playwright of ’An Inspector Calls’ John Boynton Priestly was alive between 1894 and 1984‚ in this time he served in the First World War where in 1916 he was badly injured. It wasn’t until the end of the Second World War in 1945 that he wrote ’An Inspector Calls’; he chose to set the play thirty years in the past before either wars had happened- in 1912. Priestly was a renowned socialist and highly respected in his time- with his own radio show which around twenty million tuned into each week. Unfortunately
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Who is Inspector Goole? His identity is a mystery; he is not a real policeman though as Eric says‚ "He was our police inspector all right"(p.59) he did such a good job at making each person admit his/her guilt. Possible explanations of Goole’s identity that the essay will tackle are: simply an imposter who played an elaborate hoax on a group of upper class people who deserved to be frightened in this way. some kind of spiritual being or emissary with a moral mission to punish selfish behaviour
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‘An Inspector Calls’ Essay We don’t live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other. How does Priestly present this theme through the use of character‚ action and dramatic devices? ‘An Inspector Calls’ by ‘J.B Priestly’ is a post world war 2 drama set in 1912. The play is set in the industrial town of Brumley‚ the play is set in the front room of the Birling household. The play follows the classical unities rule where the play is set in one place‚ this allows future
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What is the significance of Inspector Goole in the play? The audience are first introduced to Inspector Goole half way through act 1. He is a mysterious character from the very beginning‚ but we see that he is confident and has an air of authority about him and he is determined to make the family face their guilt. He claims that he has seen the dead body of Eva Smith who died earlier that day after she had ‘swallowed a lot of strong disinfectant’. He is of much significance throughout the play
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Major Themes Class Taking the play from a socialist perspective inevitably focuses on issues of social class. Class is a large factor‚ indirectly‚ in the events of the play and Eva Smith’s death. Mrs. Birling‚ Priestley notes‚ is her husband’s social superior‚ just as Gerald will be Sheila’s social superior if they do get married. Priestley also subtly notes that Gerald’s mother‚ Lady Croft‚ disapproves of Gerald’s marrying Sheila for precisely this reason. Finally‚ everyone’s treatment of
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NOTES Priestley’s Life: John Boynton Priestley was born into a working class family in 1894. He knew early on that he wanted to become a writer‚ but decided against going to university as he thought he would get a better feel for the world around him by working. Instead‚ he became a junior clerk with a local wool firm at the age of 16. When the First World War broke out‚ Priestley joined the infantry and only just escaped death on a number of occasions. After the war‚ he gained a degree from
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How does Priestley present the inspector in the play? Priestley presents the inspector as a man who enjoys allowing people to feel intimidated by his presence. This is shown in the quote: “He creates at once an impression of massiveness‚ solidity and purposefulness.” This infers that although he may not be ‘massive’‚ he gains satisfaction from creating an impression of this. The word ‘solidity’ implies that he is a well kept together and reliable man‚ that perhaps he has the capability of making
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"An Inspector Calls": Issues and Priestly’s Viewpoint 22nd March 1997 Martin Howitt 11W Discuss some of the issues raised in "An Inspector Calls" and show how Priestly expresses his own viewpoint in the play. The play is set in the 1912 on an English street scene in the evening. The plot of "An Inspector Calls" is about a police inspector who interrupts an elegant engagement dinner party to question the family and their guests about an unsuspected suicide of a young working-class girl
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Inspector Goole in Priestley’s play An Inspector Calls’ is arguably the most important character. An agent of change and a voice and a voice of personal and social conscience he delivers the main message of the play in his parting speech challenging the Birlings‚ and the audience‚ to “Remember” that there are “millions and millions” of people like Eva Smith‚ all “linked” in some way. Clearly at this stage his examination of the Birlings behaviour and the investigation of the suicide of Eva Smith
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methods to present the inspector as well as showing his importance such as stage directions and from the language he uses. These methods allow us to understand and relate to the moral messages put across in the play. The inspector right from the moment he is introduced is commanding of the situation and already has that authority he displays later on in the play. “at once an impression of massiveness‚ solidity and purposefulness”. As the play progresses the inspector continues to make this impression
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