Priestley shows the theme of responsibility in An Inspector Calls through the way he chose the setting of the play and adapted his characters to portray the different aspects of society and the role that each type of person has. This is done as the play is a social commentary that conveys the responsibilities of everyone no matter if they are upper class, upper-middle class or the working class - these are the classes that Priestley made his characters to draw attention to the issues of the public at the time amongst the hierarchy in place. The Inspector represents Priestley in the way he consults the family about Eva's death and how he responds to important characteristic statements. For example, the Inspector turns to Mr Birling and says …show more content…
An upper-middle class man that is the head of a wealthy family has the weight of running a business, hiring employees and paying them, teaching the heir to his business how to run it sustainably to provide for his family. These correlate to a speech that the Inspector made at the end of act three in which he said 'We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other' . This line highlights the fact that all on Mr Birling's responsibilities and his responses to them will echo and affect other people, which is why we hear Inspector Goole's tone become more sinister when addressing Mr Birling and his ignorance towards the consequences of his selfish actions ( we gather that Inspector Goole is not afraid of Mr Birling nor the influence he could have on his career). Arthur firing Eva led to a chain of events that led to the entire family and Gerald being split into those who will accept the fact that they did wrong, and those who will not likewise if his business were to fail, countless people would suffer, both employees and his family (Eric's future as the heir to Birling and co and everyone else's financial stability). Mr Birling has a lot of authority and responsibilities, however he will accept none for triggering a sequence of events that killed Eva Smith, which shows not only the cruelty of the hierarchies in 1911, but the fact that Arthur is used as a perfect facade for Priestley to use the Inspector to share his views on capitalist motives. Sybil also wouldn't accept any of ther blame for Eva's death, and this is why the family and Gerald took separate sides after the Inspector left
...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.
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.
How Priestly Uses the Characters to Represent His Own Views on Society The play "An Inspector Calls" is set in 1912 but was written in 1945. Edwardian society at that time (1912) was strictly divided into social classes and over two-thirds of the nation's wealth was in the hands of less than 1% of the population. Below the very rich were the middle classes (doctors and merchants, shop workers and clerks), after that came the craftsmen and skilled workers. At the very bottom of the social ladder was the largest class of all - the ordinary workers and the poor, many of whom lived below the poverty level. The men of industry treated the workers very badly and they were paid pittance.
The play is set in three scenes. The entire play is set in the dining
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.
Priestley's Social Message in An Inspector Calls The play an Inspector Call’s was written at the time of 1945 but is set in 1912. Priestley conveys a lot of social and important messages in this play. He conveys the messages through the character of Inspector Goole. One most important message that Priestley conveys is about Socialism.
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 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.
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.
He wanted to give everyone a choice. Should we go back to the way it
The play "An Inspector Calls" was written by J.B Priestley in 1945, when the British people were recovering from over six years of constant warfare and danger. As a result of two world wars, class distinctions were greatly reduced and women had achieved a much higher place in society. It was due to this and a great desire for social change that Labour's Clement Attlee won a landslide victory over the conservative Winston Churchill. He nationalized the gas steel and electrical industries, established the NHS and introduced the Welfare State. The play was set in Brumley, a fictional industrial city, in 1912.The playwright believed passionately in the left wing perspective and his message is overtly political. He uses techniques such as "dramatic irony" and "direct mouthpieces", which define the genre of the play as non-illusory, to impart his left-wing message.
That is probably why Priestley had created Inspector Calls as he had believed we are part of one community and that people should help each other to maintain a thriving community. This especially starts with that Priestley think we should give people from the lower class and women more respect if they were to function as a community, so all inequalities would remain absent. This reflects more on the audience to change and realize that they can also change in themselves and try to reduce the inequalities in their
Firstly, both playwrights show parents using aggression to attempt to indoctrinate their children. In ‘an inspector calls’ this is shown when Mr Birling attempts to intimidate his son, Eric. When Eric is distressed and angered by his mother; Mr Birling cuts in and says “why you hysterical young fool - get back – or I’ll-” this
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.