Biography. Bernard Shaw - biography. Facts – Great Irish Playwright George Bernard Shaw Brief Biography

One of only two people in history (the other being Bob Dylan) to be honored and Nobel Prize in the field of literature (1925, "For creativity, marked by idealism and humanism, for sparkling satire, which is often combined with exceptional poetic beauty"), and the Oscar Award (1939, for the screenplay of the film "Pygmalion"). Active promoter of vegetarianism.

George Bernard Shaw - an outstanding Irish playwright and novelist, Nobel Prize winner in literature and one of the most famous Irish literary figures - was born in Dublin July 26, 1856 in the family of George Shaw, a grain merchant, and Lucinda Shaw, a professional singer. He had two sisters: Lucinda Frances, a theater singer, and Eleanor Agnes, who died of tuberculosis at the age of 21.

Shaw attended Wesley College Dublin and Grammar School. He received his secondary education in Dublin. At the age of eleven, he was sent to a Protestant school, where he was, in his own words, the penultimate or last student. He called school the most harmful stage of his education. At fifteen, he became a clerk. The family did not have the means to send him to university, but his uncle's connections helped him get a job at Townsend's fairly well-known real estate agency. One of Shaw's duties was to collect rent from the inhabitants of the Dublin slums, and the sad impressions of these years were subsequently embodied in Widower's Houses. He was, in all likelihood, a fairly capable clerk, although the monotony of this work bored him. He learned to keep books of account neatly, as well as to write in a quite legible handwriting. Everything written in Shaw's handwriting (even in advanced years) was easy and pleasant to read.

When Shaw was 16, his mother ran away from home with her lover and daughters. Bernard decided to stay with his father in Dublin. He received an education and became an employee in a real estate office. He did this job for several years, although he did not like it.

In 1876 Shaw went to his mother in London. The family welcomed him very warmly. During this time, he visited public libraries and museums. He began to work hard in libraries and created his first works, and later led a newspaper column dedicated to music. However, his early novels were not successful. before 1885 when he became known as a creative critic.

In the first half of the 1890s worked as a critic for London World magazine, where he was succeeded by Robert Hichens.

At the same time, he became interested in social democratic ideas and joined the Fabian Society, whose goal is to establish socialism through peaceful means. In this society he met Charlotte Paine-Townshend, whom he married. in 1898. Bernard Shaw had connections on the side.

IN last years the playwright lived in his own house in Hertfordshire (England) and died November 2, 1950 from kidney failure. His body was cremated and his ashes scattered along with those of his wife.

The first play by Bernard Shaw was presented in 1892. At the end of the decade, he became already a well-known playwright. Shaw wrote sixty-three plays, as well as novels, critical works, essays, and more than 250,000 letters.

Shaw wrote five unsuccessful novels early in his career. between 1879 and 1883. Later they were all published.

Shaw's first published novel was Cashel Byron's Profession. 1886 ), written in 1882. Novel "Not a Social Socialist" published in 1887. The novel "Love Among the Artists" is written in 1881, published in 1900 in the United States and in 1914 in England. In this novel, Shaw shows his views on art, romantic love and marriage using the example of Victorian society.

The Irrational Knot is a novel written by in 1880 and published in 1905. In this novel, the author denounces hereditary status and insists on the nobility of workers.

Shaw's first novel, Immaturity, written by in 1879, became the last published novel. It describes the life and career of Robert Smith, an energetic young Londoner. The condemnation of alcoholism is the first message in the book, based on the author's family memories.

Shaw began work on the first play "Widower's House" in 1885. After some time, the author refused to continue working on it and completed it only in 1892. The play was presented at the Royal Theater in London. December 9, 1892. In this play, Shaw gave a picture of the life of the London proletarians, remarkable in its realism. Very often, Shaw acts as a satirist, mercilessly ridiculing the ugly and vulgar aspects of English life, especially the life of bourgeois circles (“John Bull’s Other Island”, “Arms and the Man”, “How He Lied to Her Husband”, etc.).

In "Mrs. Warren's Profession" 1893 ) a young girl learns that her mother receives income from brothels, and therefore leaves the house to earn money herself by honest work.

As Shaw's experience and popularity increased, his plays became less focused on the reforms he championed, but their entertainment role did not diminish. Works such as "Caesar and Cleopatra" ( 1898 ), "Man and Superman" ( 1903 ), "Major Barbara" ( 1905 ) and "The Doctor in a Dilemma" ( 1906 ), show the mature views of the author, who was already 50 years old.

Before 1910s Shaw was a fully formed playwright. New works such as Fanny's First Play ( 1911 ) and "Pygmalion" ( 1912 ), were well known to the London public.

Shaw's views changed after World War I, which he disapproved of. His first work, written after the war, was the play Heartbreak House ( 1919 ). In this play appeared new show- the humor remained the same, but his faith in humanism was shaken.

Shaw had previously supported a gradual transition to socialism, but now he saw a government led by a strong man. For him, dictatorship was obvious. At the end of his life, his hopes also died. So, in the play "Buoyant Billions" (Buoyant Billions, 1946-1948 ), his last play, he says that one should not rely on the masses, who act like a blind crowd, and can choose people like Hitler for their rulers.

In 1921 Shaw has completed work on the pentalogy "Back to Methuselah", which includes five pieces, and which begins in the Garden of Eden and ends a thousand years in the future.

After "Methuselah" the play "Saint Joan" was written ( 1923 ), which is considered one of his the best works. The idea of writing a work about Joan of Arc and her canonization appeared in 1920. The play gained worldwide fame and brought the author closer to the Nobel Prize ( 1925).

Shaw also has plays in the psychological genre, sometimes adjoining even the area of melodrama (Candida, etc.).

The author created plays until the end of his life, but only some of them became as successful as his early work. "Apple Cart" 1929 ) became the best-known play during this period. Later works, such as "Bitter, but true", "Aground" ( 1933 ), "Millionaire" ( 1935 ) and "Geneva" ( 1935 ) have not been widely accepted by the public.

Dramaturgy:

1885-1896 :
"Plays Unpleasant" (Plays Unpleasant, published in 1898)
"Widower's Houses" (Widower's Houses, 1885 - 1892 )
"Heartbreaker" (The Philanderer, 1893 )
"Mrs. Warren's Profession" ( 1893-1894 )
"Plays Pleasant" (Plays Pleasant, published in 1898 )
"Weapon and Man" ( 1894 )
"Candida" (Candida, 1894-1895 )
"The Man of Destiny" (The Man of Destiny, 1895 )
"Wait and see" (You Never Can Tell, 1895-1896 )

1896-1904:
"Three Plays for Puritans" (Three Plays for Puritans)
"The Devil's Disciple" (The Devil's Disciple, 1896-1897 )
"Caesar and Cleopatra" (Caesar and Cleopatra, 1898 )
"Captain Brassbound's Conversion" (Captain Brassbound's Conversion, 1899 )
The Admirable Bashville; or, Constancy Unrewarded, 1901 )
"Sunday afternoon in the Surrey hills" ( 1888 )
"Man and Superman" ("Man and Superman", 1901 - 1903 )
"John Bull's Other Island" (John Bull's Other Island, 1904 )

1904 - 1910 :
"How He Lied to Her Husband" (How He Lied to Her Husband, 1904 )
"Major Barbara" (Major Barbara, 1906 )
"The Doctor's Dilemma" (The Doctor's Dilemma, 1906 )
"Interlude at the Playhouse" (The Interlude at the Playhouse, 1907 )
"Marriage" (Getting Married, 1908 )
"The Shewing-Up of Blanco Posnet" (The Shewing-Up of Blanco Posnet, 1909 )
"Tomfoolery and trinkets" (Trifles and tomfooleries)
Passion, Poison and Petrifaction; or, the Fatal Gasogene, 1905 )
"Newspaper clippings" (Press Cuttings, 1909 )
"Charming Foundling" (The Fascinating Foundling, 1909 )
"A little bit of reality" (The Glimps of Reality, 1909 )
"Unequal Marriage" (Misalliance, 1910 )

1910-1919:
"The Dark Lady of the Sonnets" (The Dark Lady of the Sonnets, 1910 )
"Fanny's First Play" (Fanny's First Play, 1911 )
"Androcles and the Lion" (Androcles and the Lion, 1912 )
"Overruled" (Overruled, 1912 )
"Pygmalion" (Pygmalion, 1912-1913
"Great Catherine" (Great Catherine, 1913 )
"Treatment with music" (The Music-cure, 1913 )
"O'Flaherty, MBE" (O'Flaherty, V.C.,)
"The Inca of Perusalem" (The Inca of Perusalem, 1916 )
"Augustus Does His Bit" (Augustus Does His Bit, 1916 )
Annajanska, the Wild Grand Duchess, 1917 )
Heartbreak House (Heartbreak House, 1913-1919 )

1918-1931:
"Back to Methuselah" (Back to Methuselah, 1918-1920 )
Part I. "In the Beginning" (In the Beginning)
Part II. The Gospel of the Brothers Barnabas
Part III. "It's done!" (The Thing Happens)
Part IV. Tragedy of an Elderly Gentleman
Part V: As Far as Thought Can Reach
"Saint Joan" (Saint Joan, 1923 )
"Apple Cart" (The Apple Cart, 1929 )
"Bitter but true" (Too True To Be Good, 1931 )

Keywords: George Bernard Shaw

It's no joke to get two top awards at once English Literature? No, this is not a joke at all, but a real achievement of the playwright Bernard Shaw.

The life of a playwright: brief information

George Bernard Shaw is an Englishman of Irish descent, born in the family of a merchant and a singer. The playwright's mother, Lucinda, was a professional musician, and her father, George, was a grain merchant.

School years

Studying was easy for Bernard, but he simply hated the education system itself. In adulthood, Shaw criticized the English education system many times, pointing out the ineffectiveness of corporal punishment, and the scarcity of spiritual development within the walls of the school.

Nevertheless, Shaw studied grammar at school as a child. Then he attended college in Dublin. He also happened to go to a Protestant school.

First career steps

At first, Shaw worked as a simple clerk. He did not like his position, but did not leave it for several years. Starting at 15, Bernard collected rent from residents of poor areas. It left an indelible mark on his worldview.

At the age of 20, the young man decided to move to London. His mother and sisters already lived there. In London, Shaw went to local libraries, tried to write literary works but his first attempts were not very successful.

In 1885, prominent artists began to look closely at his novels and plays. Then Bernard Shaw began to try himself as a critic.

Until the age of 36, the work of the playwright did not have much success. He tried to show his plays to directors and theater managers, but they would not accept them for productions.

After getting acquainted with the works of the Norwegian playwright Ibsen, Shaw again believed in himself, and set to work with triple zeal.

In 1902, Shaw's play "Widower's House" was staged in London. The English audience received the production rather coldly. Still, reviews from critics were positive.

In Vienna, Berlin and the States, the playwright's works were a huge success. After his merit was recognized in his homeland.

Bernard Shaw and politics

During World War II, Shaw was critical of the war effort. In 1931 he was invited to the USSR, where he received an audience with Stalin. Bernard was fascinated by the Soviet political regime.

Returning home, he began to scathingly criticize the bourgeoisie and its values.

Personal life of Bernard Shaw

The acclaimed English playwright was married to Charlotte Thousand. His wife was a philanthropist, and during periods of creative failure she supported her husband in everything.

Before his death in 1950, Shaw managed to write several plays that received rave reviews from critics and audiences. His "Apple Cart" has been staged many times on the stages of various drama theaters.

After dying from kidney problems, the ashes of Bernard Shaw were scattered in the same place where the ashes of his late wife were scattered.

During his lifetime, Shaw received an Oscar for his work, as well as the Nobel Prize in Literature. All his life he worked and lived in a house in Hertfodshire. His work is considered a model of dramaturgy. In addition, Bernard Shaw was unofficially called the "second Shakespeare".

What did Shaw write about?

The characters in the plays that the playwright created were philosophers, commoners and typical townsfolk. They talked more about life than they acted and made a decision.

In the works of Shaw, all unsightly things and deeds were always called by their proper names, not veiled, but grotesquely put on display.

Shaw liked to laugh at the shortcomings and vices of English society. Ordinary viewers adored his work, and the aristocracy could not get used to his style for a long time. But still, Bernard Shaw won recognition from this social stratum. The great playwright often worked to the point of exhaustion, devoting himself entirely to art and serious literature. His works were late to the fame they deserved, but Shaw continued to work hard and succeeded.

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Biography of Bernard Shaw

Childhood and youth

Bernard Shaw was born in Dublin in the family of a merchant and singer, in addition to Bernard, the family had two more children, his sister. In his youth, the boy was distinguished by his unique way of thinking and unusually adult behavior. At school, he did not communicate much with his peers, and he did not like studying very much. Young Bernard was more interested in spiritual teachings than in scientific research and cramming. Relations with teachers did not work out for him from the first days, for which he repeatedly received many physical punishments. After leaving school, the young man immediately went to look for work, financial difficulties did not contribute to Shaw's admission to the university, and the young man himself did not want this.

Work as a clerk

Thanks to the support of his uncle, he managed to get a job as a clerk in a popular real estate agency in Dublin. The saddest and cruelest for his soul was the collection of taxes from the inhabitants of poor areas. Because of the impossibility of somehow helping them, the young man greatly reproached himself for his impotence. In the future, this dark period of his independent living can be partially seen in the play "Widower's House". Despite the gloom of the work, the future writer liked to write accounting books, in an attempt to entertain himself and distract himself from the monotonous work, he honed his ability to diligently and clearly write each letter. After Bernard turned 16, his family broke up, the boy's mother fled to London with a new lover and daughters. Deciding that he could not leave his father all alone, the young man remained in hometown and continued his studies in a real estate company.

First steps into the world of writing

Soon the young man realized that he did not like the way he lived and he went to see his mother and sisters in London. When Shaw arrived in the UK, he changed, he began to spend a lot of time in libraries, studying literature and for the first time began to write his own works. At the beginning of his work, no one was interested and he had to enter the feast of writing through criticism. Only after the show became successful literary critic his novels were noticed by the public. The first product of his writing activity that went to print was the novel Cashel Byron's Profession, created in 1882. The work itself was published only four years after the completion of work on it. Some moments in the book show the life of the writer himself. The main character was engaged in boxing fights, like the author himself, who fell in love with this rather aggressive sport. It is noteworthy that the fights themselves took place in England, and Shaw began a kind of duel in the world of writers just after his arrival in London.

Popularity and fame

A year later, another extraordinarily fascinating story was published - "Not a Social Socialist." At the beginning of the book, the life of a girls' school is shown, which is abruptly interrupted by moments from the life of a simple hard worker and ends with socialist themes. In 1884, a few years before writing "Not a Social Socialist", the writer became interested in the ideas of socialism and joined the "Fabian Society", which was engaged in the promotion of socialism in society. Soon after the publication of the next novel, Shaw becomes a correspondent who wrote reviews for musical performances. From that moment on, the writer is more and more interested in the world of theater in his novels, more drama appears and more and more actions resemble plays. In 1885, the writer begins work on the first play, The Widower's House, but soon postpones its completion.

Love plays and the playwright's marriage

In the work “Love Among the Artists”, the writer vividly shows and describes the relationship between people, his personal views on marriage and his personal understanding of love as a phenomenon. It is symbolic that the last novel that was published by Shaw was "Immaturity", which was his first creative work. In 1892, Bernard Shaw's first play "The Widower's House" was shown on the stage of the theater. The playwright often used satirical devices ridiculing high society, which lived off the fact that poor people gave them the last money. Many of his works remained unappreciated for many reasons, some were too difficult for the general public to understand, others did not pass political censorship.

In 1898, Shaw married Charlotte Payne Townsend, with whom he had much in common. The couple supported socialist ideas and this was the reason for their acquaintance. Despite the love and understanding in the family, Shaw repeatedly cheated on his wife and, she knew about it, but despite this, the couple remained together.

Innovative look

New themes that had not previously been raised on the stage of the theater brought the playwright their share of popularity, but real success came only in 1904. The Royal Court Theater, located in London, began to show the best plays written by the playwright and this elevated him to the pinnacle of popularity. "Major Barbara" and "Doctor in a Dilemma" were different from the works written earlier in these works, you can see all the life experience that Bernard had. At the age of 50, he fully formed his own style and presentation of the written material. One of the most famous works, created at the beginning of the twentieth century - "Pygmalion". In this play, the author tries to show people in an accessible form that everyone is ultimately equal and the same in essence. The differences that he shows are only in external and sexual dissimilarity.

Change in mindset

First World War was a shock to the whole world, and the playwright was no exception. He denied the very idea of a war for peace, because the very principle of such actions was built on continuous contradictions. "Heartbreak House" showed that this mass fratricide undermined his faith in humanity, although it was, as before, shown in a humorous form. Huge holes began to appear in his faith in socialism, and more and more often he put forward the idea of dictatorship. He believed that the crowd will never be able to rule the world in harmony, because how many people have so many opinions and by nature, humanity will never yield to itself. In his later plays, Shaw showed his attitude to life, with some frankly gloomy works, the audience was horrified. "Saint Joan" became a ray of hope for the playwright's work, the canonical image of the martyr Jeanne helped him return the public's former love. With each play, the author became closer to the Nobel Prize, which he received in 1925.

Sunset of life

Despite all the love of the audience, the plays written in the last years of his life were not successful and were withdrawn from the show after two or three performances. In 1931, after visiting the USSR and personally communicating with Stalin, Shaw became an admirer of his views and fully supported the idea of Stalinism. In the future, Shaw took the side of Stalin more than once during conflicts with other countries. At the end of his life, Shaw moved to his estate and spent most of his time alone. At the age of 94, in 1950, the great thinker and playwright died.

Bernard Shaw once angrily remarked that being in love means inappropriately overestimating the difference between one woman and another.
The correct pronunciation of the surname Shaw is “Sho”, however, the pronunciation “Show” has become entrenched in the Russian-speaking tradition.
In response to the phrase “The show is a clown”, V. I. Lenin said: “In a bourgeois state, he may be a clown for the bourgeoisie, but in a revolution he would not be mistaken for a clown”
Few people know that the outstanding English playwright Bernard Shaw was fond of boxing and even competed. This was described in detail by journalist and writer Benny Green in the book Champions of the Show, published in 1979 in London. Shaw competed in the middleweight division. It was boxing that gave the then-novice writer rich material for writing a novel about boxers, Cashel Byron's Profession, which was warmly received by such writers as Robert Stevenson and William Morris. Shaw's teacher, Ned Donnelly, who first taught the writer boxing lessons, is introduced in the novel under the name of Ned Skene.

Awards:

Nobel Prize in Literature (1925)
Best Adapted Screenplay (1939)
New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Special Mention (1952)

George Bernard Shaw was born on June 26, 1856 in Dublin, the son of a grain merchant. Bernard's childhood was very difficult. The young man was forced to earn a living at an early age. When he was 20 years old, he moved from Ireland to London. Here Bernard joined the Fabian Society, which interpreted the ideas of moderate socialism.

However literary activity has been attracted to him for a long time. In 1879, the novel Immaturity was created. The following novels were published in Today magazine: The Lone Socialist (1884), Cashel Byron's Profession (1885-1886).

Bernard Show. Photo 1911

A little later, the novels Unreasonable Liaisons (1887), The Love of an Artist (1888) were published. In the early nineties, Shaw began to write plays. In 1892, the play "Widower's Houses" was created. After that, Shaw became a professional playwright. The play Mrs. Warren's Profession (1894) aroused public discontent, because it dealt with a former prostitute.

The play The Devil's Disciple (1897) was a huge success. In the same year, Shaw became a state councillor.

In 1898 the playwright married Charlotte Payne-Thousand. The bride was from a very wealthy family, but like Shaw, she was a member of the Fabian Society. Therefore, she became not only a faithful wife, but also a devoted assistant.

Geniuses and villains. Bernard Show

On the stage of the Royal Theater in 1904 - 1907. some of Shaw's plays were staged. Among these plays are "Man and Superman" (1905), "Major Barbara" (1905), "Caesar and Cleopatra" (1907). After that, Shaw became a world celebrity.

In 1912, Shaw created one of his most significant works, Pygmalion. During First World War Shaw wrote plays about what was going on in society. They were subsequently published in the collection "War Pieces" (1919). In 1919, the play "The House Where Hearts Break" was created. In 1923 - the play "Saint Joan". According to many critics, this work was the pinnacle of Shaw's dramatic work.

In 1925, Shaw was awarded the Nobel Prize "for his work, marked by idealism and humanism, for sparkling satire, which is often combined with exceptional poetic beauty."

Shaw used the award itself to establish an Anglo-Swedish literary fund for translators.

In 1931 the playwright visited the USSR. A left-wing intellectual, he was delighted with the Soviet country, until the end of his life he admired the Soviet system and achievements.

TO late work Shows include works: Boyant's Billions (1947), Intricate Fables (1948), Shex vs. Shep (1949). The poetic play "Why she refused" remained unfinished.

George Bernard Shaw. Born July 26, 1856 in Dublin (Ireland) - died November 2, 1950 in Hertfordshire (England). English playwright and Irish-born novelist, Nobel Prize-winning writer and one of Ireland's best-known literary figures. Public figure (socialist-Fabian, supporter of the reform of English writing). One of the founders of the London School of Economics and Political Science. The second (after Shakespeare) most popular playwright in the English theater.

The only person to be awarded both the Nobel Prize in Literature (1925, "For creativity, marked by idealism and humanism, for sparkling satire, which is often combined with exceptional poetic beauty"), and the Oscar Award (1938, for the screenplay of the film "Pygmalion" ). Active promoter of vegetarianism.

George Bernard Shaw was born in Dublin on 26 July 1856 to George Shaw, a grain merchant, and Lucinda Shaw, a professional singer. He had two sisters, Lucinda Frances, a theater singer, and Eleanor Agnes, who died of tuberculosis at the age of 21.

But the education system was repeatedly criticized by Shaw for focusing on mental rather than spiritual development. The author especially criticized the system of physical punishment at school. At fifteen, he became a clerk. The family did not have the means to send him to university, but his uncle's connections helped him get a job at Townsend's fairly well-known real estate agency.

One of Shaw's duties was to collect rent from the inhabitants of the Dublin slums, and the sad impressions of these years were subsequently embodied in Widower's Houses.

He was, in all likelihood, a fairly capable clerk, although the monotony of this work bored him. He learned to keep books of account neatly, as well as to write in a quite legible handwriting. Everything written in Shaw's handwriting (even in advanced years) was easy and pleasant to read. This served Shaw well later on when he became a professional writer: grief typesetters did not know with his manuscripts.

In 1876 Shaw went to live with his mother in London. The family welcomed him very warmly. During this time, he visited public libraries and museums. He began to work hard in libraries and created his first works, and later led a newspaper column dedicated to music. However, his early novels were not successful until 1885, when he became known as a creative critic.

In the first half of the 1890s he worked as a critic for the London World, where he was succeeded by Robert Hichens.

At the same time, he became interested in social democratic ideas and joined the Fabian Society, whose goal is to establish socialism through peaceful means. In this society he met his future wife, Charlotte Paine-Townshend, whom he married in 1898. Bernard Shaw had connections on the side.

The first play by Bernard Shaw was presented in 1892. At the end of the decade, he became already a well-known playwright. He wrote sixty-three plays, as well as novels, critical works, essays, and more than 250,000 letters.

Shaw wrote five unsuccessful novels early in his career between 1879 and 1883. Later they were all published.

Shaw's first printed novel was "Profession of Cashel Byron"(1886), written in 1882. The protagonist of the novel is a wayward schoolboy who, together with his mother, emigrates to Australia, where he participates in battles for money. He returns to England for a boxing match. Here he falls in love with a smart and rich woman, Lydia Carew. This woman, attracted by animal magnetism, agrees to marry despite their different social status. Then it turns out that main character of noble birth and heir to a great fortune. Thus, he becomes a deputy in Parliament and the married couple becomes an ordinary bourgeois family.

Novel "Not a Social Socialist" published in 1887. It starts with a girls' school, but then focuses on a poor worker who actually hides his fortunes from his wife. He is also an active fighter for the promotion of socialism. From this point on, the entire novel focuses on socialist themes.

Novel "Love Among the Artists" written in 1881, published in 1900 in the United States and in 1914 in England. In this novel, Shaw shows his views on art, romantic love and marriage using the example of Victorian society.

"The Irrational Knot" is a novel written in 1880 and published in 1905. In this novel, the author denounces hereditary status and insists on the nobility of workers. The institution of marriage is called into question by the example of a noble woman and a worker who made a fortune on the invention of the electric motor. Their marriage falls apart due to the inability of family members to find common interests.

Shaw's first novel Immaturity, written in 1879, was the last published novel. It describes the life and career of Robert Smith, an energetic young Londoner. The condemnation of alcoholism is the first message in the book, based on the author's family memories.

The show breaks completely with the prudish puritan morality still characteristic of a large part of the well-to-do circles of English society. He calls things by their real names, considers it possible to depict any worldly phenomenon, and to a certain extent is a follower of naturalism.

Shaw started working on the first play "Widower's House" in 1885. After some time, the author refused to continue working on it and completed it only in 1892. The play was presented at the Royal Theater in London on December 9, 1892.

In the play Mrs. Warren's Profession (1893), a young girl learns that her mother earns income from brothels, and therefore leaves the house to earn money herself by honest labor.

The plays of Bernard Shaw, like the plays, include poignant humor exclusive to Victorian playwrights. The show began to reform the theatre, offering new themes and inviting the audience to ponder moral, political and economic issues. In this he is close to the dramaturgy of Ibsen with his realistic drama, which he used to solve social problems.

As Shaw's experience and popularity increased, his plays became less focused on the reforms he championed, but their entertainment role did not diminish. Works such as "Caesar and Cleopatra"(1898), "Man and Superman" (1903), "Major Barbara" (1905) and "Doctor in Dilemma" (1906) show the mature views of the author, who was already 50 years old.

Until the 1910s, Shaw was a fully formed playwright. New works such as Fanny's First Play (1911) and "Pygmalion"(1912), were well known to the London public.

In the most popular play "Pygmalion", based on the plot ancient Greek myth, in which the sculptor asks the gods to bring the statue to life, Pygmalion appears as Professor Higgins of Phonetics. His Galatea is street florist Eliza Doolittle. The professor tries to correct the language of a girl who speaks Cockney. Thus, the girl becomes like a noble woman. By this Shaw is trying to say that people differ only in appearance.

Shaw's views changed after World War I, which he disapproved of. His first post-war work was Heartbreak House (1919). In this play, a new Shaw appeared - the humor remained the same, but his faith in humanism was shaken.

Shaw had previously supported a gradual transition to socialism, but now he saw a government led by a strong man. For him, dictatorship was obvious. At the end of his life, his hopes also died. Thus, in Buoyant Billions (1946-48), his last play, he says that one should not rely on the masses, who act like a blind crowd and can choose people like Hitler to rule.

Shaw completed the pentalogy in 1921. "Back to Methuselah", which includes five plays, and which begins in the Garden of Eden and ends a thousand years in the future. These plays affirm that life is perfected through trial and error. Shaw himself considered these plays a masterpiece, but critics were of a different opinion.

A play was written after Methuselah "Saint Joan"(1923), which is considered one of his best works. The idea of writing a work about Joan of Arc and her canonization appeared in 1920. The play gained worldwide fame and brought the author closer to the Nobel Prize (1921).

Shaw also has plays in the psychological genre, sometimes adjoining even the area of melodrama (Candida, etc.).

The author created plays until the end of his life, but only some of them became as successful as his early works. The Apple Cart (1929) became the best known play during this period. Later works, such as Bitter but True, Broken (1933), Millionaire (1935) and Geneva (1935), did not receive wide public recognition.

From 21 to 31 July 1931 Bernard Shaw visited the USSR, where on July 29 he had a personal meeting with. In addition to the capital, Shaw visited the outback - the commune. Lenin (Irskaya commune) of the Tambov region, which was considered exemplary. Coming back from Soviet Union, Shaw said: “I am leaving the state of hope and returning to our Western countries - countries of despair ... For me, an old man, it is a deep consolation, going to the grave, to know that world civilization will be saved ... Here, in Russia, I was convinced that the new communist system is able to lead humanity out of the current crisis and save it from complete anarchy and destruction”.

In an interview given in Berlin on his way home, Shaw praised Stalin as a politician: “Stalin is a very pleasant person and really the leader of the working class ... Stalin is a giant, and all Western figures are pygmies”.

And already in London on September 6, 1931, in his report on the trip, the playwright said: “There is no parliament in Russia or any other nonsense like that. The Russians are not as stupid as we are; it would even be difficult for them to imagine that there could be fools like us. Of course, the statesmen of Soviet Russia have not only a huge moral superiority over ours, but also a significant mental superiority..

Being a socialist in his political views, Bernard Shaw also became a supporter of Stalinism and the "other USSR". So, in the preface to his play "On the rocks"(1933) he provides a theoretical basis for the repressions of the OGPU against the enemies of the people. In an open letter to the editor of the Manchester Guardian newspaper, Bernard Shaw calls the information that appeared in the press about the famine in the USSR (1932-1933) a fake.

In a letter to the Labor Monthly, Bernard Shaw also openly sided with Stalin and Lysenko in the campaign against genetic scientists.

In recent years, the playwright lived in his own house and died at the age of 94 from kidney failure. His body was cremated and his ashes scattered along with those of his wife.

Plays by Bernard Shaw: