Alternative To A Monologue

What is the least interesting part of a play? My honest answer: the monologue. Why the monologue? A monologue, stripped down to its core, is an actor or actress standing onstage talking to him or herself. That is as exciting as watching paint dry. Now that my antipathy towards monologues is quite evident, I wish to emphasize the lack of importance in secondary characters. Secondary characters help to build a better picture of a primary character. Without the critical interaction of secondary characters, primary characters would have to resort to boring monologues in order to truly expose their emotions and thoughts. Any good playwright knows to create such characters, without which, a great play is not possible. Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion is no exception to this rule. The Henry Higgins that we all know and love to despise would not be as complete without the inside knowledge of Mrs. Higgins. As a secondary character, Mrs. Higgins is set apart from others since she is absolutely necessary to the play; without her, Harry’s many faults would not be known and Eliza Doolittle would not develop into the mature woman that she would become.

In order for any play to hold any interest with its intended audience, the playwright must, among other things, fully develop his or her primary characters. One way to do so is through monologue, where the character is given a chance to examine his current state of affairs. For the audience, this is a vital way of discovering important details about that specific character. However, as mentioned earlier, monologues are quite the bore. To capture an audience’s attention, one needs dialogue, a multiplicity of conversations, and character interactivity.

Pygmalion is the story of Mr. Higgins. Who better to give deep, insightful details into Mr. Higgins’ life than his own mother, Mrs. Higgins? Up until Mrs. Higgins’ at-home event, the reader is lead to believe that Henry Higgins is a polite, intelligent, well-mannered, middle-class man. Due to Mrs. Higgins helpful insight, we discover that Harry is not much of a gentleman but quite the contrary, a child caught in a grown man’s body. “Stop fidgeting and take your hands out of pockets” (Shaw 68). Henry actually seems to be a little hyperactive and must be told to calm down repetitively by his mother. When introduced to Mrs. Higgins’ at-home guests, Henry is also told to hush and be polite.

Even though Mrs. Higgins officially has no part in teaching Elyza the ways of a proper woman, Mrs. Higgins is set as the only distinct example of one. Therefore, she is unintentionally Elyza’s female role model, a woman to look up to and aspire to be. Mrs. Higgins is as much as teacher as she is a proper woman. At one point, Henry asks his mother to evaluate his pupil to see if she has properly absorbed her lessons. Later on, Mrs. Higgins is once again viewed as the voice of reason. Mrs. Higgins’ involvement is Elyza’s final choice is mostly brushed aside and barely mentioned. However, she was quite obviously involved in the decision. She remained as a steady pillar for Elyza to lean on and to learn from. After all, Elyza eventually takes refuge in Mrs. Higgins home. It is unsaid, however quite clear, that Mrs. Higgins outlined Elyza’s choices: to remain with Harry and live her life as a servant or run away with Freddy and open her own independent flower shop.

Although Mrs. Higgins was only given a minor role, without her, Harry Higgins would remain an enigma. Her contribution, although indirect, into turning Elyza into a respectable woman is most important. But most importantly, her compassion in dealing with Elyza’s problems and her important insight on Harry Higgins’ character is invaluable.