Drama: An Inspector Calls- Task One
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Written in 1946, "An Inspector Calls" takes us into the comfortable
and complacent world of the Birling family who are disturbed during a
celebration by the arrival of a mysterious police inspector. A young
girl has committed suicide and it is revealed how all members of one
family contributed to it. "An Inspector Calls" resorts to the ripping
off of masks that we human beings frequently wear, with the Inspector
relentlessly pursuing the truth. Just when the audience is tiring of
discoveries, the whole action is given a violent twist and everyone is
caught up in the unfolding events. When each member of the Birling
family find out that they contributed to the death of Eva Smith, they
react in very different ways and learn different things from the
experience.
Mr Birling is an arrogant and recognisable capitalist. He is highly
conceited, and believes that whatever he says is true, for example
"The Germans don't want war!" and "[Russia] will always be
behindhand". We know that these statements are incorrect because of
the war between Germany and England and Stalin's influence on Russia.
However, Mr Birling seems oblivious to the warning signs of such
serious matters. Or he just decides to blank out all the bad aspects
of life, which do not concern him directly. When the Inspector
arrives, Mr Birling tries to use his influence as a highly placed
local to put down and demoralise the Inspector. This attempt is
immediately dismissed as the Inspector does not seem to be interested
in Mr Birling's influence. To try to show his importance Mr Birling
remarks that he was "an alderman for years- lord mayor two years
ago…is still on the bench". However, the Inspector does not take any
notice of this and continues with the investigation. As Mr Birling
tells his part of his involvement in Eva's death, he manages to tell
it in a way that makes him seem fair and kind to his workers. However,
this is just a cover for his conscience and the Inspector and the
audience can see this. In reality, he is greedy. Every penny in his
pocket counts, and he tries to makes it seem that he feels that his
workers deserve no more than the national average pay, if that. Nearer
the end of the play, he begins to show remorse, although this remorse
is directed more toward the fact that he may not get his knighthood
because of the scandal, instead of feeling remorse at his actions in
the situation. This is shown quite well when he says "But I care. I
was almost certain for a knighthood in the next Honours List".
There would be more of an effect on the audience at the time, as it
and say and do. We don't live alone. We are members of a body. We are
talks with. He is a man who has come to the Birling's house to do his
the end of the Second World War. The play is set in 1912, just before
satisfied. He talks a lot and likes the sound of his own voice. He's a
An Inspector Calls is a play with lots of political messages as well as social messages. J. B. Priestley believed in socialism and he used large amounts of his plays to try and convince people to his way of thinking. It was written in a time when Britain was ruled by a Labour government and socialist policies were seen to be a good way to go. It was a common way of thinking at that time so Priestley's aim for the play was to influence the unconvinced in society.
An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley "An Inspector calls," by J. B. Priestley was written in 1946 and set in 1912. Priestley was a politician and a socialist who believed in equality and equilibrium for all, sex, race and class. Priestley had a long but arduous life, 1894-1984. He lived through both world wars, the unsinkable Titanic sank in 1912, the general strike in 1926, labour government resigning in 1931, and the two destructive atom bombs dropped on Japan in 1945. Priestley deliberately set the play in 1912 because the audience watching the play had to have lived through all of this and would have empathised with him.
in jeopardy than how he may have driven a young girl down a spiral to
Consider the role of the Inspector in “An Inspector Calls”? And what we learn about Priestley’s view on society through the character and his effect on others.
An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley An Inspector Calls is the tale of a wealthy manufacturer who is holding a dinner party for his daughter’s engagement. Into this cosy, what seems secure scene, appears a harsh police inspector investigating the suicide of young working class woman. Under the pressure of his thorough investigations, every member of the Birling family is revealed to have a shameful secret that finally led to the corruption, and consequent death of this young woman, Eva Smith. Priestly attempts to convey his attitudes and ideas through his characters and their behaviour in the play.
the suicide of Eva Smiths death. The aim of the story is to, try to
I have decided to stage a section of the play from where Eric says "He
Several employees have witnessed varied offensive conduct by Mazey but have kept opinions to themselves until recently (Yemen & Clawson, 2007). Senior management at Hudson is aware of his behavior via 360o reviews; however, Mazey’s ability to produce revenue secured his promotion to vice president (Yemen & Clawson, 2007). Mazey acquiesces to upper management and believes employees of lower stature should do the same for him, while also accepting his unprofessional, degrading and condescending habits (Yemen & Clawson, 2007).
... Eva Smiths all over the world and that we are all members of one body
... may mean that if a person does not learn from their mistakes the first