GEORGE. BERNARD SHAW AND HIS WORKS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume LI, Issue 4513, 4 October 1930, Page 3

GEORGE. BERNARD SHAW AND HIS WORKS.

INTERESTING ADDRESS BY MiR. M. PI. ORAM.

Mr. M. H. Oram, president of the Palmerston North (Chamber of Commerce, was the speaker at Thursday’s meeting of the Foxton Lunch Club when he took for his subject, “George Bernard Shaw and his works.”

• Air. Oram said that there was no man in England to-day who enjoyed greater popularity than Mr. George Bernard Shaw. It was necessary in reviewing liis life to divide his works, into three headings; those of George Bernard Shaw, the critic, the novelist and the dramatist. Shaw had been contrasted with practically every dramatist that had lived owing chiefly to the Controversial nature of his dra-

matic works which has brought forth criticism from all sorts of critics. Possibly the most interesting comparison, however, said

Mr. Oram,,had been between Shaw and Euripides, the Greek tragedian which had disclosed many points of likeness .between these two great men. To obtain a better grip of Shaw’s works it was necessary to consider something of his early life. Shaw-has said “I am a true Irishman. My parents eoine from Hampshire,” hut behind that joke

he did a wealth of meaning. Bernard Shaw ( maintained that if an Englishman! were to marry an English woman and they went to live in Ireland the children would lie so Irish in their tendencies that it would be hard to believe they earne of English parents. Environment,

he considered, played a most im-

portant; ‘part in a person’s life. Shaw was born in Ireland of poor

parents with a father addicted to drink. He went to work at an early age in a land agent’s offijce and there, as if determined to overcome (fhe careless example of his

early life, lie put in all the thought

care and accuracy into his work that was possible as if in revolt

against the loose attitude of 'his father. He did not remain long in that position however. His mother, who was a. determined, upright woman, loft Ireland and went to London to earn her living independent of her husband. She was mipsi'eally talented and soon became associated with the noted musicians of the day and it was into this atmosphere that Bernard Shaw introduced himself bv fol-

lowing his mother to Loudon. He

went to London with the fixed idea 1 of launching out as a professional man of genius. He became a musical critic and making every post a winning post, and taking every opportunity of. placing himself before the public eye he started out

on his Upward battle. He joined debating societies and clubs with revolutionary tendencies and soon

became proficient in the art of public speaking, displaying a keen attitude for debating which attribute was displayed throughout, his later works. It was not longbefore be secured a, position as musical critic for- a London paper when he also set out to write novels but these did not meet with the reception from the public that the author considered they should. In 18.92 he was appointed to the position of dramatic critic to a big London paper and this gave him the opportunity of placing himself before the public eye in a, manner few other positions would. It

also opened up vast' possibilities for him because he was one of the greatest controversionalists of the day and if there was a literary light going on Shaw was to be found in the midst of it. In fact he would often deliberately pick up some exaggerated argument or adopt a contention he did not believe in himself which would raise such a storm of protest that he would be happily settled into a big controversy from which he would emerge with honours owing to his polished art of debate. " The two things which helped him 1o rise to fame more than anything else'were his controversy over the works of Shakespeare and the

harming of his thir;d play Which latter gave him the opportunity of entering into a controversy with the censor in which he convinced the public that it was the censor who was immoral in banning his (day and not the play immoral. In considering Shaw’s dramatic works the era in which he lived should also be considered. When Shaw was coming into ;his own the Victorian period was' fast drawing to a close and the drama had

fallen into a position of disrepute.

The new era of education and journalism was at haud and educa-

tion was not for the few but for the majority. ; When these things wore considered it could readily be understood that the stage was set for the appearance of a dramatist such as Shaw. ■He saw the conditions prevailing ' and seized the opportunity. He realised that the drama was needed to express

the feelings and display the conditions under which the people were existing and lie came forth. In 1892 he wrote his first play entitled “Widowers Houses,” which depicted the conditions of life at that time, and which was written to expose the conditions obtaining in regard to certain tenements and buildings. In reality it was a tilt at slum landlordism. and a successful one at that. 'Following on this success he wrote three plays which he called “Unpleasant Plays,” because they dealt with unpleasant subjects. These were followed by three further plays called “Plays Pleasant,” all of which met with public facour. . The latter were mostly comedies written in the bright breezy manner now associated., with Shaw. The famous author wrote his “Plays for

Puritans” and a number of other successes, totalling in all, 3(5. After his three initial plays he appeared to have risen in popular favoni and obtained a reputation of being a dramatist of note. He then became philosopher. First of all ho educated the people on economic and social problems but in later like took on more of a philosophical frame of mind rather than of teacher. T'o-day he was known as a. great dramatist but possibly more as a winter of prefaces. He used many of his plays as excuses for entering on long tirades or disquisitions on which the plays were based. In the preface of his first play he entered into a long discussion on the theatre generally, how to finance it, its object, purposes, and method of development, criticising the conditions of the theatre itself and giving liis ideas on how plays should be produced. There was no keener producer in the world to-day than Bernard Shaw and whenever one of his plays was being produced he was always “on deck” and a nuisance to all concerned. Another introduction to a play quoted by'. Mr. Oram contained 114 pages of closely typed print. Bernard Shaw was a pacifist and dealt very capably with the subject of war in his “Arms and the Man.” Here he evidenced his art. Instead of writing a tirade against war he sat down and wrote a play in which he made the soldier look so ridiculous that lie effectively gained liis point. To read Shaw, said Mr. Oram in conclusion, is to obtain a general view of the philosophy of life by a. man with strong views on the subject and if his listeners were not students of' Shaw lie -advised them to become such.