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Reflection of society in literature
Literature As A Reflection Of Society
Literature As A Reflection Of Society
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An Inspector calls is set in 1912 and was written for a 1946 audience.
What can it have to offer an audience in 2002? An Inspector calls.
'An Inspector calls' was written by J.B. Priestly in 1945, and was
first shown to an audience in 1946. It was set in 1912, before the
Second World War had started, and was to be shown, after the Second
World War had ended. 'An inspector calls' is a dramatic, moralistic
thriller. It is set around the death of a young woman: Eva Smith. The
play begins with the Birling family celebrating the engagement of
their daughter Sheila, to the wealthy Gerald Croft. In this part of
the play you learn a lot about the social system of that era, the way
people acted, and the way they thought.
The doorbell, and the arrival of an Inspector interrupt their
'celebration'. From now on the mood changes, contrasting the
light-hearted and happy mood; it now becomes tense and serious. The
Inspector reveals each characters involvement in the death of Eva
Smith, side by side with the flaws and evils in each characters'
personality. This slowly reveals to the audience that the Inspector is
a lot more then he seems, and that the play is not only a 'murder
mystery', but also resembles a moralistic play of the middle ages, but
in it's own socialistic manner. It also shows the flaws in the social
system at the times, which are displayed in each character, and in the
consequences of their acts. The audience are shown how some people
ignore the reality of their actions, and even after seeing the
consequence of their actions, refuse to change. Mr and Mrs Birling are
portrayed as selfish and ignorant of their actions, while Sheila and
Eric, as a contrast, have fully realised their mistakes and have
changed the way they think. The inspector is successful in changing
two of the characters, but is not successful in the rest. Priestly is
in a way playing the Inspector, to his audience, showing them the
consequences of their actions, and what will happen if they do not
change. 'An Inspector calls' has many underlying messages, most of
which are still relevant to us today.
The question as to whether 'An inspector calls' is out of date, is a
long argued and debated question. Both sides of the argument have
valid points, and in order to come to a fair decision, you must
consider both these sides of the argument. I am going to consider
three statements about 'An Inspector calls' and after studying each
one, am gong to come up with a decision.
I think that people who grew up in the sixties and worked during the time period would enjoy the play. I feel that they would have a different understanding of it because they grew up in the time period and lived through what was going on. Over all the play head a straight forward point that in my opinion put J. Pierrepont Finch as the protagonist because everything revolved around him, he had a simple objective and every set or choice he made affected something or someone.
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
the play. It looks at the person he is and the person he becomes. It
This is a lesson which is still relevant today. Though the acting and dialogue seem to appeal to an older audience, young viewers can still enjoy and learn from this play. Prejudices, suspicion, and thoughtlessness are as prevalent as ever. For any problem, humans will look for a scapegoat. The War on Terror seems to bring similar feelings as those around during the Cold War. The lesson of trusting other people is as relevant now as it was in 1960, when the show originally aired.
The play is set in three scenes. The entire play is set in the dining
admission. The work I have chosen to compare this novel to is the classic play
the end of the Second World War. The play is set in 1912, just before
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.
in jeopardy than how he may have driven a young girl down a spiral to
The play also conveys a strong political message. The play encourages the idea of socialism, a society in which responsibility and community are essential, also a place where the community all work together and are responsible for their actions. This is in contrast to capitalism. JB priestly wrote the play in 1945, but it was set in 1912 just before the war, it was later performed in 1946. The play was written after World War I and World War II, Priestley used this to his advantage, it makes the audience feel awful after what has just happened, the majority of the audience would have either lived through one or both of the wars.
I have decided to stage a section of the play from where Eric says "He
the play may be pass to modern society, that one may not learn, or even
... Eva Smiths all over the world and that we are all members of one body
This play is also a story about the coming of age of young women (Blo...