The plot of the play is set in Chicago & Ottawa, Illinois during the 1920s & 1930s. It was a time when America experienced prosperity and turmoil, along with liberal freedom for women. That means having the right to vote, and working outside the home. For protagonist Catherine Donohue, it was the start of a tumultuous relationship of her job at Radium Dial Company where she creates watches for $8.00 a day.
Men of the time ruled the roost while the women stayed home where they belong. Roles of men and women have changed drastically in 100 years. Back in the time of 1916 men were always superior to women no matter what the situation was. In Glaspell’s play characterization demonstrates how the women challenged the status quo. “My, it’s a good thing the men couldn’t hear us.
'An Inspector Calls' was written by 'J.B Priestley' in the year 1944/45 and it was set in 1912 before the first World War and the sinking of the 'unsinkable Titanic. The play was first produced in 1946 after the war. The play is about the Birling's that are celebrating their daughter's engagement with Gerald Croft and the Inspector interrupts them with the news about a girl's suicide. The girl seems to be driven to suicide due to the actions of the family and the Inspector wants the family to know the consequences of their choices and actions. Priestley uses the Inspector to convey his socialist ideas in the capitalist setting of the play with the theme that we are all responsible for each other, i.e each character's action led to the evitable
The repition of "I am a hard headed man of business" shows his arrogance and his capitalistic and emotionless mentality. "I say there isn't a chance of war" show his stubborn and arrogance. Priestly uses this dramatic irony to persuade the audience to side against Birling as they will think that he is foolish, unsympathetic and untrustworthy. As of portraying their stubborn and heard headed personality was not enough, Priestly makes it sure that the audience is able to clearly see mentality and coldness that capitalism brings to a human by making men emotionless and unsympathetic. "Well, we've several hundred young women there, y'know, and they keep changing.
In the play An Inspector Calls written by J.B Priestley, the use of morality and double standards gives us an insight into the society of the early 1900s; which remains relevant in social stratification, cultural and deviance aspects. Through the story of Arthur Birling, Mrs. Sybil Birling and their children Eric and Sheila. The upper-class family, with untouchable reputation, enjoy of an intimate party soiree in honour of Sheila's engagement to Gerald Croft. Son of a well-known business man, Sir George Croft from Crofts Limited. When Inspector Goole pays a mood-changing visit, resulting in the systematic manipulation of the presumably respectable characters.
J.B Priestly wrote ‘An Inspector Calls’ in 1945, the last year of World War 2 but sets it in 1912 a time of inequality where upper and lower class was distinguished and treated differently within society and where a big gap existed among poor and rich people. The play introduces us to the theme of social inequality and social responsibility displaying the fact that trade unions were very weak, workers had few rights, wages were very low and many other injustices where made specially towards women; they were treated very differently then men and they were looked on as less important in society. Lighting is changed at the arrival of the Inspector "The lighting should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter and harder" this displays a contrast between scenes and atmosphere. It also shows the change in mood; suggesting a cheerful environment and a very joyfully and delight mood, everybody feeling thrilled for Shelia 's engagement and celebrating united as a family. But it changes to "brighter and harder" at the arrival of the Inspector and
“An Inspector Calls” is a play written by J.B. Priestly, in which a mysterious inspector interrogates a wealthy, upper-middle class English family about their responsibility for the death of a young girl. The play itself was first premiered in the United Kingdom in 1946, a crucial point in the history of the country. Following the trauma of the Second World War, and the incredible damage suffered as a result of the Blitz, the nation’s political situation was beginning to shift massively towards socialist ideologies: with the first Labour government in several years, led by Clement Attlee, and the foundation of the NHS. All these issues were clearly on Priestley’s mind, as he wrote the play: remaining to this day one of the most socialist works to have been written in Britain to date.
(RoT 89). When Uncle Hammer had driven over the bridge, the Wallaces touched their hats in respect, thinking that it had been Mr. Granger. (RoT 139). The direct and indirect methods showed us how greedy Harlan Granger was. Moreover, these methods have helped the readers understand the
The article “The Death of Horatio Alger” By Paul Krugman Dives into the cruel story of america not being the land of opportunity we once knew and loved. The article goes straight into it by starting with our nation's history of inequality going all the way back to the 1940s. Krugman then goes from there going into times when economic mobility was easiest to when it was hardest to now. To sum up what he says is the now our class mobility is at a all time low and if that was not bad enough apparently our politicians are “doing everything they can to fortify class inequality, while denouncing anyone who complains”(Krugman) the article covers what a politician with this goal would do as in what policy they would work to implement and more.
How and why is a social group represented in a particular way? In his play The Importance of Being Earnest (1895, London St. James’ theater), Oscar Wilde portrays the attitudes and society of Victorian upper class through character interactions within the ‘Bunburyist’ adventures of Algernon Moncrieff and Jack Worthing. The play’s comedic elements, in addition to the portrayal of power structures, are used as an effective medium to challenge the viewer to reflect upon Wilde’s criticism on institutions and values of the aristocracy. In conjunction to this, deeper analysis can be conducteds about marriage in Victorian aristocracy and their attitudes to members of other social groups.
In An Inspector Calls, how does Priestley explore the conflict between personal and social responsibility? In an inspector calls, Priestly explores the conflict between personal and social responsibility by using different morals, these include, equality, responsibility, modesty and selflessness. This is a morality play, it is designed to tell the audience how to behave, and he does this by using different moral circumstances, this is shown in the inspector’s final speech, “there are millions and millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths still left with us” this tells the audience that the play was actually about their day to day lives. Priestly uses a clever technique in which the old generation have old fashioned and unmoral views,
The characters in the play reveal some of the gender stereotypes through the way they are presented in the beginning of the play, “The sheriff and Hale are men in the middle life… They are followed
The rigid class system in Middle Age Europe was a primary factor that determined the course of events. In Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, there are underlying issues throughout the plot involving classes of the characters, and their roles within their class. While for the time period, it was common for those in lower classes to be looked down upon, Shakespeare uses many mediums to slyly challenge this idea. Throughout the play, Shakespeare makes the class differences obvious, yet creates certain character dynamics which challenge preconceptions. Twelfth Night is centered around a distinct and rigid class system, yet Shakespeare comments on its negative impacts, and yearns for a more fluid system, in order to create a more just and fair world.
Priestly attempts to exemplify in Mr Birling’s character into the type of mentality that majority of upper class capitalist business men had in the early 1900s in England. It is extremely ironic that the Inspector rings the bell of the house just as Mr Birling is telling Eric and Gerald that people must look out solely for their own interests ("a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own - and - “ act 1): throughout his interrogation, the Inspector champions the very opposite idea - that "we are all responsible for each other.” The Inspectors view on community as a whole is considered a very socialist view. Notably, Priestly was socialist after all and used the play as a more socially acceptable way of stating his opinion on social responsibility, politics and labour rights. The
Throughout the play, the characters look at faith, race, opportunities, fatherhood and
