Key Ideas Flashcards
Upper Class
“the social group that has the highest status in society, especially the aristocracy”
If you were in the upper class, you were likely royalty of some sort or an owner of a successful company. The upper class rarely worked, but instead spent their time socialising with other upper class members and maintaining their wealth and reputation. They often shunned the other classes and saw them as unwanted and unneeded.
Middle Class
The middle class were neither poor nor considered rich, and are also called the working class. The middle class usually worked for a living, but had a high position in a company and could support their family. They would spend their days at their job for around 5 days a week, and would have one or two servants to take care of their house.
Lower class
The lower class were the worst off. Many of them were homeless or lived in dangerous housing. They worked any job they could get, often being dangerous such as being a factory worker using poisonous substances. Many turned to prostitution and slavery, and the best job was working as a maid or servant, as the employer would provide housing and food.
Socialism is the idea of closing the gaps between the different classes. The poor should be supported by the tax payed by the rich. This way, society is not as varied and can progress.
Capitalism is the idea everyone gets what they earn. The poor will only make as much as they work and likewise with the rich. This is a fair arrangement, but does not give anyone a chance to turn their lives around
Women’s role in society
Upper class women would usually not work or do housework, but try to benefit the family by entertaining guests and meeting with other households to marry off her children and form relationships. Middle class women would often not work and instead do housework in place of a maid. If they had a maid, she would carry out anything her husband wanted her to. Lower class women often turned to prostitution and worked en mass in factories.
An inspector calls is set in 1912. Priestly chose this because it was different from the time he was writing. It was also the period of the two world wars, Russian revolution, the holocaust and the atom bomb. He wanted the results of the book, all the character changes, to represent all the changes that had been made by 1945
An inspector calls was first performed in 1945, in the Soviet Union, and then in 1946 in the uk
The British empire
The British empire consisted of Britain, the mother country, and other colonies. It was in its prime at 1922, and the creation of it resulted in control over a large amount of the world, trading, but then other things like slavery
Rules and morals
In Edwardian society, men were expected to be the money maker in the family and women were expected to stay at home either entertaining guests, doing housework or finding suitable partners for their children. They were meant to be faithful to each other, however the men would often cheat on them and keep it secret. Men were often given a free pass for doing questionable things
Welfare state
The welfare state is an idea of government, where the government helps those in need with distribution of wealth, similar to democracy and socialism
