How does JB Priestley expound his views of social hypocrisy in An Inspector Calls
- Pages: 13
- Word count: 3233
- Category: College Example
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Order NowâAn Inspector Callsâ is a play that was written by J B Priestley. It was written in 1945, after World War II. However the play is set in 1912, which is known as the Edwardian Era, before both of the world wars. The Edwardian era was a time of division between the poor and the rich. It is often regarded as the romantic Golden Age of long summer afternoons with big hats and garden parties. At this time Britain was very powerful and had the worlds largest navy. It was also a time for economic success. For the lower class life was a struggle, there was very little money for them.
Work was also very hard and strenuous for them since there were very few regulations about safety in the workforce and trade unionism was in its early days. Workers had no choice but to obey their employers because they knew that this was the only way for them to earn money and feed their family. Workers had little or no breaks and had to work long hours. They also got punished if they talked and were hardly ever allowed to go to the toilet. Women were paid half the wage that men did.
During the time period of 1911-1913 5% of the population was from the upper class, they owned 87% of the countryâs total wealth. 3% of the countryâs total wealth was shared between the lower class and the middle working class people who owned businesses and shops. For the upper class people life was joyous. They embraced leisure sports which led to fashion. The upper class didnât work. Their money was inherited. After World War II Britain had certain changes for example compulsory education and better medical care. It became new for women to be employed in anything except factories. Artists at this time were influenced by a greater awareness of human rights.
Before the start of the play, the stage directions are given. All of the action in the play is set in the dining room. There are three acts in the play. The characters in the play are Arthur Birling who comes from the middle class but is very wealthy. He has married Sybil Birling who comes from the upper class. Their daughter is called Sheila Birling; she is to be married to Gerald Croft who is a very wealthy man. They all live in an industrial town called Bromley, its like Birmingham in modern days. The Birling family have a fairly large suburban house with good solid furniture of 1912.
Their house has been described as âthe general effect is substantial and heavily comfortable, but not cosy and homelikeâ. This is described like this because the Birlings family want people who come to their house not to be comfortable. The solid furniture in their home is symbolic since it shows that they are not interested in the problems of the lower class plight as long as they are in profits. The lighting which should be pink and intimate until the inspector arrives. The lighting is like a cover up. We only see what they want us to see.
Their true colours will be revealed when the inspector arrives. Their wealth is shown through âchampagne glassesâ and âport glassesâ at that time port was a drink that only the rich could afford. In Stephen Daldryâs National Theatre Production he shows street children coming from under the stage. This represents the bomb shelters from the world war. The audience can also hear air raid signals and bombs. This also establishes the idea of a world war. We also hear harsh violin strings that are jagged this creates tension in the audience.
The children are wearing shorts and pullovers which is the 1945s fashion. They are playing on the stage which represents the bomb site. It is also raining and smoke is coming out which resembles bombs being throwed. The stage also resembles a derelict area ruined by the bombs of the warfare. There is constant drizzle on the stage which maybe resembles fire hoses putting fire down. The streets are also cobbled and there are broken buildings. The sky is shown to be a dark and angry. Against the 1945 backdrop you see a house and it slowly moves to the centre of the stage.
This is shown to be the Birlings house. Itâs set back in time in 1912. Itâs set up from the stage which shows that it isnât from 1945. Itâs a dolls house which is set on stilts which reflects the distance back to 1912. The house is also set on stilts which symbolises their higher status and that they donât want to relate to anything else except themselves. As the Birlings house opens the Birlings look oversized in their house which symbolises they are bigger than everyone else. The only room we see is the dining room this is because the play is set in the Birlings dining room.
The violins harsh stringsâ playing has ended and we hear the glasses clinking which show the Birlings are celebrating. J B Priestley has chosen a stereotypical family the Birlings who live in Brumley a town such as Birmingham nowadays. Mr Birling is shown as a wealthy self made business man. He is highly successful and a magistrate. J B Priestley uses dramatic irony to expose Mr Birlings short sighted views in the early parts of the play. He does this through showing Mr Birlings speeches as his philosophy. Mr Birling shows his philosophy in his speeches Mr Birling says âI say there isnât a chance of war.
The worlds developing so fast that itâll make war impossible. â He is ridiculing the prospect of war when the audience knows that there have been not one but two wars. Mr Birling then says âthe titanic. And unsinkableâ. The audience also know that the titanic sank. This shows us that Mt Birling canât see beyond himself. Eva Smith was a worker employed by the Birlings in July 1910. After Eva had come back from her holidays at the end of August 1910, she was broke and did not have enough money for her living expenses; neither did the group of girls whom she went with.
This was the main reason for them to demand money but Birling describes them as being ârather restlessâ which shows that he didnât care as to why they wanted money. So this was about 10p in modern days, rise in wages. This was not a lot to ask for but Mr Birling had refused. He says âI refused of courseâ. The reason why he did this was because âif id agreed to this demand for a new rate weâd have added about twelve per cent to our labour costsâ. This shows us that Mr Birling is a selfish and self centred person who only cares for his profits. Mr Birling remembers Eva smith as being a âlively good looking girlâ and âa good worker tooâ.
This shows us that Eva Smith was a well dressed and hardworking young woman. When Mr Birling had not raised their wages, Eva Smith and the group of girls âwent on strike that didnât last long, of courseâ. In September 1910. The strike didnât seem to change Mr Birlings mind. After âa week or twoâ he let all of the girls come back âat the old ratesâ but he sacked all of the âfour or five ringleadersâ this was because Mr Birling thought that the ringleaders had caused all of the trouble and didnât want any further trouble. Eva Smith was one of the ringleaders so she got sacked as well.
Mr Birling says âIf you donât come down sharply on some of these people, theyâd soon be asking for the earthâ. The inspector repliesâ But after all itâs better to ask for the earth than to take itâ. He means to say that itâs better to ask than to actually take it. Mr Birling feels that whatever he did to Eva smith was right and he canât accept any responsibility for her to commit suicide. This illustrates that Mr Birling is selfish.
The Inspector also says âwhat happened to her then may have determined what happened to her afterwards, and what happened to her afterwards may have driven her to suicideâ . e means to say that Mr Birling sacking Eva, could have led to something else in her life which could have built up to so much stress in the end. Just like a line of dominoes, knock one over and itll knock all the other over. This is what happened in Evaâs life. After Eva Smith was sacked by Birling, âShe was out of work for the next two months. Both her parents were dead, so that shed no home to go back toâ. She was also âliving in lodgings, with no relatives to help her, few friends, lonely, half starved, she was feeling desperateâ.
This tells us that she was in a very bad condition after the Birlings had sacked her. Afterwards the Inspector says âThere are a lot of young women living that sort of existence in every city and big town in this countryâ. By this he means that there are lots of young women, living that sort of life as Eva would have. He then says. âIf there werenât, the factories and warehouses wouldnât know where to look for cheap labourâ. The Inspector is suggesting that young women like Eva have no choice but to work for cheap labour at factories and warehouse owners take advantage of this and pay them very little.
The Inspector then says that the family ought to put themselves âin the place of these young women counting their pennies in their dingy little back bedrooms. â The Inspector is suggesting that women like Eva have a very bad way of living their life. At the opening of the play we meet Sheila. Sheila is Mr Billingâs daughter. She is a âpretty girl in her early twentiesâ. Sheila and the Birling family are in the living room and are celebrating Sheila and Gerald Crofts engagement. Sheila is a well behaved daughter, she listens to her mother. She is naive and materialistic.
An example of this is when Gerald proposes to her and gives her the ring. Sheila gets more interested in the ring than in Gerald. She says âYes-the very. Oh-itâs wonderful! Look mummy isnât it a beauty? â This tells us that Sheila is quite materialistic. Sheila is protected by her Father, Mr Birling who is like a pillar in society, everyone looks up at him. Sheila doesnât really know what is happening in the real world she is unaware. Eva smith had got a job at Milwards in December 1910 but she was sacked by the end of January 1911. The reason n for her being dismissed was Sheila.
The Inspector says âA nice little promising life thee, I thought, and a nasty mess somebodyâs made of itâ. The Inspector is purposely trying to make the Birling family feel guilty. Eva smith was sacked because âa customer complained about her-and so she had to goâ. The customer that complained about her was Sheila. When Sheila went to Milwards with her Mother. She had found a dress that she likes and tried it on. Although her âmother had been against itâ. She still went to try it on. The dress didnât suit her but when she caught Eva smith through the mirror holding the dress against herself it suited her and she got jealous.
She went to the shop assistant and said to sack Eva and the threat she gave was âIâd persuade mother to close our account with themâ. Sheila was jealous; this shows us that actions have consequences. At the beginning of the play Sheila was a spoilt materialistic daughter of the Birlings. She was an obedient daughter and never went against her mother or father. After the Inspectors interrogation she changes, she no longer remains the Sheila she used to be. Sheila starts feeling guilty she can see who the Inspector is unlike her parents who still remain the same from the beginning till the end of the play.
Towards the end of the play she says âI suppose weâre all nice people nowâ. This shows us that Sheila has changed and realised her flaws and what she did to Eva smith. Sheila also wants Gerald to realise what he has done she says âyou see Gerald to realise; you havenât to know the rest of our crimes and idiocies. â Sheila describes what her family have done to Eva as âcrimes and idiociesâ. This tells us that Sheila thinks that everyone has done wrong to Eva and she is not the only one to blame. After the Birling family know that the Inspector was a âJingo!
A fakeâ Sheila thinks that it doesnât matter. She thinks that the Inspector has taught her family something. She says âyou began to learn something. And now youâve stopped. âSheila is telling her family that because the Inspector was a fake theyâve gone back to being just as they were before. Sheila wants her family to change and not be so self centered and selfish. Some of the things she says are âNo heâs giving us the rope -so that well hang ourselvesâ. The rope is a metaphor used. Sheila is suggesting that the Inspector isnât forcing them to say anything they are falling in his trap to say things.
Sheila also says to her mother âYou mustnât try to build up a kind of wall between us and that girl⊠And itâll be all worse when he doesâ. This tells us that Sheila is telling her mother not to hide anything from the Inspector as he will get the truth out. The wall is a symbol of social division between the Birlings family and Eva Smith. In the National theatre production in Garrick London Stephen Daldryâs portrays Sheila quite well. He shows Sheilas confession outside of the Birlings house. The dining room has been an element of protection for the Birlings family in which they have been wrapped in known as a social veneer.
By showing Sheila outside the Birlings house it symbolises that the Inspector has broken the Birlings social veneer. When Sheila is confessing she doesnât look at the Inspector direct and talk, she is looking at the audience. Itâs as if sheâs confessing to the audience. Stephen Daldry has involved the audience as Sheila looks at the audience and is confessing. When the Inspector is asking Sheila to tell what had happened at Milwards she looks guilty and has curiosity on her face. Initially Sheila was a rich and spoilt daughter of the Birlings family but she is the first to change. Sybil Birling is Mr Birlingâs wife.
She is of a higher status than her husband though. She is a very typical woman of the time the play is set in and doesnât talk much she always puts her husband first. She also cares quite a lot about her social position in society. In Stephen Daldryâs production she is shown to be as a highly respectable person in society. Mrs Birling is also just like her husband she is narrow minded. Sheâs as myopic as her husband Arthur Birling. Throughout the play she is dismissive of Eva and the Inspector. She tries sending Sheila back to bed whilst the Inspectors interrogation. She also tries telling Sheila not to contradict, trying to exert her power.
When Mrs Birling gets a picture of Eva smith shown to her by the inspector she denies the fact that she knew her. Mrs Birling is also the chair of a charity that raises money to help people who are homeless or unemployed. The charity was called Brumley womenâs charity. Eva smith had gone there to get some help because she was pregnant and didnât have a roof over her head or any money. Eva smith Tells Mrs Birling that her name is âMrs Birlingâ Mrs Birling gets angry and tells all the charity workers not to help her at all. This shows that Mrs Birling had a short temper and didnât care about others she was selfish.
Mrs Birlings also has a son called Eric; she treats him as if heâs a child but she really doesnât know him. When Mrs Birling say âAnd this is the time you choose to tell meâ she has just found out how much Eric drinks which shows that she doesnât really know her son very well although she acts as if she does. When Mrs Birling says â but I mustnât say that so far you seem to beâŠ.. that my husband was Lord Mayor only two years ago and that heâs still a magistrate. â This shows us that Mrs Birling is just like her husband is she is trying to interfere with the Inspector to make the Inspector scared of her and go away she is threatening him.
Mrs Birling is reminding the Inspector of their high status but the Inspector doesnât seem to care it doesnât seem to make any impression on him. Mrs Birling also tells the Inspector that; I donât like you tone nor the wayâŠ. give you much ropeâ. This tells us that Mrs Birling is impatient and gets angry very quickly. The rope is a metaphor it symbolises that the Inspector is manipulating each of the Birlings. Mrs Birling also classes Eva smith as being of a very low class when she says âGirls of that classâ. This shows us that Mrs Birling is dividing her class and the girls class.
This shows that she is a selfish person and doesnât care about Evaâs class and thinks that all lower class people have no value. Sheâs looking down on the lower class people the word âthatâ used is very powerful. In Stephen Daldryâs production she is shown to be taller than the Inspector whilst standing. She also looks quite fierceful and a powerful person. She has a harsh jaw line which mirrors her harsh manner. Sheâs wearing white gloves and a red dress which shows her wealth. Whilst talking to the inspector she uses quite a lot of hand gestures which shows that she treats the Inspector as if heâs a nobody.
Stephen Daldry shows the confessions to the audience in a way that the Birlings hypocrisy is revealed. As the inspector leaves the Birlings family he says âOne Eva smith has gone but there are millions and millions of Eva smiths and John Smiths still with us, with their lives, their hopes and fears, their suffering and chance of happinessâ. The Inspector is giving an example of those who suffer at the hands of who exploit them. The Inspector also says she was treatedâ like an animal a thingâŠ. not a personâ.
The Inspector is referring to a thing that was used, abused and disposed of by the Birlings. The names Eva and john are used because they are quite common names. The Inspector also says âall intertwined with our lives. And what we think and say and do. We donât live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for others. âThis goes against Mr Birlings philosophy of what he said at the beginning âa man has to make his own way-has to look after himselfâ. The Inspector is trying to get a message across the way that you treat other influences them and our lives.