Antagonist

Character Role Analysis

Society

This is a lot to stomach, but trust us: the big bad wolf here is…society, man.

After all, think of Eliza's goal. She wants to get out of the gutter, and into a flower shop. Sure, Higgins is helping her out of vanity, but he's also sticking it to the man. By passing off Eliza as a duchess, he proves just how shallow and stupid all of those rich men and aristocrats can be. Higgins's understanding of things isn't perfect. He's too nearsighted to realize the problems he's created for Eliza, but those problems wouldn't exist if women had more opportunities and options.