AIC context

Question 1

describe the class system in 1912 Britain:

Answer 1

• firmly divided along class lines.
• those with the most money had the most power.
• Labour Party worked to represent the interests of the working class.

1912 National Miners’ Strike: over a million workers across Britain campaigned for fairer wages for miners. largest strike in Britain at the time.

Question 2

describe gender roles in 1912 Britain:

Answer 2

• only men who owned property could vote.
• women weren’t allowed to vote at all.
• women’s lives were very controlled by their families and husbands.

Question 3

• was there government help in 1912 Britain?
• describe WW1, and its effects:

Answer 3

• none at all.
• dangerous tension between European countries in 1912. resulted in WW1. terrible conflict, cost millions of lives.
• after the war, British people questioned the leadership given by the upper class during the war.

Question 4

describe gender roles in 1945 Britain:

Answer 4

by 1928, all men and women over 21 got the vote, so power was shared out more evenly.

Question 5

describe social class in 1945 Britain:

Answer 5

• still divided by class.
• still conflicts between owners and workers, such as the 1926 General Strike (many important industries halted).
• from 1930, a global economic slump (the Depression) hit many British industries - led to more unemployment and poverty.

Question 6

how did WW2 affect people’s attitudes to social classes?

Answer 6

• millions of people from all classes had fought for Britain during the war. people wanted to work out how to make a better society.
• socialism and left-wing ideas (sharing out the wealth and power) became more popular. we are all ‘responsible for each other’.

Question 7

describe the Government Welfare System in 1945:

Answer 7

Labour Party won the 1945 General Election by a landslide. Focussed on improving the welfare system to look after the needs of the poorest in British society (e.g. the NHS).

Question 8

why did Priestley set the play when he did?

Answer 8

to show that things had improved, but also to highlight that many things still had not.

Question 9

describe the expectations of middle class families in 1912:

Answer 9

• family members expected to know their role, and be content in their position. parents in charge, children obedient + unquestioning.
• men: expected to support family. protect women (wives and daughters) from ‘unpleasant and disturbing things’.
• women: marry into money (don’t have to work), plan parties, visit friends, have children. no cooking, cleaning, washing.
• working class families (especially women) had different roles. most worked in factories or as servants.

Question 10

describe the Birling family seeming normal:

Answer 10

• want everyone to believe they’re perfect. ‘You seem to be a nice, well-behaved family’.
• gender roles clearly defined. women withdraw to let the men talk about ‘male’ stuff.
• tension bubbling: Sybil keeps correcting her family’s social mistakes, Eric acts out of turn and laughs oddly, Sheila teases Gerald ‘half playfully, half serious’ about last summer.

Question 11

describe something being not right about the Birlings:

Answer 11

• clear hierarchy at beginning is destroyed by Inspector’s arrival.
• Sheila and Eric can think for themselves without their parents’ influence.
• Sheila doesn’t know whether she wants to marry Gerald anymore.
• Eric says his mother doesn’t ‘understand anything’ and that Birling’s ‘not the kind of father a chap could go to’ for help.
• Sheila and Eric refuse to ‘go on behaving just as we did’. they don’t want to pretend anymore, the parents no longer have authority over them.

Question 12

describe how the plot is driven by class:

Answer 12

• message is about social responsibility, so class plays a central part. Priestley tries to put across the message that people ‘are all members of one body’.
• the characters in the play represent the classes, and Priestley challenges their views and behaviour in order to challenge the class hierarchy.

Question 13

describe the clear class structure in the early 20th century:

Answer 13

WORKING CLASS: (eva/daisy). hardest jobs and the least money. eva struggles through life, doing tough jobs, and earning only just enough to survive.

MIDDLE CLASS: (Birlings). owned factories/were professional (e.g. lawyers). lots of money and control. the Birlings are wealthy, own a business, and live comfortably.

UPPER CLASS: (Gerald). inherited lots of land and money, often Lords/Ladies. Gerald’s mother’s family are ‘landed people’, so Gerald’s family is socially better than Arthur’s. Inherited money had a higher status than trade.

Question 14

describe how the class system meant that the lower class struggled:

Answer 14

• the upper class had a limited sense of social responsibility for those less well off. they either didn’t know, didn’t care, or didn’t want to know.
• e.g. Sybil claims to not recognise Eva’s photo - to her, she has no identity.
• Priestley suggested that the upper classes didn’t question the class system as it worked for them, and overlooked alcoholism and womanising, as it was easier to ignore the unpleasant than to deal with it.
• the Inspector tells the Birlings they must accept social responsibility, otherwise it would end in ‘fire, blood and anguish’.

Question 15

describe how the Birlings think that class is all that matters:

Answer 15

• Birling’s biggest concern about Eva’s death is that he won’t get his knighthood due to the ‘public scandal’.
• he thinks his position of authority makes him more important (he’d been a Lord Mayor and council member for many years).
• uses Gerald to promote his social class - pleased his daughter is marrying into a higher class, tells Gerald to tell his parents about the knighthood.
• Sybil is part of the Brumley Women’s Charity Organisation only for the social status, and not with the wish to give money to desperate women.

Question 16

how does Priestley show that he believes class shouldn’t matter?

Answer 16

• uses the play to reveal the unfairness of the class system: uses the Birlings as exaggerated caricatures if all the bad qualities he thought the ruling classes had.
• shows how Priestley not only saw one family, but all of society. he presents the Birlings’ arrogant and selfish behaviour as common to the middle classes.
• presents the working class as victims of the class system - the miseries Eva suffered were common to ‘millions and millions’ of people. she could have been anyone.

Question 17

how is it shown that how people act isn’t just about class?

Answer 17

• Eva is expected to have low morals - she’s described as ‘not a good case’. she still refuses to accept stolen money even when she’s desperate.
• Priestley is trying to suggest that class clouds people’s judgements, and people should be judged on what they do, not on what class they’re in.
• by presenting Sheila and Eric as having changed by the end, turning against their own class’s views, Priestley is saying that class isn’t all that matters - individuals can break out and choose to act differently.

Question 18

how might Priestley’s message have affected the audience at the time?

Answer 18

in 1940s London, going to the theatre was mainly a middle class activity, so the attitudes of the Birlings may have seemed familiar to some audiences. Priestley’s presentation of Eva as more honourable than the upper/middle classes might have caused some audience members to question their own prejudices.

Question 19

how are the older generations portrayed as old fashioned?

Answer 19

• Arthur and Sybil have very traditional views - they think they know best, believe children should be seen and not heard, and they don’t like when their authority is challenged.
• they represent the views of the ruling class, too - they feel superior to people ‘of that class’ like Eva.

Question 20

describe how the younger generation are different to the older generation:

Answer 20

• some are ambitious, determined, and motivated. Eva had ‘a lot to say - far too much’, so she was sacked because of her courage.
• the younger generation also challenge the authority of their elders, threatening Birling, who tells them they’d ‘better keep quiet’.
• as the younger generation learn their lesson, there’s a better chance of a more equal and fair society in the future.

at the end of the play, Eric stands around as if he wants nothing to do with his parents. Sheila stands by him. they’re no longer controlled by their parents.

Question 21

describe how Gerald is the ‘oldest young man’:

Answer 21

• closer to Sheila and Eric’s age, but is already old in his attitudes. he’s like a younger version of Arthur - shallow and stubborn. his marriage is for business reasons, he agreed that Eva should have been fired.
• he doesn’t learn anything, either: when he’s found out to have ditched Eva, he didn’t feel guilty, and at the end, he thinks the engagement is back on, ‘Everything’s all right now, Sheila’.
• even though he’s part of the younger generation, his views are unchanged, suggesting that a more caring future isn’t inevitable - people can choose whether to change or not.
• Priestley is criticising the upper classes, that they’re set in their ways and unlikely to change.

Question 22

describe the Birlings’ attitude to gender:

Answer 22

the Birlings look at class, gender, and even clothes to judge people. stereotypes help them to decide who they like and don’t like before even getting to know them.

Question 23

describe how the men start out as stereotypes:

Answer 23

• preoccupied with work and public affairs.
• Gerald feels it’s his duty to rescue Eva from the womanising Alderman Meggarty.
• Gerald is allowed to sleep around before his marriage, and Sheila isn’t. They ‘broke out and had a bit of fun sometimes’. Double standards for men and women.

Question 24

describe how the women start out as a stereotype:

Answer 24

• supposed to be obsessed with ‘pretty clothes’, shopping and weddings. Sheila gazes adoringly at her ring and asks, ‘is it the one you wanted me to have?’
• they’re protected against ‘unpleasant and disturbing things’.
• Sheila gets Eva sacked because of pride, vanity, and jealousy - stereotypical female traits.
• Sheila is accused of being hysterical - a derogatory and undermining state associated with women at the time.

Question 25

describe how the young women challenge the gender stereotypes:

Answer 25

• Eva and Sheila rebel and break out of societal rules.
• Eva questioned the decision of her boss, and ‘had a lot to say’ about the wages at the factory.
• instead of relying on a man to save her, Eva refused to accept Eric’s stolen money.
• Sheila interrupts and challenges everyone.

Question 26

describe how by the end the gender stereotypes are turned upside down:

Answer 26

• as the play develops, Birling, Gerald, and Eric get weaker while Sheila gets stronger. Priestley does this to challenge the audience’s view of women at the time.
• Gerald’s rejected by Sheila, Eric is revealed to be nervous and lazy with a drinking problem. Birling’s authority has been undermined the entire night, and he’s ‘panic-stricken’ as he speaks the final line.
• Sheila starts stating her own opinions, not those she’s ‘supposed’ to have. ‘That’s what’s important - and not whether a man is a police inspector or not.’ She’s learnt to think for herself.

Question 27

describe how An Inspector Calls is in the style of an old morality play:

Answer 27

• morality plays were religious plays in the late Middle Ages. tried to teach people how to behave, warned them against the dangers of sin. used to focus on the 7 deadly sins.
• AIC points out everyone’s sins, and tries to get them to confess, repent, and ‘share’ their ‘guilt’.
• however, it’s different as it doesn’t follow Christian ideas, and is non-religious. instead of the moral judge being God, it’s the Inspector (plays into him being omniscient, omnipotent).

Question 28

describe how there’s something odd about the Inspector:

Answer 28

• Sheila said she had an idea ‘all along’ that ‘there was something curious about him’. she questions the supernatural side - asks what he was, rather then who he was.
• his origin is unknown, he seems omniscient - they didn’t tell him anything he didn’t already know. seems unbelievable.
• Priestley deliberately leaves questions about the Inspector unanswered, as it increases the mystery and tension.

Question 29

describe the most important thing in the play: learning your lesson:

Answer 29

• Inspector’s identity doesn’t matter. he teaches the Birlings a lesson, and what matters most is how they react to it, and who learns from it:
  > Gerald, Arthur and Sybil decide it’s a
  hoax. they’re relieved the Inspector was
  a fraud, and think they’re off the hook.
  > Sheila and Eric waver slightly when
  they find out there’s been no suicide,
  but they’ve learnt the important lesson.
• Sheila and Eric hold true to their moral instincts - even when they’re given an opportunity to pretend ‘everything’s just as it was before’. the others act selfishly and don’t take responsibility for their actions.

Question 30

describe the significance of the quote:
‘You admit being prejudiced against her case?’

Answer 30

• Sybil’s final judgement that Eva is unworthy of charity doomed Eva.
• the Inspector reverses the process, and now it’s Sybil and the rest of the Birling family that are being judged.

Question 31

describe how some people never learn their lesson:

Answer 31

• Birling sneers at Eric’s private education and the younger generation who ‘know it all’, as he’s had to work his way up. this is ironic, as it’s the older generation who think they know it all.
• this arrogance is why Birling is so stubborn - he doesn’t think anyone has anything of use to tell him (especially not his children or a lowly Inspector). he only listens to Gerald as he’s upper class.
• Arthur, Sybil, and Gerald’s arrogance prevents them from changing - they don’t see anything wrong in the way they think or act, and believe they know best.

Question 32

describe how others do try to change their ways:

Answer 32

• the Inspector has more of an effect on Eric and Sheila, who’re ashamed of their behaviour. they reject their parents.
• they understand that the most important thing is the lesson learnt, not whether the Inspector was real.
• Sheila changes not only her views but also her personality - she starts out playful, self-centred, and ‘pleased with life’, but as the play progresses, she becomes more aware, sensitive, and mature.

Question 33

describe how ‘ignorance is bliss’:

Answer 33

• the older generation refuse to change as they’re happy living in ignorance. the problems of the working class don’t affect them, and they don’t want to know.
• PROSTITUTION: ‘I see no point in mentioning the subject’
• DRINKING: ‘it isn’t true’, says Mrs Birling, when Eric’s habit is revealed.
• even Sheila tries to forget her bad behaviour, ‘it didn’t seem to be anything terrible at the time’.
• they do everything they can to avoid changing, even when it’s clear that they’ve done wrong - they refuse to believe it, and blame everyone else instead. it suits them to think they’re right. they don’t see any point in changing their behaviour, as the system works in their favour.

Question 34

describe the different characters’ views towards social responsibility:

Answer 34

BIRLING: thinks that community responsibility is ‘nonsense’. the interests of business are more important than workers’ rights.

MRS BIRLING: believes that they have no responsibility to the working class - her prejudices are so ingrained that they can’t be changed.

SHEILA: realises that getting Eva sacked out of spite was irresponsible - but she didn’t do anything about it at the time.

Question 35

describe how social responsibility is the Inspector’s main focus:

Answer 35

• his final speech is clear and to the point and is about social responsibility,
• wasn’t just trying to make the family feel guilty for Eva, but to make them aware of the difficulties faces by all the ‘millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths’.
• all the events in AIC are connected - Priestley’s moral seems to be that it doesn’t take great people to change the world, we all changed it everyday just by how we treat others.

Question 36

what are the different types of responsibility in the play:

Answer 36

• the Inspector wants people to be ‘responsible for each other’. he sees responsibility as a duty towards others.
• Mr and Mrs Birling are only interested in finding out who is ‘responsible’ for the scandal that’s going to emerge - to them, responsibility is about individual blame, rather than collective good.

Question 37

describe how the play reveals a lot about Priestley’s socialist ideas:

Answer 37

• he was a socialist. his plays promote social responsibility and criticise the problems created by the class divide.
• AIC tries to get the audience to question not only their social responsibility, but also how responsible they are for their own actions.
• the audience are already wary of Birling’s short-sighted opinions, so when he criticises socialism, the audience are more likely to disagree with him. promotes socialist ideas.

Question 38

describe pieces of context that Birling mentioned that actually promoted socialism:

Answer 38

• during his beginning speech, Birling says that the whole world will have ‘peace and prosperity’ expect for ‘Russia’. Russia became a socialist state in 1917, and Priestley liked how this was successful in creating greater equality for the Russian people.