mr birling Flashcards
stage directions
‘heavy-looking’
↳ physical display of greed and augmenting wealth
↳ shows effects of indulgence, money & status
↳ insinuates he is a burden to society
‘portentous’
↳ too serious and trying to be very important
↳ shows that mr birling isn’t truly high class and is a ridiculous character, like an archetype
‘provincial in his speech’
↳ not willing to accept opinions, beliefs, behaviors that are unusual or different from one’s own
↳ narrow or limited concerns or interests
↳ foreshadows his inability to accept his responsibility in eva’s death & change his views
‘lower costs and higher prices’ [ACT 1]
juxtaposition: ‘lower’ vs ‘higher’
↳ signifies how the capitalists exploit the members of society for their business
↳ the statement is a microcosm for capitalism
↳ capitalism exploits people, it’s inhumane and immoral, employers only care for the increase of their money and don’t views others as humans but as tools to give them higher status and wealth
↳ capitalists don’t care how little they pay their workers
‘I’m talking as a hard-headed businessman’ [ACT 1]
‘hard-headed’
↳ mr birling must think that the word
‘hard’ makes him seem strong, however it only shows that mr b is narrow-minded
↳ foreshadows mr birlings inflexibility in terms of eva’s murder
↳ represents patriarchal men in 1912, mr b only cares about furthering his status, he is saying a long speech about business which shows that he has an infatuation with money & sees sheila as a commodity in terms of more profit
↳ by constanly repeating ‘hard-headed’, he doesn’t realise he’s insulting himself, discrediting the things he says
(he repeats this sentiment about being hard-headed multiple times)
‘just let me finish, eric.’ [ACT 1]
imperative:
↳ authoritative tone shows how there is no familial bond between eric and arthur birling, eric is treated more like an insolent, recalcitrant student than a son
↳ mr b wholeheartedly believes that he knows better than others
↳ respects only those who he believes are higher up in society than him, therefore doesn’t respect eric
‘it’ll make war impossible…the titanic…unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable’
[ACT 1]
dramatic irony: ‘war impossible’
↳ the audience who are watching know that the second world war happened and will find mr b asinine
dramatic irony: ‘titanic…unsinkable’
↳ the audience know that the titanic sank & see how stupid birling’s beliefs are
↳ because mr birling is immediately introduced as a stupid character, the readers question everything he says from the onset, this is done to make readers also question and reject his capitalistic views
↳ priestley seeks to undermine capitalist values by associating them with a character such as birling and disrupt the entrenchment of capitalism
-most casualties of the titanic were to lower class -> the poor are the main ones who suffered from the ignorance of the rich, reflects society
symbolism: ‘titanic’
↳ could represent the upper class and how their indestructible nature is false, their power will be sunk by the 1945 election (labour wins)
repetition: ‘unsinkable’
↳ creates a confident tone which increases the undermining created by the dramatic irony
‘no. want another glass of port’ ?
[ACT 1]
(mr b says this to eric to get him to be quiet)
interrogative sentence:
↳ excludes eric from conversation
↳ indicates eric as a social inferior & creates tension between the age gaps
↳ mr birling is trying to get eric to stop talking so he offers a glass of alcohol to shut him up
↳ shows how eric is constantly disrespected by his family
‘a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own - and -‘ [ACT 1]
polysyndeton:
↳ elongates the sentence, reflects the fact that mr birling is droning on about business and politics when a jovial celebration should be taking place
↳ mr birling gets interrupted by inspector as he says this, this physical interruption symbolically represents how the inspector breaks down capitalist views & makes a path for socialism
business ⇢ himself ⇢ his own
↳ mr b lists everything in order of importance to himself, the fact that business is first reflects he overwhelming need for money whilst himself shows that he is egotistical and prioritises himself over his family
↳ ironic as all their business was exposed throughout the play
‘I don’t like that tone’ [ACT 1]
-mr birling is disciplining the inspector like he is one of his children,
-he wants to remain as the leader of the conversation - perhaps hoping to make the inspector feel intimidated by his class and status in society
‘now, sheila, I’m not defending him. but you must understand that a lot of young men-‘
-birling is trying to save the engagement by justifying the affair, as it would increase his money and social status
-he cares more about his own benefit and wellbeing than that of his family
-the word “but” negates everything birling said before it, making it seem like he is actually defending gerald’s actions
-shows the gender inequality and double standards present at the time - if a woman had an affair while they were engaged, there would be social outrage, because gerald is a man, it is brushed off by mr birling
-priestley is suggesting that there would be equal consequences in a socialist society, as birling is already presented as incorrect with all the things he says
look, inspector - i’d give thousands - yes, thousands’ [ACT 3]
repetition: ‘thousands’
↳ mr birling doesn’t show any guilt/remorse, he wishes to bribe the Inspector such that his family’s reputation would not be tarnished and so that he would be able to cover-up all the deeds they have done
‘all mixed up like bees in a hive-community and all that nonsense’
[ACT 1]
-mr b believes that socialism is a ridiculous idea, people shouldn’t work together, those at the top should use those at the bottom, those in 1945 know that a communal society works due to WW2
simile: ‘like bees in a hive’
-bees work together in a community to create something good (the way socialism works)
-here he shows awareness to the class hierarchy as he emphasises the phrase
‘mixed up’ this means people of different classes are severely divided in this time, he would like society to stay like this
mr birlings key character traits:
-priestley creates the inspector as the antithesis of mr b
-mr birling is symbolic of the selfish, capitalist higher middle-class
-static character
-birling’s self-absorbed nature is evidenced through his immediate reclamation of the spotlight after sheila and gerald’s engagement is announced, he toasts to “lower costs and higher prices” rather than to his daughter’s health
-mr birling values sheila on her capacity to further the family company & objectifies her as a bargaining chip
-despite mr birling’s success, his humble beginnings are evident from him being “provincial in speech”
-this insecurity causes mr birling to constantly remind people of his status in society, through bringing up former roles as ‘lord mayor’
-nouveau riche
-cycle of immorality is implied by the ending of the play, which finishes as it began, with mr birling offering gerald a drink
-the lack of change in attitude is reflected by the lack of visual change in the play
-
words to use to describe him:
inflexible, entrenched, intolerant, farcical, ludicrous, nonsensical, narcissistic, egocentric, supercilious
