AIC quotes Flashcards
1
Q
The _ don’t want _
A
Germans , War
- Speaker: Arthur Birling
- Meaning: Birling’s arrogant dismissal of impending conflict, showcasing ruling-class ignorance.
- Plot Lead-up: Birling’s speech about his confidence in capitalism and stability.
- Relevance to Play: Establishes dramatic irony (WWI begins two years later), discrediting capitalist ideology.
- Literary Devices: Dramatic irony (audience knows war is imminent), hubris.
- Author’s Intent: Criticize the ruling class’s detachment from reality and foreshadow their moral failures.
- Context: Pre-WWI complacency among industrialists; Priestley wrote post-WWII, highlighting capitalist shortsightedness.
2
Q
you’ll have to get _ to that _ as i had
A
used just
- Speaker: Mrs. Birling
- Meaning: Normalizes male infidelity as an inevitable part of patriarchal marriage.
- Plot Lead-up: Sheila confronts Gerald about his affair.
- Relevance to Play: Reinforces systemic oppression of women.
- Literary Devices: Imperative tone, irony (Mrs. Birling perpetuates cycles of oppression).
- Author’s Intent: Expose how patriarchy traps women into complicity.
- Context: 1912 gender roles confined women to domesticity; Priestley advocates for equality.
3
Q
A man has to mind his own _
A
business
- Speaker: Arthur Birling
- Meaning: Justifies capitalist self-interest over social responsibility.
- Plot Lead-up: Birling defends firing Eva Smith.
- Relevance to Play: Summons the Inspector, symbolizing accountability.
- Literary Devices: Irony (Birling’s “business” harms others), foreshadowing.
- Author’s Intent: Condemn laissez-faire capitalism’s dehumanizing effects.
- Context: Industrialists prioritized profit over worker welfare; Priestley promotes collective responsibility.
4
Q
why sholdnt they try for higher_
A
wages
- Speaker: Eric Birling
- Meaning: Challenges capitalist exploitation of workers.
- Plot Lead-up: Gerald justifies Eva’s sacking to preserve profits.
- Relevance to Play: Delivers Priestley’s socialist message.
- Literary Devices: Rhetorical question, didacticism.
- Author’s Intent: Advocate for workers’ rights and fair pay.
- Context: 1945 audience post-WWII Labour landslide; Priestley endorses socialist reforms.
5
Q
these young _ counting their _
A
women pennies
- Speaker: Inspector Goole
- Meaning: Highlights women’s economic precarity under capitalism.
- Plot Lead-up: The Inspector condemns the Birlings’ treatment of Eva.
- Relevance to Play: Links class and gender oppression.
- Literary Devices: Symbolism (“pennies” = poverty), pathos.
- Author’s Intent: Humanize working-class struggles and critique systemic inequality.
- Context: 1912 women lacked financial independence; Priestley supports welfare reforms.
6
Q
you might be said to have been _ of her
A
jealous
- Speaker: Inspector Goole (to Sheila)
- Meaning: Reveals societal pressure on women to compete for male approval.
- Plot Lead-up: Sheila’s role in Eva’s dismissal from Milwards.
- Relevance to Play: Critiques patriarchal standards of female self-worth.
- Literary Devices: Accusatory tone, psychological insight.
- Author’s Intent: Expose how patriarchy pits women against each other.
- Context: Women’s value tied to marriageability; Priestley condemns superficiality.
7
Q
only escaped with a torn _
A
blouse
- Speaker: Narrator (about Sheila’s friend)
- Meaning: Men’s predatory behavior at the Palace Bar.
- Plot Lead-up: Eva’s descent into prostitution.
- Relevance to Play: Shows systemic sexual exploitation of women.
- Literary Devices: Euphemism (“torn blouse” = assault), imagery.
- Author’s Intent: Condemn normalized violence against women.
- Context: Lack of legal protections for women; Priestley demands societal change.
8
Q
it happened to a friend of mine … had gone off to _
A
Canada
- Speaker: Gerald Croft
- Meaning: Gerald’s euphemistic justification for keeping Eva as a mistress.
- Plot Lead-up: Gerald’s “rescue” of Eva from the Palace Bar.
- Relevance to Play: Exposes upper-class exploitation of vulnerable women.
- Literary Devices: Passive voice (downplays agency), euphemism.
- Author’s Intent: Critique patriarchal entitlement and hypocrisy.
- Context: Mistresses were socially tolerated but morally condemned; Priestley rejects double standards.
9
Q
girls of that _
A
class
- Speaker: Sybil Birling
- Meaning: Sybil’s contempt for working-class women.
- Plot Lead-up: Sybil denies Eva charity, leading to her suicide.
- Relevance to Play: Highlights class-based cruelty.
- Literary Devices: Derogatory tone, dehumanization.
- Author’s Intent: Expose ruling-class hypocrisy (charity vs. disdain).
- Context: Victorian/Edwardian charity often paternalistic; Priestley advocates for structural equality.
10
Q
i was in that state where a _ easily turns _
A
chap nasty
- Speaker: Eric Birling
- Meaning: Eric downplays his sexual assault of Eva.
- Plot Lead-up: Eric’s confession about exploiting Eva.
- Relevance to Play: Condemns toxic masculinity and entitlement.
- Literary Devices: Euphemism (“that state” = drunkenness), generalization (“a chap”).
- Author’s Intent: Show how patriarchy excuses male violence.
- Context: Lack of accountability for sexual violence; Priestley demands justice.
11
Q
Not really. I intended to _
A
pay it back
- Speaker: Eric Birling
- Meaning: Eric’s dishonest justification for stealing money.
- Plot Lead-up: Eric’s theft of £50 from his father.
- Relevance to Play: Exposes ruling-class corruption.
- Literary Devices: Verbal irony (audience doubts his intent), self-deception.
- Author’s Intent: Criticize capitalist greed and moral bankruptcy.
- Context: Wealthy elites often evaded consequences; Priestley endorses accountability.
12
Q
millions and millions of _ smiths and _ smiths
A
Eva John
- Speaker: Inspector Goole
- Meaning: Eva symbolizes all exploited workers and women.
- Plot Lead-up: Inspector’s final warning before leaving.
- Relevance to Play: Universalizes the play’s socialist message.
- Literary Devices: Symbolism (Eva = every worker), hyperbole.
- Author’s Intent: Urge collective action against inequality.
- Context: Post-war Labour movement; Priestley advocates for systemic reform.
13
Q
we are members of one _
A
body
- Speaker: Inspector Goole
- Meaning: Advocates socialist unity through Christian ethics.
- Plot Lead-up: Inspector’s closing speech.
- Relevance to Play: Core moral message of the play.
- Literary Devices: Metaphor (“one body” = society), religious allusion.
- Author’s Intent: Align socialism with Christian values to persuade audiences.
- Context: 1945 Christian socialism influenced Labour policies; Priestley bridges faith and politics.
14
Q
_ and _ and anguish
A
fire blood
- Speaker: Inspector Goole / Sheila
- Meaning: Warns of consequences for ignoring social responsibility.
- Plot Lead-up: Sheila repeats the Inspector’s warning after his exit.
- Relevance to Play: Links capitalist exploitation to war and suffering.
- Literary Devices: Apocalyptic imagery, foreshadowing (WWI/WWII).
- Author’s Intent: Condemn war profiteering and capitalist greed.
- Context: WWII-era audiences understood war’s horrors; Priestley ties capitalism to conflict
15
Q
the _ younger generation they cant even take a _
A
famous , joke
- Speaker: Arthur Birling
- Meaning: Mocks socialist ideals of the younger generation.
- Plot Lead-up: Birlings dismiss Sheila and Eric’s guilt.
- Relevance to Play: Shows ruling-class resistance to change.
- Literary Devices: Sarcasm, generational contrast.
- Author’s Intent: Highlight entrenched capitalist attitudes.
- Context: 1945 generational divide; Priestley endorses youth-led reform.
16
Q
A
17
Q
what about this _ring
A
about
- Speaker: Gerald Croft
- Meaning: Reduces Sheila’s autonomy to marital status.
- Plot Lead-up: Gerald attempts to reconcile with Sheila.
- Relevance to Play: Exposes women’s limited choices.
- Literary Devices: Symbolism (ring = patriarchal control), manipulation.
- Author’s Intent: Criticize marriage as women’s only “escape.”
- Context: Women’s financial dependence on men; Priestley advocates for equality.
18
Q
not yet its too _
A
soon
- Speaker: Sheila Birling
- Meaning: Sheila’s hesitant rejection of Gerald’s proposal.
- Plot Lead-up: Sheila questions Gerald’s sincerity.
- Relevance to Play: Shows women’s trapped position in patriarchy.
- Literary Devices: Hesitant tone, symbolism (delay = lack of agency).
- Author’s Intent: Highlight systemic barriers to female independence.
- Context: Limited divorce rights in 1912; Priestley critiques marital oppression.
19
Q
A
