Includes index.

The Idea of the Superman in the Plays of G.B. Shaw is an in-depth study of Bernard Shaw’s concept of the superman, a study remarkable for its readability and scholarly treatment of the subject matter. Shaw was indebted to such writers as Friedrich Nietzsche for the idea of superman. His interest in socialism was a result of his close association with Sidney Webb. Such ideas as these have been lucidly brought out in the present book, which is a storehouse of dispassionate and balanced information about Shaw. The book examines the development of Shaw’s concept of superman in the form of a growing image which in the beginning is in the shape of seed growing into sapling tree, flower, and fruit. In the first chapter, an attempt has been made to understand Shaw as a thinker who exercised an eclectic passion for ideas to shape his own thought. This chapter focusses on the process of formation of the seed of superman in Shaw. The second chapter closely examines the development of the idea of the superman through Man and Superman, Mrs. Warren’s Profession, and Back to Methuselah. The third chapter presents Shaw’s concept of superman which is reinforced in his Back to Methuselah. The fourth chapter exhibits Shaw’s satirical vein and anger against the kind of people presented in Back to Methuselah. The book presents the concept of G.B. Shaw in pellucid style that makes it not only profound but also exceedingly readable by scholars and common readers alike. Those interested in perfecting their modus criticus and maturing their critical sensibility will find this book extremely useful.