In ‘An Inspector Calls’ Sheila Birling is presented by Priestley as a cheerful and rather selfish upper class Edwardian woman who comes from a prosperous family and seems to lack a sense of guilt and responsibility early on in the play. In the opening scenes Sheila’s relationship with her fiancé appears genuine, until we learn that Gerald has been away for the whole summer. Sheila’s curiosity and suspicion is shown when she remarks to Gerald that she sees him often “except for all last summer, when you never came near me.” Through what she has said we clearly see that there is a problem in their relationship which leaves the audience filled with curiosity and the knowledge that there are secrets that Gerald seems to keep from her, but as soon as Sheila tries to address to what Gerald said about being “awfully busy at the works the whole time” her mother Sybil attempts to put Sheila in her place in and points out that she has to deal with it as she is an Edwardian Woman. Mrs Birling says to Sheila that “When you’re married you’ll realize that men with important work to do sometimes have to spend all their time and energy on business.” Through this, we see the way Edwardian Women have to act. They are not supposed to bother their husbands with questions and demands. They are supposed to put up with it. In ‘Macbeth’ Lady Macbeth is presented by Shakespeare as a strong Jacobean woman tha In the beginning of the play ‘An Inspector Calls’ Sheila is presented as a very childish, innocent and irresponsible . Her parents refer to her as a “child” which shows us that even as an Edwardian woman who is about to get married her parents do not see her as a grown mature woman. At the beginning of the play, Sheila receives the ring that she ... ... middle of paper ... ...tead of moving on, although she knew what she did was wrong, they still had to bear the fact that they killed someone and I think Sheila’s reaction towards it showed more responsibility. After the malfunction in the family (when the inspector arrived) you could think back to when Mr Birling says “Unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable.” Which showed dramatic irony because audience knows something the characters don’t and also the Titanic could be a metaphor for the family and its privileged position and when the inspector arrives it falls apart. But Sheila and Eric showed that they could still float without being deluded by the other characters beliefs. I saw Lady Macbeth as a puppet master who controlled Macbeth at the beginning of the play but later on it was as if the bulwark defending Lady Macbeth has crumbled and it has allowed Macbeth to take control of the strings.
The Dramatic Techniques J.B. Priestley Used to Create and Develop Tension in Act one of An Inspector Calls
An Inspector Calls' is primarily focused on he attitudes surrounding the higher classes in 1912, and how these attitudes can lead to actions with potentially devastating consequences. The attitudes are particularly aimed at women, especially those of working class status. In the play women are portrayed as second class citizens, after men. However the difference (e.g. in independence) between upper class men and women is greater than that of working class men and women.
In this essay we will be comparing two female characters from different texts and different time periods. We will be looking in depth at Lady Macbeth from Shakespeare's play 'Macbeth', and Sheila from J.B. Priestley's 'An Inspector Calls'. We will be looking at their roles in their respective plays, and how their characters develop over time.
JB Priestley’s intent in ‘An Inspector Calls’ was to convey the attitudes of socialism to the minds of the society in the Edwardian Era as he was a passionate believer of the concept. Priestley has attempted this through the employment of ‘Inspector Goole’ in the play. In the play drama is displayed through a variety of methods for the interest of the audience and the communication of personal views from JB Priestley.
The Inspector, straight form his introduction, is commanding and authoritative. Upon his entrance he creates, “…at once an impression of massiveness, solidity and purposefulness.”(PG.11) The Inspector continues to create this impression as he progresses through his speeches and through his interrogation of the family. The Inspector remains confident, sturdy and composed, while people around him crumble and fall to pieces. His ‘solidity’ is proven by the fact he remains on task despite numerous attempts from Birling to digress from the points he is making. The Inspector is told to appear ‘purposeful’; this is shown where he explains to Birling that Birlings way of thinking “Every man must only look out for himself,” is not the case, and all warps of society are interlinked. The view is best illustrated in the Inspectors final speech, where he says, “We don't live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other.”(p.56). This idea is one that Priestley, himself believed in deeply, and many of Priestleys writing shared this very theme.
Winterbourne’s aunt is also critical of the way in which Daisy carries herself in social situations with men. In fact, Daisy has become the primary focus of gossip in Mrs. Costello’s circle of friends. Miss Miller has become notorious for the way she carries on with men and openly flirts and goes out in public with them unchaperoned. This is breach of ...
“An Inspector Calls” is a play written by J. B. Priestley. This play is based in 1912 in a small county called “Brumley” and is about how each of the Birling's had a part to play in the death of Eva Smith. In this essay I will be discussing the sackings of Eva Smith and how they are different. The relationships she had and how they affected her emotionally as well as physically and the troubles she faced due to society and expectations of women in those days.
“An Inspector calls” is a play written by J.B Priestly with lot a lot of political messages. The play was written in 1945 but is set during the pre world war 1 period during 1912, in a house located in an industrial city. The play revolves around an inspector and the Birling's who are a wealthy family living in the North Midlands, as it goes along it is revealed how each of them played a death in Eva Smiths death. I feel like Priestly has used the inspector as a puppet to convey his socialist views to the and I feel like he has done so in a very smart way- by putting it in a play, a more entertaining method of getting his message out to the people. Priestly a socialist uses inspector Goole as a puppet to convey his message to the public.
Everyone is influenced by other people, including leaders or authority, to make the wrong decisions at some point in their lives. In the play Macbeth, Lady Macbeth is responsible for the evil doings of Macbeth. Lady Macbeth is responsible for this by using his love for her to persuade him into killing King Duncan. Because Macbeth loved and trusted his wife, he was vulnerable to her opinions and suggestions. We also know that she is responsible for these heartless things because she has so much guilt that she commits suicide. Macbeth would never have done any of those horrible things if it were not for the murder of King Duncan, which was forced on by Lady Macbeth.
Guilt plays a strong role in motivating Macbeth, and causes Lady Macbeth to be driven over the edge of sanity - to her death. Throughout the story, there are many different types of guilty feelings that play a role in Macbeth’s fatal decisions and bring Lady Macbeth to commit suicide. Although there are many instances that show the power guilt has played on the main characters, there are three examples that show this the best. One is, just after the murder of the great King, Duncan. Guilt overcomes Macbeth where he can no longer think straight. A second example is soon after that, where all the guilt Macbeth feels at first, changes into hate after he decides that Banquo must be killed as well. The last example is just about at the end of the play, when we see Lady Macbeth sleepwalking, and then later committing suicide; this all because of the burden of her guilt. All of these examples build the proof that in this play, guilt plays a very large role in the characters’ lives.
Priestley’s socialistic belief that ‘we are responsible for each other’ is a significant theme throughout the play An Inspector Calls. Priestly demonstrates the difference between those who have accepted their responsibility and those who have not by doing this he outlines the problems with the idea that people should only care about themselves. The play explores the socialist idea that ‘We are responsible for each other’ and that an individualistic, materialistic, capitalist society is not the way forward.
Discuss Priestley's depiction of the Birling household and Gerald Croft, prior to the arrival of Inspector Goole In this submission I hope to fully discuss Priestley's depiction of the Birling household and Gerald Croft, prior to the arrival of Inspector Goole. The play is set in the fictional town of Brumley, an industrial town in the North Midlands. It is evening in the town, in the spring of 1912. At the moment the play starts the characters are celebrating the engagement between Gerald Croft and the Birling family's only daughter Sheila. They are all very pleased with themselves and are enjoying the occasion.
An Inspector Calls was written in 1945 but set in 1912. The play shows the stark difference between 1912 and 1945. J. B. Priestley reveals the errors of society and the faults of capitalism as well as the bias of the upper class and social status. As a firm believer in the concepts of socialism, he uses this play to expose society’s poor attitudes to the working class of the period. The way they treat Eva Smith reflects on how many of the working class may have been treated by their social superiors. Eva was a victim in society as she was very low in the financial hierarchy as well as in reality where she was at the bottom of the classes. Women at that time were seen as being delicate, obedient to their husbands. The inspector is used to correct the
Sheila is described as a ‘pretty girl in her early twenties, very pleased with life and rather excited.’ The fact that it says ‘very pleased with life’ and ‘rather excited’ shows that she is very proud of herself; this is typical with a girl in her twenties coming from an upper-class British family in the 1910’s. Priestley has done this carefully to blend in with the historical context of the play, which was set in 1912.
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the theme of guilt and conscience is one of many explored throughout the play. Macbeth, is a well respected Scottish noble who in the beginning of the play is a man everyone looks up to; however as the play progresses he makes a number of bad decisions. Eventually, as a result of his actions he suffers guilt and this plays heavily upon his character until his personality is completely destroyed. Shakespeare uses a range of techniques in order to develop this theme such as, characters, imagery.