Exploitation

Question 1

Intro

Answer 1

The theme of exploitation runs throughout the play both through the Birlings’ exploitation of Eva smith serving as a microcosm for the exploitation of the working class and the upper class’ exploitation of power that can have a detrimental effect on society.

Question 2

Para 1

Answer 2

Priestley criticizes the exploitation of labour in a capitalist society as a whole through Birling’s exploitation of his workings, including Eva for cheap labour.

-‘we’ve several hundred young women there, y’know and they keep changing’- verb ‘changing ‘ reveals that his labour force keeps changing- these people do not have job security, possibly to keep costs down to employ workers who are willing to pay for less, the vague term ‘several hundred’ removes their identity- they are just resources for a business to him. ‘Women’ could be given lower wages then men so were a good target for capitalist endeavors.

Priestley highlights how these low wages as a result of their exploitation only perpetuated their poverty

‘There are a lot of young girls living that sort of existence in every city…if there weren’t, the factories and warehouses wouldn’t know where to look for cheap labour’- conveys that the businesses relied on the suffering of the lower classes ‘for lower costs’ to survive, ‘young girls’ bring the most stereotypically vulnerable in society are used by these factories as ‘cheap labour’, determiner ‘ever’ exposes the universality of this exploitation. By paying them low wages, the businesses leave them in desperate situates so they have to accept lower wages to survive

Question 3

Para 2

Answer 3

Priestley also exposes the upper class’ sexual exploitation of lower women - and shows the

• Gerald ‘insisted her’- the verb implying that he forced her, he had intentions of making her his mistress, from the start
• Eric’s rape- reaves as that Birling’s ’respectable friends’ such as ‘alderman megahertz’
• ‘She was pretty and a good sport’- ‘adjective’ pretty reveals how he sexualizes her, while ‘good sport’ makes her seem like a form of entertainment

Question 4

para 3

Answer 4

Priestley also reveals the exploitation of power having a detrimental effect on the lowers

-Sheila used her power as the daughter of a respected businessman to get Eva fired

–Revealed through the inspector- ‘so you used the power you had as a daughter of a customer and also of a man well known in the town’

• Mrs B’s exploitation- ‘so I used my influence to have her case rejected’ – Mrs. B exploited her power to deny charity, revealing the façade of her charitability, while Priestley shows how this misuse of power contributed to Eva’s death
• Inspector reminds Birling that ‘public men have responsibilities as well as privileges’- indicating the the power of the upper class should be used responsibly, as ‘their lives, their suffering and chance of happiness, all intertwined with ours’, antithesis between happiness and suffering shows how every aspect of their lives are affected– their actions can have a huge impact on the lives of the lower classes, and by doing this Priestley reminds is audience they too must act responsibly in order to protect these people and reform their lives for a better future.