An Intertextual Study of Pygmalion Myth: George Bernard Shaw Interprets an Ovidean Tale about Transforming

Hashemipour, S., et al., An Intertextual Study of Pygmalion Myth: George Bernard Shaw Interprets an Ovidean Tale about Transforming, International Journal of English, Literature and Social Science, 4(5): 1625-1628, 2019

4 Pages Posted: 17 Feb 2020

See all articles by Saman Hashemipour

Saman Hashemipour

Istanbul Yeni Yüzyıl University

Asya Vedia Güvensoy

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Dilara Arap

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Date Written: October 2019

Abstract

Pygmalion, a play which is written by George Bernard Shaw is mainly about the story of a poor girl named Eliza Doolittle who is transforming into an upper-class member by the help of two professors, named Higgins and Pickering. The primary purpose of this paper is to analyze the theme of transformation in the play by focusing on the subjects of identity and self-identity, the importance of appearance, language and communication issues. The story has a mythological background and got known by Ovid’s poem, “Metamorphoses.” The mythological story is reflected in many poems, drama plays and short stories written by authors globally. Intertextual references to the myth in Rumi’s Dīvān-e Šams-e Tabrīzī, Nader Naderpour’s poetry “Bot-Taraash,” and Gholām-Hossein Sā'edi’s play, “Pygmalion.” Some short stories with references to the myth such as; “The Birth-Mark,” by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Sadegh Hedayat’s “The Doll Behind the Curtain” are other texts that their similarities with Ovid’s poem are analyzed in this study.

Keywords: Pygmalion, Ovid, Metamorphoses, Transformation, Mythology, George Bernard Shaw

Suggested Citation

Hashemipour, Saman and Güvensoy, Asya Vedia and Arap, Dilara, An Intertextual Study of Pygmalion Myth: George Bernard Shaw Interprets an Ovidean Tale about Transforming (October 2019). Hashemipour, S., et al., An Intertextual Study of Pygmalion Myth: George Bernard Shaw Interprets an Ovidean Tale about Transforming, International Journal of English, Literature and Social Science, 4(5): 1625-1628, 2019, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3523719

Saman Hashemipour (Contact Author)

Istanbul Yeni Yüzyıl University ( email )

Cevizlibağ
Istanbul
Turkey

Asya Vedia Güvensoy

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Dilara Arap

affiliation not provided to SSRN

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