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How Does Priestley Create Tension In An Inspector Calls

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AMDG Inspector Calls 8/6/24. “Choose a play in which the writer creates an interesting character”. “An Inspector Calls” written by JB Priestley is a play which takes place within the Birling household. These main themes include: forgiveness, honesty, taking accountability for your actions, as well as having compassion for others. The storyline follows the unfortunate life of Eva Smith, and the events which prompted her suicide. Each member of the Birling family contributed and made some poor decisions of their own part, however, there is one interesting character, Eric who arguably may have tipped her over the edge after abandoning her, pregnant. Act 1 During Sheila’s engagement party, the family is gathered together and Sheila says to Eric: “You’re squiffy”. There is a shortness to this quote, as if it was not the first time that Sheila had noticed this behaviour within Eric. Word choice is used in the word ‘squiffy’ which at this time is referred to as drunk. This shows the time period that the film was set in, however, it also highlights how Sheila feels close enough to Eric to speak to him about such subjects. By Eric being Intoxicated at a family dinner, it highlights a lack of self control, and a possible alcohol problem, relating to “one of his moods”. …show more content…

This is demonstrated by Mr Birling when he says “I can’t imagine”. But he was in one of his excitable, queer moods.” This shows how Eric’s moods can be up and down depending on the occasion. Word choice is used in quotes ‘excitable’ which has connotations of being happy, on a high, or agitated and ‘queer’ which suggests unusual or out of the ordinary behaviour. In the quote, Mr Birling uses the phrase ‘one of his’, implying that Eric has a large spectrum of emotions and moods, which even his family may not necessarily be able to

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The dramatic masterpiece ‘An Inspector Calls’ is arguably a mouthpiece to express the playwrights political views. Priestley uses many techniques to hyperbolise the older generations selfishness and the younger generations empathy as well as their acceptance of all views. Mr birling states “The Germans don’t want war. Nobody wants war” Priestly uses dramatic irony to portray Mr birling as delusional as we know there are 2 world wars after this play was set.

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At the start of the play, Eric shows that he can be assertive. We see that from this, he questions why his father decided to sack Eva Smith. He backs up his point with a well-reasoned argument however his father quickly shouts him down. We also see that in this period of time that the old are set in their ways because of how they grew up. They are utterly confident that they are right and they see the young, as foolish, Eric is

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This image remains when she confesses “I went to the manager at Milwards and I told him that if they didn't get rid of that girl, I’d never go near the place again…” showing how conscious of her power, and filled with jealousy and rage, feels the need to act out like a spoiled kid to get what she wants. However this changes when the reader realizes, how unlike her parents, Sheila accepts the consequences of her acts. This is highlighted when she acknowledges to the Inspector “No, not really. It was my own fault...

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Who is most responsible for Eva Smith's death? By Kerem and Vibbodh 9D In his 1945 drama "An Inspector Calls," J. B. Priestley concentrates on a rich "family" that resides in the North Midlands of England, in a made-up town called Brumley. Young Eric is the head of the family, along with his sister Sheila, who is Gerald Croft's fiancée at the beginning of the play.

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Mr. Birling, the father, toasts to the couple, and Gerald presents Sheila with her engagement ring. After Mr. Birling’s lengthy speech, the women and Eric leave the room. The two men then discuss personal matters, with Mr. Birling fearing for his daughter’s social inferiority to Gerald. When Eric returns, Mr. Birling continues giving advice, and is proudly announcing his individualistic worldview when the doorbell rings, announcing the arrival of the Inspector. This “introductory” part of the play gives the audience an insight into the individual characters of Birling family (in this, case, including Gerald).

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“An inspector calls” Eric Birling - development throughout the play Eric Birling is one of the main characters in J.B. Priestley’s play “An inspector calls”. He is the son of the wealthy capitalist Arthur Birling and works at his factory “Birling and Co” Early on in the play we get to know Eric’s character better. He is a rather naive and shy young man who has been having drinking problems for two years. We realise this when he is first introduced in the opening stage directions : he is “ quite not at ease”, “half shy/ half assertive”.

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‘Inspector calls’ was made in 1944 but set in 1912. As during that, time men were seen to be deemed superior to women, as they would work and represent the family since their last name came from the man. This is shown in the play when Mrs. Birling says to Sheila, her daughter, “when you’re married you’ll realise that men with important jobs to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time on the business”. Priestly writes Mrs. Birling to represent the ‘traditional wife’ although Sheila can be seen as a modern woman as she is the next generation after Mrs. Birling. This suggest that they have different values and ideologies, and how some are better than others, due to the new generation being able to learn from the older generations mistakes.

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• Eric stands up to his parents when it becomes clear that they will not take responsibility. “you’re beginning to pretend now that nothing’s really happened at all”. Eric sees that his parents are trying to ‘pretend’ that nothing has happened when it is suggested that the inspector was not real. He and Sheila, the younger characters, still feel responsible for their actions that took place in the death of Eva

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What dramatic techniques does Priestly use to create tension and suspense in “An Inspector Calls”? To understand the theme and the complexity of “An inspector calls”, a play where a young lady called Eva Smith dies and an inspector , with a strong and aggressive personality and tone, makes a whole family realize what they’ve all done to affect or cause Eva’s suicide; first we need to understand how the personal traits of each character affects the way in which they behave and we need to take in consideration the dramatic devices the author uses to keep us interested and wondering what happens next. Throughout the play the character development is notorious because we can notice that as the play advances, the characters start changing their

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However, even though Sheila is the good character she also has blemishes, and may have a negative impact on others around her. This understanding may possibly lead to the audience observing that even the most innocent characters are also flawed. Mr Birling is first introduced as a "heavy-looking, rather portentous man", which may explain Priestley's use of him to represent the typical capitalist, patriarch men in the 1910's. The adjective portentous gives the reader the impression that he is a well-known, pompous business owner that probably doesn't really care about the proletariat just like all other businessmen.

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How are the differences between younger and older generations presented in the play? In “An inspector calls”, one of J.B. Priestley's intentions was to demonstrate the treatment of the lower classes and the reactions of higher members of society predominantly by highlighting the differences in attitudes and values between the older and younger generations in Edwardian society. Whilst Mr Birling and Mrs Birling are representations of the older generation, their children Sheila and Erik, both young adults, are symbols of the younger generation who are portrayed favourably by Priestley in comparison to their parents. Towards the end of the play, these conflicts gain prominence.

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He is standing dramatically before him on stage. The Inspector’s speech has an accusatory and bitter tone, mirroring the anger of the

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He may be making derisive comments about lack of purity due to perceived hypersexuality since Gertrude's remarriage is not modest

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Setting and Use of Time. An Inspector Calls is set in 1912, but was written in 1945. There is tension between the lifestyle of the Birlings conveyed in the opening scene: rich, powerful, idle and the life of their workers

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'An Inspector Calls ' written by J.B. Priestley in 1945, revolves around an investigation into a working-class girl who committed suicide due to the Capitalist nature of society. In this play Priestley uses each character to represent an important message to deliver to the audience, mostly about the theme of responsibility. Priestley uses the young Sheila Birling, a carefree lady, to drive the play forward. Her importance shows the audience the need for a social change where gender equality is concerned and it highlights differences in attitude among the generations. In addition, it seems that Sheila becomes a 'Second Inspector ' towards the end of the play in order to reinforce Priestley 's message.

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