Years before he became the greatest living comedy writer, Shaw was an ardent social reformer. "My conscience," he once wrote, "is the real pulpit article; it bothers me to see people at ease when they should be at ease; and I persist in making them think..." Shaw's brand of socialism has no never won many converts, but his ingenuity shocked people into thinking. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In "Pygmalion" he finds a mouthpiece in the highly original character of Alfred Doolittle, a chimney sweep, who admits that he is one of the "undeserving poor" and openly boasts about it. Just because he is undeserving, Doolittle asks Professor Higgins to pay him 5 pounds for using his daughter Eliza for phonics experiments. “I don't need less than a deserving man: I need more.” To the suggestion, "Why don't you marry that lady of yours," Doolittle replies, "I am willing. It is I who suffer from it. I have no hold on her. I must be agreeable to her... I am that woman's slave." Higgins is so amused by this paradoxical logic that gives the undeserved Doolittle 5 pounds. Shaw used detailed stage directions to maintain a degree of control over the performance. For Shaw, unless a play has some “use,” it is worthless. There is a recognized educational function. Shaw brought forward the “sugar-coated pill” idea. Through the detailed captions, the focus is defined much better by Shaw. With Shaw, the idea comes first and then comes the plot. Pygmalion tackles some fascinating themes, not least that of female emancipation. Higgins himself admires independence but, by transforming Eliza into a model woman, he creates a creature incapable of standing on her own. As a florist, Eliza had independence and a job, however menial; as a woman, her options are significantly narrower. Shaw highlights the function of the environment. It shows that class distinction is based on various environmental situations rather than on lineage. At the beginning of the play we see how Higgins makes a point of placing any person by the way they speak. In Eliza's case, when her cockney accent speech is replaced by the refined eloquence of a lady, her status is automatically elevated. The play Pygmalion also deals with the uselessness of social barriers. The very challenge that Higgins faces in surpassing Eliza, an ignorant person… as duchess within six months, renders this conception of social barriers unfounded. Shaw mocks this weak social demarcation that can easily be overcome in such a short period of time. Eliza's ambitious nature and zest for life ultimately lead to her success. With her perseverance, Eliza finally climbs the social ladder, suggesting the vulnerability of social distinction. Furthermore, Alfred Doolittle is a licentious man, so much so that he sells his daughter for the paltry sum of five pounds. Our conventional morality is shaken when he explains why his woman prefers to remain his mistress instead of becoming his wife. It is an outrageous commentary on the very institution of marriage. Shaw brings out the mentality of the people of his time. Shaw highlights some social issues that clarify how unfair discrimination is inflicted on the poor. Doolittle calls himself an "undeserving poor man," a caustic observation about his miserable condition. He is a victim of the unfair means of the social system. Shaw denounces the social system that fails to encourage the moral and financial elevation of the poor. On the contrary, it degrades their miserable condition by placing stigma before them.