Pygmalion: Pace
16 lenses on pace for Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 D8 D9 D10 D11 D12 D13 D14 D15 D16
D1. Chapter length in words, as a chart. Count
5 chapters, median 4,744 words. See the full lens on the book page.
D2. Mean sentence length per chapter. Count
Mean 9.0 words. See the full lens on the book page.
D3. Paragraph length per chapter. Count
Paragraphs average 29 words.
Mean paragraph words, chapter by chapter
D4. Scene against summary: how much is shown live? AI
Nearly all is shown live in scenes. Acts 1 to 5 present events directly with minimal summary, relying on dialogue and stage directions to convey action and revelation.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5
D5. Action against reflection, per chapter. AI
Acts 1 to 2 favour action and dialogue establishing the experiment. Acts 3 to 4 balance action with Eliza's internal emotional crisis. Act 5 combines confrontation with reflection on transformation and choice.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5
D6. Tension score per chapter (1 to 5) as a curve. AI
Peak 5 of 5, mean 4.2. See the full lens on the book page.
D7. Emotional arc of the whole book, matched to the six shapes. Count
Man in a hole (fall then rise). See the full lens on the book page.
D8. Chapter endings: cliffhanger, question, reveal or quiet close. AI
4 of 5 chapters end on a hook. See the full lens on the book page.
D9. Chapter openings: in scene, in summary, or after a time jump. AI
Act 1 opens in scene at Covent Garden. Act 2 opens after a time jump to Higgins's laboratory. Act 3 opens in scene at Mrs. Higgins's home. Acts 4 and 5 open in scene with no summary.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5
D10. Do chapters and sentences get shorter near the climax? Count
In the last fifth, chapters run at 2.49 times the length of earlier ones, and sentences at 1.3 times. So the end does not speed up by these measures.
D11. Dialogue density against pace. Count
Link between dialogue share and chapter length: -0.07 (1 is a perfect match, 0 none). Between dialogue share and tension: -0.83.
Dialogue % per chapter, chapter by chapter
D12. Time jumps and how they are signalled. Both
2 time jump phrases in the narration, such as 'next morning' or 'years later'.
| Where | Phrase |
|---|---|
| c2p1 | Next day |
| c2p106 | a year after |
Time jump phrases, chapter by chapter
Ch 2, para 1: Next day at 11 a.m. Higgins’s laboratory in Wimpole Street. It is a room on the first floor, looking on the street, and was meant for the drawing-room. …
Ch 2, para 106: HIGGINS. There! As the girl very properly says, Garn! Married indeed! Don’t you know that a woman of that class looks a worn out drudge of fifty a …
Time jumps occur between Acts 1 and 2 (signalled by location change and Eliza's arrival for lessons) and between Acts 3 and 4 (signalled by reference to the completed garden party and opera).
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 2, Scene 4
D13. Info dump spots: long runs with no action or speech. Both
9 stretches of 900 words or more with no speech at all. These are where description, summary or backstory pile up.
| Starts at | Words | Paragraphs |
|---|---|---|
| c4p59 | 7002 | 268 |
| c2p6 | 5565 | 229 |
| c2p277 | 5451 | 251 |
| c3p193 | 2347 | 92 |
| c1p1 | 1647 | 65 |
| c5p285 | 1530 | 10 |
| c1p96 | 1529 | 58 |
| c5p235 | 1475 | 43 |
No long info dumps occur. The play maintains dialogue and action throughout. Exposition emerges through character speech and interaction rather than narrative blocks.
D14. Reading time per chapter. Count
About 2.2 hours to read at 250 words a minute. The longest chapter takes 49.5 minutes.
Minutes per chapter, chapter by chapter
D15. Micro tension in quiet scenes. AI
Act 4 creates micro tension through Eliza's quiet confrontation with Higgins about her future, her emotional distress contrasting with his indifference, culminating in her throwing slippers.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 4
Why didn’t you leave me where you picked me out of—in the gutter? (Ch 4, para 35)
Damn Mrs. Pearce; and damn the coffee; and damn you; and damn my own folly in having lavished MY hard-earned knowledge and the treasure of my regard and intimacy on a heartless guttersnipe. (Ch 4, para 92)
D16. Section breaks per chapter. Count
1 section breaks marked in the text, in 1 of 5 chapters.
Section breaks, chapter by chapter
Ask Pygmalion a question about its craft (free beta)
Answers cite chapter and paragraph, and every quote is checked against the text. (3 free questions a day).
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