GBS's family, background, and mission

I recently led discussions of 2 of GBS's plays ("Maj. Barbara," "Man & Superman") so in preparation I read a number of GBS biographies. Since the material I found may be of interest to some, I've adapted portions of it below:

George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) came from a Irish family in the fringe of the English aristocracy which then ruled Ireland; but they were relatively poor since their upper class distinction also restricted their means of gaining income. (This was in the Victorian Age when English society was even more class structured than that depicted in the PBS TV series "Downton Abbey" & "Upstairs, Downstairs"). Although born in Dublin, GBS at age 20 moved to London and never returned to Ireland live or stay (but was an advocate of home rule and independence).

As a result of this early experience, Shaw chafed against these inherited class restrictions and in his 20s became extremely active in the Fabian Society (politically active non-revolutionary socialists) & one of their main spokesmen. A life-long pacifist, atheist, & teetotaler (his father was a severe alcoholic), he attacked (with satire & humor) the English class system through which position, power, influence & wealth were passed down through generations within family dynasties and which kept many "working class" families near, or in, poverty (GBS viewed poverty as THE greatest crime), while the few remained privileged and wealthy. Shaw viewed religion's main function (& its support by the wealthy) as a means of keeping workers, the poor, and downtrodden focused on the riches to be gained in an eternal life in the hereafter for those who stayed meek and subservient in their present lives & circumstances instead of rebelling and revolting against the privileged ruling class.

Shaw was a VERY compelling and effective public speaker but he decided he could reach a wider audience (& make an income) through his writing (e.g., plays) than in his speeches. He was extremely prolific (63 plays + many volumes of other writings) and always extremely witty and quotable [there are 2 books published of Shaw's quotes, often epigrammatic such as:"those who can, do -- those who cannot, teach" (GBS hated formal education and was largely self-taught); "England and America are 2 countries divided by a common language."]

"Major Barbara" (1905) was one of his earlier successful plays and, although usually classed as a comedy, its purpose is as a social satire in which Shaw uses his delightful wit to parody the English class system and the role of a religious organization to keep the poor in their place. He's remarkable in that although people may not agree with his positions, he's so entertaining he makes people think about serious issues.

Gabriel Pascal (as a teen) & Shaw met decades before this movie was produced; Shaw promised Pascal then that he'd help him if ever he needed it. While GBS had rebuffed previous requests by others to film his plays, when Pascal asked, GBS gave permission to film 4 plays, of which this is one ("Caesar & Cleopatra,""Pygmalion," "Androcles & the Lion" were the others). Shaw did the screen plays and had veto power over the films.

Wendy Hiller (Maj. Barbara) was then Shaw's favorite actress so she got that part. Robert Morley (Undershaft) who states Shaw's view that poverty is the greatest crime is made to look somewhat like Shaw (& speaks for him). In the play, by tradition Undershaft's munitions company could be passed on ONLY to foundlings so he canNOT pass ownership on to his son but only to another foundling (so much for English aristocratic tradition!).

In this film, Rex Harrison looks in his early 30s. Deborah Kerr has her first minor movie role as Jenny Hill, a Salvation Army lass. IMO, all the actors are excellent in their roles. This Eclipse DVD (a branch of Criterion) does not have closed captioning so its sound quality + the speed of speech + English accents may make understanding some lines difficult for American or non-English ears. This film VERY closely mirrors the play so a copy of that could help. (The 1940-41 filming of it was often interrupted by the Nazis' heavy bombing of London but that does not show in this production.) [ETA: Someone tells me that these Eclipse DVDs DO have closed captioning; we weren't able to get it on our system -- maybe we did something wrong & you can do it right?]

(FWIW: George Bernard Shaw's father's first name was also George but he was a severe alcoholic; Shaw left him at age 20. As an adult, Shaw never used the "George" part of his name and preferred being known as "Bernard Shaw.")

For reviews of this movie, see the IMDb "User Reviews." I liked the 11 June 2004 review titled "What Price Salvation Now...."