Great Catherine Whom Glory Still Adores By George Bernard Shaw ReadHowYouWant (2009), 84 pages EasyRead Large Print 16 point, Bold Edition ISBN: 978-1442929838 Genre: Classics

Reviewed by Israel Drazin - January 3, 2011

Shaw calls this short play a "bravura" piece, meaning that it was composed for a particular actress as a vehicle for her to display her acting skills. It is actually a farce – a play that is light in tone, in which the plot depends upon situation rather than character; a ridiculous unrealistic sham; a mockery. Shaw introduces the historical Catherine as a rather silly German ruler of Russia, who dislikes everything associated with being a ruler, who likes sexual liaisons. She meets an English captain who is, as Shaw generally portrays Englishmen, a foolish undereducated snob, for Shaw (1856-1950), who was brilliant, was born an Irishman. Shaw tells us that the actress for whom he wrote the play performed excellently. We readers will find the play funny, although at times, like the Englishman, silly, but still worth reading for its humor.

• The Devil's Disciple, by George Bernard Shaw.
  The Devil's Disciple: A Melodrama in Three Acts; The main character of The Devil's Disciple, Dick Dudgeon, is in revolt against the ideal of the family to the extent that he has rejected his own family. Identifying with the devil has prevented his spirit being taken over by his mother's life-denying religion...
  
  
• Getting Married, by George Bernard Shaw.
  Shaw expounds his view of marriage as a white slave trade for thousands of women in supposedly civilized societies.