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Inspector calls. How does Priestley present the inspector as powerful
Inspector calls. How does Priestley present the inspector as powerful
Inspector calls. How does Priestley present the inspector as powerful
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The Role of the Inspector in J.B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls
"But I accept no blame for it all." Although this may sound like a
statement from someone that is being questioned in the docks of court,
this quote is actually from the both the Birling's (Mr and Mrs) in An
Inspector Calls when they are asked questions by Inspector Goole. They
are demonstrating here that because they are of the richer class, they
cannot accept any responsibility for any problems in society, within
the city. Of course, J.B. Priestley, the writer, is totally against
this kind of thinking. The writer believes in collective
responsibility between people, and this is demonstrated when the
Inspector, who portrays the morals in this play, says: "We don't live
alone, we are members of one body."
The first scene of An Inspector Calls opening on a dining room set,
with appropriate furniture and without much action. What we actually
get is a far cry from our naturalistic expectations. The author's
expressionism (A movement in the arts during the early part of the
20th century that emphasised a biased expression of the artist's inner
experiences) presents a view of the world as we know it from a
stereotypical viewpoint, and this is exactly what has been interpreted
into the staging of An Inspector Calls.
The scenery immediately leads the viewer into a series of questions -
why is there a tiny, grotesquely angled house, raised up on stilts?
What is the purpose of the relative isolation of the house? Its
obvious warmth and luxury in comparison to the dark, miserable,
steaming street...
... middle of paper ...
...his is dramatic irony. Priestly is trying to say
that upper-class people are too busy making money and they don't like
to think something that could happen.
The role of the inspector though must be stressed, and that if he
weren't there, none of the plot would have unravelled. He used his
influence to stamp his authority, and showed that even though none of
the Birling's had committed a crime, they were all made to feel guilty
because of the misuse of their power in society, and for not looking
after the lower-class people, which was their responsibility. "Public
men, Mr Birling, have responsibilities as well as privileges." This
message is still relevant to a 21st century audience because society
in the western world is mainly capitalist and often, people act as
individuals and do not take responsibility for others.
...are lower class or upper class (‘[W]e don’t live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other.’). Priestley believed in socialism, he uses the Inspector to express his thoughts about this. This is the main message that he wanted the audience to take away.
There would be more of an effect on the audience at the time, as it
J B Priestley clearly had a strong moral conscience which led him to hold socialist beliefs wanting to bring about change against the capitalists who were exploiting the poor working class. In 'An Inspector Calls' Priestley cleverly uses dramatic techniques, lighting and stage directions to produce an emotionally charged setting to bring home a very important message to the correct society of his day and remains a challenge to the society in which we live in now.
‘ An Inspector Calls ’ is a play written by J Priestley in the year 1945 and but the play was set in the year 1912. The play is set right before World War One, in an upper-class house belonging to the Birlings, a high-status family, whose lives are suddenly affected by the death of a woman called Eva Smith. Throughout the play, there are 4 main themes; social responsibility, social class, and age. In the play, Priestley explores different social classes by presenting views from a range of characters with different social images and backgrounds. Priestley uses many devices such as irony and foreshadowing to
As the play was meant to be produced on stage, rather than to be written as a book format, 'An Inspector Calls' is very dramatic; to capture the audiences' attention, and to keep them thinking as the play develops. Each of the three acts are very dramatic, but I am choosing to analyse the first half of Act One of 'An Inspector Calls', because in my opinion, this is where J.B. Priestley's use of dramatic devices is most evident. This part of the play is very important, because it is the opening scene. Not only must the opening scene of the play grab the audiences' attention, it must also give impressions and introductions to the main characters. J.B. Priestley has used the scene to capture the audiences' attention and imagination, and gives a good introduction to the characters and their personality.
'An Inspector Calls' is a morality play - a form of play developed in the late middle ages in which a Christian moral lesson was brought out through the struggle between the forces of good and evil - set in 1912, and revolves around the questioning of a family by Inspector Goole about the suicide of a young woman (Eva Smith) that the family knew.The author, J.B. Priestley is trying to show us what some people's arrogance and selfishness can cause without them even noticing. Priestley was a socialist, therefore by writing this play he was drawing attention to the bad things about capitalism. The Inspector was intending to teach the Birlings that ?...we have to share something. If there?s nothing else, we?ll have to share our guilt? Act One. By saying this, he is telling them they are all as guilty as each other of the suicide of Eva Smith, this also links to Priestley being a socialist because he is putting the Birlings to shame.
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.
Examine Priestley's use of dramatic techniques to create tension in the play. Priestly was a socialist writer, and 'An Inspector Calls' is one of the plays in which he tried to display his socialist ideals in. The play was written in the 1940's, a little after the end of the Second World War, and it was first performed in 1946, in Russia, then later in England. Priestly had served in World War 1, and the terrible scenes he saw lead to him having socialist views. He was inspired by other writers whose views he shared, especially George Orwell and H.G.
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.
Priestley's Use of Characters to Send a Political and Social Message to the Audience in An Inspector Calls
Priestley’s Main Aim in An Inspector Calls JB Priestly wrote ‘An Inspector Calls’ to enhance the message that ‘we don’t live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other’. This is something Priestly felt strongly about and he succeeded in representing his views through the character of the Inspector in the play itself. He wanted to communicate the message that our actions, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, always affect others.
I have decided to stage a section of the play from where Eric says "He
The Play ‘An Inspector Calls’ is a modern morality play, created by J. B. Priestley. A morality play is a play that is designed to teach the audience the difference between right and wrong; the morality of this play is a Christian and socialist morality. The play encapsulates on the Christian religious morality that you should treat people the way you want to be treated to ‘love thy neighbour as thy self’. J. B. Priestley was a socialist who believed that everyone was created equally and should be treated equally. He believed in this despite his lack of faith. Priestley presents this moral message and his politics and opinions through the Inspector who is a God-like figure and serves as a conscience for both the audience and the Birling family. The Inspector also serves a peculiar but important role in the play. The Inspector teaches the Birling family morality and serves them a conscience. The Inspector is nothing more than a phantasm or illusion, as we know from the end of the play. Priestley’s moral is mixed between his politics and the beliefs of a Christian. As a socialist J. B. Priestley expresses his opinions through this play, in the time politicians were hated so Priestley used the play as a device to put his points forward. The play was not just a political view; it was his personal dream and passion to write an entertaining play. He creates it as a detective play because they were interesting, popular and the audience could also try to crack the mystery themselves, this was a very intelligent and unique way of expressing his opinions, as he knew they would be heard this way.
was genuine and this allows the audience to almost predict their own ending; how will the family react to the arrival of the real Inspector? Will they acknowledge this as a chance to admit to their mistakes or will they try and conceal their guilt? I thoroughly enjoyed studying An Inspector Calls and have learned a great deal about how society has changed and how moral ideals have evolved over time. I found the play effective although because of the way in which society has developed Priestley's morals may not be applicable to life today. As wealth and power have become increasingly more important socialist feelings of responsibility for one another have been progressively weakened.
Throughout act one this makes Mr. Birling increasingly angry with the inspector as Mr. Birling believes that “if they are poor, it is of their own fault”. This is because Priestley is trying to emphasis the theme of responsibility throughout the whole play, and Mr. Birling refuses to take any for Eva Smith. This is further emphasised by the word “fault” which suggests that Eva Smith is responsible for her situation. The only concern about Eva Smith he had was the possible damage to his reputation and the “public scandal” it could cause. This makes Mr. Birling come across as a deeply unpleasant character to the audience throughout Act one.