Project Gutenberg 2003-02-01 Public domain in the USA. 487 Shaw, Bernard 1856 1950 Shaw, George Bernard Shaw, Bernhard Shaw, G. Bernard (George Bernard) Bassetto, Corno di Shaw, G. B. (George Bernard) Preface to Major Barbara: First Aid to Critics Produced by Eve Sobol. HTML version by Al Haines. "Preface to Major Barbara: First Aid to Critics" by Bernard Shaw is a critical commentary, written in the early 20th century, that accompanies Shaw's play "Major Barbara." This publication serves as a defense and explanation of the play's themes and the author's intellectual influences, while addressing misconceptions held by critics regarding his work. The central topic of the book revolves around the societal implications of poverty and the moral dilemmas associated with wealth and morality, particularly in the context of the Salvation Army and the character of Andrew Undershaft. In the preface, Shaw elaborates on his views that poverty is the greatest evil and argues against the romanticization of the poor. He contrasts the ideals of the Salvation Army with the harsh realities of poverty, presenting Andrew Undershaft as a character who recognizes the immorality of poverty and challenges traditional notions of virtue. The text critiques the complacency of society regarding wealth inequality and the naive idealism of religious organizations. Shaw's argument emphasizes the need for a radical change in societal values, advocating for a recognition of the urgency of addressing poverty rather than blindingly adhering to outdated moral frameworks. Overall, Shaw seeks to clarify his perspective on morality, wealth, and social responsibility while encouraging critics to engage more deeply with the underlying issues of his play. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 48.3 (College-level). Difficult to read. en Prefaces PR Text Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches Category: British Literature Category: Philosophy & Ethics Nobel Prizes in Literature 114615 2025-10-02T08:42:54.977338 text/html 109337 2021-01-09T00:36:45 text/html 123462 2025-10-02T08:43:00.073333 application/epub+zip 123690 2025-10-02T08:42:57.752347 application/epub+zip 114842 2025-10-02T08:42:56.704328 application/epub+zip 258508 2025-10-02T08:43:01.830315 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 250484 2025-10-02T08:42:59.466318 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 181731 2022-09-02T11:48:41.278275 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 107298 2025-10-02T08:42:54.739363 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 107230 2021-01-09T00:36:45 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 18896 2025-10-02T08:43:01.949310 application/rdf+xml 15649 2025-10-02T08:42:57.205351 image/jpeg 3611 2025-10-02T08:42:56.957420 image/jpeg 43555 2021-01-09T00:36:45 application/octet-stream application/zip 42755 2021-01-09T00:36:45 application/octet-stream application/zip 120965 2025-10-02T08:42:54.987353 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia