Written task 2 Question 6 (Pretty Woman)

Outline

Prescribed question: “How has the text borrowed from other texts and with what effects?”

Title of the text for analysis: Pretty Woman

Part of the course to which the task refers: Part 3 – Literature: text and context

My critical response will:

• Present the Pygmalion myth as a source of inspiration for George Bernard Shaw’s play, which in turn inspired J.F. Lawton to write Pretty Woman.
• Show how the plot of Pretty Woman borrows from Pygmalion.
• Explore the differences between the characters in both works, pointing out the significant differences between Edward and Higgins.
• Show how the setting in the two stories is different.

Written task 2

The play Pygmalion, written by George Bernard Shaw in 1912, used the Pygmalion myth as inspiration. The story of the Pygmalion myth is one of a young sculptor, who hates women, however, strangely enough, the sculpture that most fascinates him is the one of a woman. Although the sculpture is beautiful, he is not content yet. He keeps working on it, until there is nothing left to improve and from that moment on he falls in love with his own creation. He treats the statue as if it is real and alive and this does not go unnoticed. Venus, the goddess of Love, decides to fulfill his wish and turn the statue into a real woman. In 1990 Jonathan Frederic Lawton was inspired by George Bernard Shaw’s version of the Pygmalion myth when writing his screenplay Pretty Woman. The effect of J.F. Lawton using the play Pygmalion as an inspiration led to the similarities in plot and characters between the play and the movie. However the setting and the time period of the play and the movie are very different. This essay will explore those similarities and differences in greater depth.

First of all we find many similarities between the plot of Pretty Woman and the play Pygmalion. In Pretty Woman a wealthy businessman, called Edward Louis (played by Richard Gere) meets Vivian (played by Julia Roberts), a young lady who works as a prostitute, when he asks her for directions. On the way to the hotel he actually becomes a bit intrigued by her and asks to join him to his room. He orders champagne and strawberries, which are symbols of wealth, and wants her to stay for the night. The next morning he realizes that he needs someone for his social functions that week and makes a deal with her, he says, “I would like to hire you as an employee”, asking her to stay for the whole week. In addition, this also means that she has to adapt to his life style to appear as a reliable date, therefore he takes her out shopping and she learns etiquette for an important business diner. This is similar to the story line of the play Pygmalion as Henry Higgins, a professor in phonetics, wants to prove that he can fool high class society by turning Eliza Doolittle, a lower class flower girl from the streets, into a well speaking lady as he thinks he can change her cockney accent into ‘appropriate’ English. Similarly, Higgins also uses symbols of wealth, such as taxis and chocolate to persuade Eliza in following his directions. The plot of Pretty Woman depends heavenly on the story of Pygmalion as Edward and Higgins both think they can integrate Vivian and Eliza into a high social class by improving their appearance and manners. However as both women show, this is not enough for them; in the end love and respect buys more than 3000 dollars, limousines, taxis and chocolates.

The characters in both plays are also borrowed from the Pygmalion myth; Edward and Higgins are Pygmalion and Vivian and Eliza are Galatea, the ‘perfect woman’ that Pygmalion created for himself. In both Pretty Woman and Pygmalion the stories seem to be about the women who develop, learn and adjust. However, these dramas are actually about the men, Edward and Higgins who undergo the most significant change. For example, in the movie, Pretty Woman, Edward appears to have little need for another person in his life as Vivian says to him: “I am going to treat you so nice, you will never wanna let me go.” He responds by saying, “3000 for 6 nights and Vivian I am going to let you go.” In addition as the movie progresses, we notice that Vivian’s noble character makes Edward capable of feeling, sympathizing and loving, three things he had never done before. This is the case in Pygmalion as well, where Higgins discovers he has feelings for Eliza, but is not capable of expressing them. After she explains, “Every girl has a right to be loved,” Higgins responds by saying, “Liza you’re a fool.” On the one hand the works are similar, as both men struggle to respect the women and express their true feelings. On the other hand they are different, as Edward overcomes this struggle and Higgins does not. In fact Higgins loses Eliza in the end, while Vivien and Edward live happily ever after.

Another big difference between the movie and the play is the setting. Pygmalion is set in London around 1900, where Eliza finds herself in front of Covent Garden, selling flowers to the upper class elite, while Pretty Woman is set in Beverly Hills, where Vivian tries to sell herself on the streets between the drug dealers and pick pockets. This great difference in setting creates the distinction between the atmosphere of play and the atmosphere in the movie.

To conclude, both the play and the movie borrowed elements from the Pygmalion myth. We notice that the movie Pretty Woman is heavily based on George Bernard Shaw’s version of this myth, which explains the similarities in plot and character. Higgins and Edward both create their ultimate woman and develop affection for them. Nevertheless there is one significant difference: the Hollywood movie has a happy ending. Vivian realizes her dream and finds her prince, as Edward finally manages to express his love for her. In Pygmalion, however, Eliza does not realize her dream, as she does not open her own flower shop. In the end, it appears that Higgins is not capable of showing respect and kindness to Eliza, which is the reason he eventually loses her. This ending is the main difference between the play and the movie.