AIC Act one Flashcards
lighting should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter and harder
pink and intimate
- reference to idiom of rose-tinted glasses(false and unrealistic)
- ignorant to plight of the working class
- jovial and relaxed
- connotations of warmth and happiness
brighter and harder
- inspector is powerful enough to change atmosphere
- like an interrogation
- lighting change mirrors how Priestley wants society to change
- in bright light nothing can hide
heavy-looking
portentous
provincials in his speech
- Mr Birling
shows greed
tries hard to impress people
speaks with noticeable accent
- reveals lower-class origins
- insecurity
- lack of sophistication
attractive
too manly to be a dandy
man about town
- Gerlad
good catch for a woman
fashionable socialite
never had to struggle
knows what to say and do
good education
mixes in the right circles, belongs in the right clubs
pretty girl
very pleased with life and rather excited
- Sheila
naïve and sheltered young girl(not woman)
protected by her family
not quite at ease
half shy, half assertive
- Eric
shy - apprehension and nervousness
juxtaposes
assertive - dominance and confidence
displays inner turmoil Eric experiences
- not fully realised and accepted personality
perceived as insignificant
- last to be described
- outcast within his own family
it’s exactly the same port your father gets
- Mr Birling
trying to imitate a more prominent societal figure as well as gain rapport
- trying to climb up the social ladder
- cement connections
a symbol of status and wealth
- celebratory mood
I don’t pretend to know much about it
- Gerald
less obsessed with reputation, status, image and classism than Mr Birling is
(generational difference)
Arthur, you’re not supposed to say such things
- Mrs Birling
disdain for his actions that expose his lack of social superiority
- wants to uphold social niceties and dinner etiquette
thinks lower-classes shouldn't be respected or complimented - small minded upper-class trait
except from all last summer, when you never came near me
- Sheila
seed of suspicion planted that Gerald is hiding something
she has genuine concerns
- in two minds “half playful, half serious”
- covers it with jestful and flirtatious tone
foreshadows the conflict to come
represents the sexism and oppression of woman at the time
- want to speak out and demonstrate they are serious
- gender walls at the time refrained them and forced them to cover up their seriousness with a playful and passive attitude
I was awfully busy at the works all that time
- Gerald
repeatedly uses the same excuse
awfully
- connected with unpleasant
belittling and fooling Sheila
men with important work to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time and energy on their business
- Mrs Birling
clear hierarchical distinction between men and women
- patriarchy ideology
- she has internalised the social etiquette of the Edwardian period
- is propagating it
exactly the cycle Priestley seeks to break
you’re squiffy
- Sheila
colloquial language
- casual sibling relationship
Eric drinks too much
- immature
- doesn’t know self-restraint
What an expression, Sheila!
- Mrs Birling
snobbish - alarmed at lower-class traits Sheila is adopting
Eric, when you’ve a daughter of your own, you’ll understand
- Mr Birling
foreshadows Eva’s pregnancy
we may look forward to the time when Crofts and Birlings are no longer competing but are working together
- Mr Birling
cares more about status and wealth than his daughter’s happiness
see’s marriage as a business contract
- selfish and self-conceited
we’re in a time of steadily increasing prosperity
- Mr Birling
dramatic irony
- Wall street crash
- caused a huge recession
The Germans don’t want war. Nobody wants war
- Mr Birling
dramatic irony
- discredits Mr Birling’s capitalist ideology
- shows him to be pompous and foolish
- 2nd world war
unsinkable, totally unsinkable
- Mr Birling
emphasises the nature of his character
- hubris
- didactic nature
repetition
- looks more foolish
intensifier totally
- shows complete confidence in his judgement
- shows how flawed it is
- Priestly belittling capitalists and saying not trust them
Birling lights his cigar, Gerald who has lit a cigarette
how mimics the actions of Mr Birling
- epitome of the capitalist agenda Priestley is against
diluted version of Birling
- will perpetuate a system that is unfair
- following in the footsteps of his capitalist predecessor
I might find my way into the next Honours list. Just a knighthood
- Mr Birling
inferiority complex
- trying to prove his family is good enough for Gerald
- comes of as showing off
don’t get into the police court or start a scandal
- Mr Birling
foreshadows the events to follow(heavily ironic)
- about to be investigated by a police inspector
- accused of serious moral crimes
clothes mean something quite different to a woman
- Mr Birling
treats women in a condescending manner
- misogynistic culture
portrays women as superficial and materialistic
- suggests woman’s worth is dependent on how she looks
as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive - community and all that nonsense
- Mr Birling
simile
contemptuous and patronising tone
- mocks and chastises socialism
- no hierarchy for Birling to abuse
- would alter the class system that protects the Birlings
a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own - and-
- Mr Birling
condescending and egotistical attitude of keeping profits only for the private owners
-makes the audience dislike him
selfish, dismissive words gets cut off by the inspector
- symbolises the disruption of the ideology Birling was espousing
Eric suddenly guffaws
uncomfortable talking about his father’s business
social awkwardness
- insecure(foil of Gerald)
A chain of events
- Inspector
outlines nature of moral crime the family have committed
- lack of social responsibilty
Priestley’s mouthpiece
- textual mechanism through which the play is able to impart its didactic message
shows everyone is responsible for Eva’s death
it’s better to ask for the Earth than to take it
- Inspector
it is socially irresponsible to be greedy and take things without permission
- what the privileged Birlings are used to
laying bare and unpicking their moral assumptions
I can’t accept any responsibilty
-Mr Birling
dismissive and narrow-minded nature towards Eva’s death
stubborn and will not listen to the Inspector’s prophetic message
it’s my duty to keep labour costs down
- Mr Birling
language of economics which disguises the reality of the situation
- by keeping wages down, he is condemning his workers to lives of poverty and hardship
priestley wanted fairer distribution of profit fairer treatment of workers were treated more fairly
defensive, arrogant words
- Priestley criticises capitalist system
massiveness, solidity and purposefulness
“carefully (and) weightily”
“a disconcerting habit of looking hard at the person he addresses before he speaks”.
- Inspector
Priestley ensures the character representing socialism is seen as more powerful than anyone else
omniprescent
manipulative
impression of massiveness
these girls aren’t cheap labour - they’re people
- Sheila
first to realise capitalism exploits the misery of the many for the betterment of the few
- Priestley uses her as example of people’s changing attitudes towards less fortunate(dehumanised and objectified)
- dash represents how distance the concepts are for her
mummy
daddy
- Sheila
immature
cossetted by her parents
shows development and growth later on by referring to them as ‘mum’ and ‘dad’
recognises it with a little cry, gives a half-stifled sob and then runs out
very distressed and guilty
- opposite of Mr Birling’s denial of his wrongdoings
- the moment she realises she got her fire
we tried to put ourselves in the place of these young women counting their pennies in their dingy little back bedrooms
- Inspector
teaching the Birling’s to feel empathy
- also to society in general
Priestley’s plea for the rich to understand their role in the suffering of the working class
I can’t help thinking about this girl - destroying herself so horribly
- Sheila
genuine emotions
dashes
- suggests she is flustered and can’t think coherently
We were having a nice little family celebration tonight. And a nasty mess you’ve made of it
- Mr Birling
brutally insular to the topic at hand
highlights the values he represents
- his selfish celebration
Now listen, darling
for God’s sake - don’t say anything to the inspector
- Gerald
convinced he still has control
- assumed power
thinks he can shut up Sheila
- dominant, patriachal attitude
Tries to deny and feign ignorance
- arrogant, dismissive, panicked,
Why - you fool- he knows
- Sheila
understands the importance of the Inspector
- has more info than he is revealing
leads her to see her relationship with Gerald in a more realistic, more cynical way
She’d swallowed a lot of strong disinfectant. Burnt her inside out, of course
- Inspector
wry, deadpan, factual tone
detailed imagery
- shock Birling’s to give him information
Edna
reminder of the Birling’s wealth
presence of the lower class
- little dialogue
- invisible
- shows their inequality
- mirrors Eva Smith
is it the one you wanted me to have?
- Sheila
ring
- more obsessed with the material aspects of her relationship than her feelings for Gerald.
subservient
- Gerald is in control
