How does Priestly keep the attention of the audience in Act 1?

How does Priestly keep the attention of the audience in Act 1?

Inspector calls was set in 1912, it was written in 1945, and was

performed in 1946. Priestly wanted to show his views, so he created a

performance called ‘Inspector Calls’ to show that he cares for others,

so Priestly maintains interest by using various different devices, and

that’s what my essay will be about, the various devices that Priestly

used the keep the attention of the audience.

Firstly, the play has got a pace, which is fast, the evidence of this

is that the Inspector doesn’t keep talking to the same person for five

minutes, he asks one person one question and then he goes onto the

next person. The point of this is Priestly doesn’t bore the audience

he keeps everyone’s attention by going thought the scenes. In

Inspector calls the characters were each revealed step by step, and

eventually they all revealed properly at the end of the play. At

the end of act 1 the only characters that have been revealed is Mr

Birling, because they found out that he had sacked Daisy Retton just

for asking if she could have abit more money, Gerald was also revealed

but not much, because Shelia knew that Gerald new something when the

Inspector said the name Daisy Retton because his face gave the

impression. The point of this is that they have only revealed two

characters in act 1 so that the audience will want to keep watching,

because they would like to know where the other characters come in the

mystery.

Secondly, the play refers to the political climate of time, the

evidence of this is that once he has asked someone a question, they

answer it, then the person he had asked a question to before he asks

them i.e. ‘did you know anything about that’. The point of this is, if

any one out of the audience has misunderstood a little bit of a

sentence then he goes back over it but in a different way of saying it

later on, so then that person has understood the whole storyline so

far. Also the storyline is slowly unravelling of the plot, but by the

end of act 1 the audience is completely drawn in. The evidence of this

is, the stage directions in the book, the font is different and it

says ‘ she looks at him in triumph. He looks crushed. The door slowly

opens and the inspector appears, looking steadily and searchingly at

them,’ so if you were watching the play, then the Inspector will open