Act 1 Flashcards
“the lighting should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter and harder”
Interpretation - Symbolic that the Inspector is there to shine a light on their behaviour
Techniques – stage directions, symbolism, adjectives
Analysis –
The stage directions regarding the lighting are symbolic of how the Birlings’ lives change due to the Inspector’s visit
The colour ‘pink’ suggests a comfortable way of living, maybe seeing life through rose-tinted spectacles and ignoring reality
The adjective ‘brighter’ implies that the Inspector brings light to show up their behaviour.
The adjective ‘intimate’ implies that they are a close knit family or that the upper classes have closed themselves away from the ‘harder’ reality of the working classes.
Birling “ I’m talking as a hard-headed, practical man of business”
Interpretation- Birling is shown to behave as the patriarch of the family, fulfilling society’s expectations that he would provide for his family. He does not identify himself as a proud, loving father celebrating his daughter’s engagement. Capitalist. A business man not a father.
Techniques – alliteration, adjective
Analysis
The alliteration of ‘hard-headed’ has a cold tone , mimicking his harsh attitude towards his workers
The adjective ‘hard’ shows he has no compassion and can not change , and his emphasis on ‘headed’ suggests he does not views things with his heart and has little empathy.
Mr Birling “ I was Lord Mayor here two years ago when Royalty visited us………I gather there’s a very good chance of a knighthood”
Interpretation- Birling is shown to be determined to prove his value to Gerald and the Crofts by emphasising how he is moving up the social ranks
Techniques – pronouns, semantic field
Analysis:
Birling uses the personal pronoun ‘I’ showing that he is not focussing on his daughter but trying to impress Gerald with his family’s social status
Words from the semantic field of power and British hierarchy are used ‘Lord Mayor’, Royalty’ and ‘knighthood’ to show his desire to climb the social ladder and impress the Crofts.
Birling “as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive – community and all that nonsense”
Interpretation – Birling dismisses the idea of community. He expresses his disapproval of socialist ideals. Priestley shows a pre-war society focussing on individualism.
Techniques – simile, tone, abstract noun
Analysis-
The simile refers to ‘bees’, these insects have connotations of working hard together with almost no hierarchy apart from a single queen bee. A “hive” is an enclosed community in which all must take responsibility
Birling uses a dismissive tone to show he does not value socialism and feels threatened by it . The abstract noun “nonsense” shows that he regards it as illogical.
Sheila “But these girls aren’t cheap labour – they’re people.”
Interpretation – Sheila shows an understanding/empathy for the working classes and recognises they have rights. This foreshadows her dramatic and rapid change in attitude by the end of the play.
Techniques – noun, determiner, image
Analysis-
The image of ‘cheap labour’ dehumanises the workers, they are merely machines for industrialists like Birling to make money from.
The use of the determiner “these” show that Sheila feels distanced/separate from such women. This emphasises the class divide in Edwardian society.
The noun “girls” implies that such women are seen as having low status and no rights, like a child.
Inspector “A nice little promising life there , I thought, and a nasty mess somebody’s made of it”
Interpretation- the Inspector deliberately understates the situation so that the audience can dwell on how horrifically the Birlings have behaved.
Techniques – juxtaposition , adjectives
Analysis –
The adjectives ‘nice little promising’ have positive associations showing Eva had potential for a good life.
The juxtaposition between this and ‘nasty mess’ show the extent of the damage caused and how little control Eva had over her life.
Sheila “If she’d been some miserable plain little creature, I don’t suppose I’d have done it”
Interpretation –Sheila wants to rid herself of guilt so almost blames Eva for being too attractive, trying to justify her treatment of the shop assistant. Sheila is shown to be immature and jealous.
Techniques – noun ,adjective
Analysis-
The noun ‘creature’ has animalistic connotations- Sheila sees Eva as beneath her, echoed in Act Three when the Inspector accuses Eric of treating the woman as an ‘animal’.
The adjectives ‘miserable plain little’ are the characteristics that the Birlings assume all working class people share. They should be vulnerable and easy to manipulate.
