The main goal of this article was to illustrate how Shaw's unruly women related to W. I. Thomas' unadjusted girl. An important connection is that the women were considered outcasts or rebels within the society. However, these women were simply taking ...
The main goal of this article was to illustrate how Shaw's unruly women related to W. I. Thomas' unadjusted girl. An important connection is that the women were considered outcasts or rebels within the society. However, these women were simply taking the cards that they were dealt with by taking matters into their own hands. Although many of the women from Shaw's plays did not have as terrible as a plight in life, they still had to find their way in society. More importantly, Shaw's unruly female characters played a role in educating the public about the predicaments women were under, which allowed for a re-examination of society. Shaw strived, "through his plays . . . to undermine social ideology and institutions that attempted to control people's lives under the guise of respectability and/or moral probity"(Lenker 164).
By investigating the unadjusted or unruly woman in Shaw's plays with the help of Thomas' analysis, 1 have pointed out the differing attributes that Shaw gave to his female characters. Although his plays were controversial for the time like Mrs Warren's Profession, The Philanderer, Caesar and Cleopatra, How He Lied to Her Husband. Major Barbara, The Doctor's Dilemma, Press Cuttings, and several others, he forced the audience to consider the obstacles that women faced in society; and he hoped that the community would rectify these obstacles.