The rain stops and the crowd under the portico disperses. Higgins and Pickering introduce themselves to each other, realizing that they are familiar with each other's work (Pickering is also a linguist). He says that he could teach the flower-girl Eliza to speak so well in just three months that she could pass for a noble lady. Eliza thinks he is a policeman trying to get her in trouble and insists that she is "a good girl." Pickering asks Higgins how he can tell where everyone is from, and Higgins explains that he studies phonetics and teaches people how to speak in different accents. Everyone is confused and annoyed by the meddlesome Higgins. The man, who turns out to be Henry Higgins, steps forward and guesses where everyone is from based on their manner of speech. Eliza thinks that the man is a policeman and that she is in trouble. A bystander tells Eliza to watch out for a strange man in the back of the crowd taking notes. Under the portico, a poor flower-girl ( Eliza Doolittle) sells a flower to a gentleman ( Colonel Pickering). Freddy enters, unable to find one, but his mother sends him back out into the rain to look again. Eynsford Hill) waits exasperatedly with her daughter Clara for her son Freddy to find a taxi. A wealthy mother (later revealed to be Mrs. Eliza is confusing them to create a comic effect.One rainy night in Covent Garden, London, a crowd of people from various social classes all seek shelter under the same church portico. reputation - that people see you as trustworthy and honest. In the first quote it is the “Character reference” and in the second it is the general “character”, i.e. (I have looked at my city's regulations for street traders, and a character reference is still done, but now it is more commonly known as a "police check" or "police vetting" or "criminal records check".)īut in this case, it doesn't make a lot of sense, because only a street vendor would need a permit, and not "any lady". It was commonly referred to as “a character.” This was usually by way of a statement from the police that the person had not been convicted of any crime, or an official stamp from the police station that the declaration by made by the applicant of "being of good character" was true. The permit was granted only to those “of good character”. The Russian is accurate as far as the meaning goes, but does not capture the nuance that roots Eliza firmly in the low-aspirational working classes.Įliza was a flower seller: she needed a permit. What is the specific meaning of the phrase "take away my character"? Is it some kind of legal procedure which would label her as a known prostitute, or just a rumor going on, or what? But the peculiar wording, and the fact that the Russian translator decided to go with a different meaning, planted some doubt in my mind. I think that this just means "ruin my reputation". It doesn't make a lot of sense, because only a street vendor would need a permit, and not "any lady". The last sentence, literally, means: "I need my permit, as any lady does". The Russian translation of "Pygmalion", which otherwise is good (as far as I can judge), has it as у меня отберут патент, which literally means "they'll suspend my (street vendor's) permit". My character is the same to me as any lady’s.Īpparently, she is afraid that she would be charged with soliciting for prostitution, then "they" would "take away her character" (whatever it means), and this would make her lose her home. They’ll take away my character and drive me on the streets for speaking to gentlemen. In Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion", Eliza Doolittle, a flower girl, is worried that Higgins, whom she sees making notes and mistakes for a plain-clothed cop, will "take away her character":
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