What is the Importance of Alfred Doolittle to Shaw's 'Pygmalion?'
What do you consider to be the importance of the role of Alfred Doolittle for the play as a whole? Alfred Doolittle is a working class dustman. He is Eliza's father and an important character to the theme of class distinction. To the original middle-class Edwardian audience, Doolittle would be a very representational working-class figure. His name alone, 'Doo-Little,' epitomises the stereotypical middle-class view of the working class man, who doesn't do as much as he could, therefore making him 'undeserving.' However, this view is challenged by Doolittle's pride in being one of these 'undeserving poor.' He says he 'means to go on being undeserving.' Doolittle takes this social stigma as a compliment, which would have shocked his audience, but also created humour. Doolittle's values in life would also have challenged the middle-class perception of the working classes. His attitude to marriage and sex would have shocked the audience. Doolittle says of his mistress, 'catch her marrying me!' His mistress will not marry Doolittle, because that would give him dominion over her. This challenged the middle class view that marriage before sex was the natural order of things. As Doolittle says to Pickering, 'it ain't the natural way; it's the middle class way.' In some ways, Doolittle confirms the social stereotype that the poor are undeserving because they are lazy. Doolittle