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An Inspector Calls: (HISTORICAL CONTEXT (Written in 1945 but set in 1912,…
An Inspector Calls:
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
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The titanic- she sails next week. Unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable."- Mr. Birling (Act 1)
• Dramatic irony- audience knows something the characters don’t -that the titanic DOES in fact sink• later in 1912
• Titanic is a metaphor for the family and its privileged position
Naive, Capitalism - ‘Fiddlesticks! The Germans don’t want war. Nobody wants war.’ - Mr Birling Dismissive 'I'm talking as a hard-headed, practical man of business. And I say there isn't a chance of war.' - Mr Birling
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Winston Churchill standing for the elite - second time running lost to the working man - society wanting to see a change. Won the war, but didn’t win the vote- working man wanted change, older, business, white, rich people voted for Winston
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POWER
Eva undermining his power - reaction, “She had a lot to say, I remember – far too much - so she had to go.” – Mr. Birling
Power and control – increasing view of superiority, opposite to ‘no man is an island’
“Still I can’t accept any responsibility if we are all responsible for everything that happens to everybody we’d had anything to do with, it would be very awkward, wouldn’t it?” – Mr. Birling
CONTRAST
"We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other."- Inspector (Act 3.)
Directly contrasts with Birling's message of "every man to himself"
“Girls of that class” – Mrs Birling to the Inspector
Shows that she thinks she is socially and morally superior
LINKS
Undermining Mrs. Birling’s authority as Birling’s don’t find themselves in that position.
“I think it was simply a piece of gross impertinence – quite deliberate – and naturally that was one of the things that prejudiced me against her case.” – Mrs. Birling
Power shift in attitude. Quote following ‘confirmation’ that no girl died that night, the rest of the family celebrating, “Whoever the Inspector was…you began to learn something. And now you’ve stopped. You’re ready to go back to your same old way.” - Shiela
The reaction to Sheila calling of her marriage to Gerald, “Now, Sheila, I’m not defending him. But you must understand that a lot of young men…” – Mr. Birling
“Don’t interfere please father. Gerald knows what I mean and you apparently don’t”. - Sheila
"I suppose we're all nice people now."- Sheila (Act 3.)
- She is appalled that they think they have done nothing wrong simply because they think the girl is not dead
WRITTERS PURPOSE
An evaluation of 'An Inspector Calls' as an expression of J.B. Priestley's Socialist principles. The narration focuses on the relevance of the play being set in 1912, a time that represented the exact opposite of what people were hoping for in 1945. Some of the characters in the play and what they represent are looked at. Eva Smith is representative of the working classes and Gerald Croft the aristocracy. These close textual references run alongside primary footage from the period to illustrate the social and political influences behind the play.
JB Priestly was a socialist attempting to change societies attitudes towards… at the end of the second world war.
highlighting class division in relation to social behaviours
the role of cause and effect on society
TIME: Dunne Theory - This would mean that just as you can look back and see what actions led to your present situation, you could also look forward to see the consequences of your actions. So, if you wished, you could change those actions and so avoid the consequences. Time is not linear it is a cycle. RELATE JB PRIESTLY PURPOSE: JB Priestly fought in world war one hand now his son was in world war two. This is an example of written inspiration as the human race has proven to repeat history. Message that if we don't change then nothin will. Need to educate young and put the fait of the future in positive hands. Relate to Sheila and Erics change, "Look at the pair of them [Eric and Shiela], the famous younger generation that know it all" - Mrs Birling
WIDER WORLD
Suffrage Relate to Eva and Shiela comparability: "as if a girl of that class would ever refuse money" - Mrs Birling. This shows the negative outlook on Eva. Eva undermining his power - reaction, “She had a lot to say, I remember – far too much - so she had to go.” – Mr. Birling - woman questioning their equality seen as a disturbance and deliberate undermine of power. If action was from a male a brave appearance would be cast upon them. The reaction to Sheila calling of her marriage to Gerald, “Now, Sheila, I’m not defending him. But you must understand that a lot of young men…” – Mr. Birling
“Don’t interfere please father. Gerald knows what I mean and you apparently don’t”. - Sheila........ RELATE............ Eva - current pay gap in NZ - 2018 = gender pay gap is 9.2% - Although some stereotypes are appearing to be broken (e.g Jacinda Adern) there is still a lack of woman representation in leadership roles - more male CEO's called John than woman
Wealth and control Mr Birling believing in 'every man for himself'. Opposite to "no mans an island" - John Donne. RELATE...... Half of the world's net wealth belongs to the top 1%. Success in the opposite idea as the happiest countries in the world have been recorded to pay the highest tax - Norway, Switzerland etc.
Poverty 1911 A law is passed providing sickness benefits and unemployment benefits for workers in certain industries. end of the 19th century more than 25% of the population was living at or below the subsistence level due to low wages. Only 75 per cent of population had enough money to access to food, clothes, rent and fuel.
RELATE
27% of kiwi kids - are currently living in income poverty. 1 in 4 children. With higher rates within the Maori and Pacific communities. Over time infant mortality rates have risen above that of the OECD
MESSAGE
relate to the concept of time and JB Priestly's message that society is generally reluctant to change things - too hard