I love them not only for their content- though that, of course, is a a great source of joy- but for their look, their feel and their smell.  There are few sights I find more comforting and uplifting than a book shelf- and in fact I dream of having a library in my home.  If there is any better way to spend a cold, rainy day then curled up in an easy chair by a fire with a good book and a cup of coffee, I haven't found it.  If there is any more pleasant activity for a mild spring or autumn afternoon than sitting out door reading, I have never heard of it.  Books are my constant companions, and make the most excellent of acquaintances- quiet, unassuming and amiable.
  

Employees at the local Borders, as well as at both my county and campus libraries, know me by sight.  My favorite haunts, however, are used bookstores.  I often tell friends that books are never really "used," just "pre-loved."  "Besides," I'm likely to add.  "Books are like people; It's what's on the inside that counts!"  There's something fundamentally endearing about used books, and, of course, the prince increases their appeal.
  

You see, I am a re-reader.  I can't help it.  When I find a really good story, a book that touches my soul, or just an interesting tome of knowledge, I read it again and again.  (There are some favorites, like J. R. R. Tolkien's the Lord of the Rings that I read almost annually.)  This, combined with my love for the mere presence of books, leads me to buy a great number, and to almost never discard any of them.  (I've been known to purchase as many as 50 books from a single library sale.  As I said previously, I am truly addicted.)

I read nearly everything; From histories to fantasies, from true crime and mystery to sociology and politics, I love it all.  A well written book on any subject is always a welcome addition to my collection.  I'm afraid I've become an infamous know-it-all, especially on certain favorite subjects, due to my constant reading and research.  I try not to be, but I seem to fail often enough to spawn a number of good-humored jibes.
  

True, I could find much of the same information online, and honestly it would probably be quicker and easier to locate in that format, but nothing can ever replace the gentle weight of a book in my lap, the whisper of turning pages, and the distinct, soothing smell of a bound tome.  Reading, I think, is more than an activity.  It is an experience to be enjoyed and savored; something unique that both provides tranquil solace and draws readers together.

The Gift of Books

“I don’t think I could live without reading.” ~Alberto Manguel

                Anthropologists place a great deal of importance on the advent of written language– so much to that there is a branch of the study called Linguistic Anthropology.  It is, they believe, one of the things that divides our nomadic, hunter-gatherer ancestors from our modern society.  Human culture developed when we settled down, tamed the world around us, and began to write.

                Since then, reading has evolved into a skill vital to our society.  All children are expected to learn it, toiling over trite phrases like: “See spot run.”  It is a major mode of communication, constantly surrounding us in the form of ads, signs, magazines, menus and packaging labels.  In fact, the written word is so important that it has developed and maintained a connection with social status; to this day, a room filled with books is taken as a sign of education, refinement, and prestige.

                From the earliest Sumerian cuneiform and Chinese shell writings, to the first English translations of the Bible, to modern advent of eBooks, reading has shaped our world.  The words penned by various authors over the centuries have changed the way we think, challenged our beliefs, and taught us new understandings.  Without the works of Livy, Claudius and Plato, the democratic government of the United States would have never existed.  Without the wicked Malleus Maleficarum the European witch hunts would have been little more than a few isolated incidents.  Without Michael Faraday’s Experimental Research in Electricity, we might still be burning oil lamps and coal stoves.  Written words have been stepping stones to move society forward.

                More than all of this, however, reading is a joy that millions of people share.  It is an invigorating workout for the mind as well as a fascinating escape from the mundane.  It is an open door in the psyche that us leads to new worlds, and a road that takes us on life-changing journeys without us ever leaving out chairs.  It connects us, through ideas, to kindred spirits and to generations who have gone before.  The resounding and irreplaceable love of books is, perhaps, the greatest gift that written language has ever given the human race.

Sources: Alberto Manguel.  A History of Reading.  New York, NY: Penguin Books.  1997.  Pgs 3-123.

The Importance of Ghost Stories

Upon recently re-reading Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, I began to consider that the book can be described as many things: a gothic novel, a classic, and even a romance.  Along with these things, however, it is also a ghost story.

I have long held the belief that myths, fairy tales, and ghost stories hold great importance for society.  They are the telling-tales: stories spoken around firelight, generation after generation, that gather listeners together in communal wonder.  They help to bind groups of people together, and each has a particular important purpose.  If fairy tales serve to “tell us that dragons can be beaten,” as G. K. Chesteron acknowledged, then ghost stories exist to remind us to look back.  For, amid the thrills and chills of a ghostly tale, there is always a different sort of narrative: a story about someone’s life.  There is nearly always a description of how someone lived, or a guess about who someone was, that seems to offer some reason for the haunting in the tale.

After all, although Catherine’s ghost only appears once in Wuthering Heights, and appears to have possibly been a figment of the protagonist Lockwood’s imagination, it is that apparition which drives his investigation into the past of the manor house forward.  If the ghost had not appeared, Lockwood’s other discoveries– a diary, and three names written on a wall– would have been curiosities to consider, but nothing more.  It was the ghostly turn of events that really pushed him to scrutinize beyond idle pondering the lives of the house’s departed dwellers.

That, of course, is the importance of ghost stories.  While histories make us curious about great personages and events, ghost stories make us curious about regular people and daily life.  Without them, very often the past would stay buried along with the dead.