An Inspector Calls

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  • Created by: amy229
  • Created on: 04-02-18 11:50
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  • An Inspector Calls
    • Characters
      • Mr Birling
        • "Unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable."
          • Titanic symbolizes his own family. They think they are invincible ans untouchable, but by the end of the play, they are defeated.
        • "As if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive-community and all that nonsense."
          • Birling mocks Socialism. The simile shows how the capitalists view the socialists in society,
        • "War's inevitable. And to that I say-fiddlesticks!"
          • Dramatic irony- makes him sound a foolish character. Confident in his words-punctuation shows this. Belittles other's ideas.
      • Mrs Birling
        • "Girls of that class."
          • Upper class Vs Lower class. She represents social snobbery. Dismissive of those with little wealth.
        • "As if a girl of that sort will ever refuse money."
          • Dismissive of the lower class, showing her snobbery and social inequality.
        • "Go and look for the father of the child. It's his responsibility."
          • Ironically passes the blame onto her son. At first she is confident but, when she finds out the truth her weakness begins to show. Priestly shows that wealthy members of society cannot be trusted.
      • Sheila
        • "But these girls aren't cheap labour, they're people."
          • Her attitude changes as the play progresses, showing hope for the future. Priestly uses Sheila to portray his social views.
        • "He's giving us the rope- so that we'll hang ourselves."
          • Metaphor and imagery shows how the inspector manipulates each character."
        • "I'll never, never do it again to anybody."
          • She accepts her actions and how they lead to the girl's death. She shows her guilt throughout the play, showing a lesson has been learnt.
      • Eric
        • "Why shouldn't they try for higher wages?"
          • Supports the workers' rights, a socialist point of view.
        • " I am ashamed of you."
          • Shows Eric's frustration that his parents wont admit their wrong actions that caused Eva Smith's death- show no responsibility.
        • "We did her in alright."
          • At the end of the play Eric realises his social responsibility. He isn't interested that his parents wont admit anything, he realises that the girl is now dead.
      • Gerald
        • "You couldn't have done anything else."
          • Gerald sides with Mr Birling, agreeing that dismissing Eva from the works was the correct decision.
        • "Everything's alright now Sheila. What about this ring?"
          • Gerald didn't learn anything from the inspector and believes that everything can go back to normal. He shows no guilt.
        • "It's a favourite haunt of women of the town."
          • Hint at prostitution. Euphemism is used when characters refer to taboo subjects.
      • Inspector Goole
        • "Need not to be a big man,but creates at once an impression of massiveness, solidity and    purposefulness."
          • A semantic field of size is used to show the power the inspector has.
        • "Burnt her insides out of course."
          • Emotive language is used to emphasize Eva Smith's death, making some members of the family feel more guilt for being a part of her death.
        • "It's better to ask for the Earth rather than take it."
          • The inspector is used to portray Priestly's views on society and social responsibility.
      • Eva Smith
        • "Burnt her insides out of course."
          • Emotive language shows how harsh her death was, creating sympathy.
        • "As if a girl of that sort would ever refuse money."
        • "Girls of that class."
    • Themes
      • Wealth, power and influence
        • "You know of course my husband was lord mayor just two years ago?"
        • "Son of Sr George Croft."
        • The Birlings attempted to frighten the inspector with their wealth and social status.
      • Social inequality
        • "I think Sheila and I better go into the drawing room."
        • "These girls aren't cheap labour, they're people."
        • "As if a girl of that sort would ever refuse money."
      • Generations
        • Eric and Sheila are often refered to as children in the play, showing how they are treated by their family.
        • The younger members of the family admit their mistakes, contrasting with the older members.
        • Eric and Sheila are willing to change after they find their faults.
      • Political ideologies
        • "As if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive-community and all that nonsense."
        • "We don't live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other."

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