Mr Birling Flashcards
1
Q
“Hard-headed …
A
… practical man of business”
2
Q
“Lower costs …
A
… and higher prices”
3
Q
“German’s …
A
… don’t want war”
4
Q
“Unsinkable …
A
… absolutely unsinkable”
5
Q
“There’ll be a …
A
… public scandal”
6
Q
“I ought …
A
… to warn you that he’s an old friend of mine”
7
Q
“(A heavy-looking rather …
A
… portentous man in his middle fifties with fairly easy manners but rather provincial)”
8
Q
What is Mr Birling’s contextual purpose?
A
• allegory for the middle class capitalist business men
- arrogant
- stupid
- archaic
- unrepentant
- traditionalist
9
Q
What are Mr Birling’s political veiws?
A
- capitalist = believe it’s every man for himself, everything is based on what you own and how much money you have
10
Q
How has Priestley presented Mr Birling?
A
- untrustworthy and ignorant
- he is stupid yet thinks he knows everything
11
Q
Why does Priestley not want the audience to like Mr Birling?
A
- he disagrees with capitalist views and believes they need to change
- Priestley is trying to change the future
- if people don’t like Birling they won’t want the same views as him
