Sheila Flashcards
What does Priestley use Sheila as a vehicle to?
To criticise the upper class society and the way in which they shelter the youth, and to emphasise the disparity between the upper and lower class through Eva who had no means of protection at all, and was forced to face starvation and resort to prostitution due to a lack of support from society. -To promote the idea that as a society we should be more receptive to change just like Sheila was and that we should accept collective responsibility for our actions in order to develop a better, more altruistic society
Initially point
Priestley exposes the sheltered upbringing that the upper class youth enjoyed through Sheila whilst the lower class were forced to turn to prostitution as a means of avoiding starvation.
Initially… (quote 1)-about the ring
“Look mummy isn’t it a beauty” – ‘mummy’ implies that she is infantile, however as the play develops she adopts the term mother which shows her increasing maturity
-The imperative verb ‘look’ highlights her demanding and immature tone due to her immaturity.
Initially… (quote 2)-about her upbringing
“Very pleased with life”- she never left her house and experienced the hardship of the real world. Notice how we never leave the birling household, which further highlights the sheltered lifestyle that she had lived up until this point.
Initially… (quote 3)-responding to Eva’s death
“What was she like”-
Through this, Priestley exposes the harmful impact of allowing women to believe their primary value is derived from their physical appearance.
Initially… (quote 4)-about labour
“But these girls aren’t cheap labour-they’re people”
-Through the recognition of the social injustice despite a sheltered upbringing, Sheila recognises the societal imbalance which emphasises the fact that she can change
However as the text develops point
He exposes Sheila’s willingness to morally reform, and her increasing maturity in doing so. Priestley promotes his socialist message through Sheila who calls to accept collective responsibility
However…(quote 1)-response to seeing Eva in Milwards
“I was furious”
-Sheila’ disproportionate reaction when Eva Smith held the dress up to herself is telling of her personal insecurities. Likewise, her envy and malicious intent in instigating Eva’s unfair dismissal from Milward’s reveals the unhealthy sense of competition Sheila feels towards other women, which prevents women from uniting and supporting one another.
However…(quote 2)-accepting blame
“I know I‘m blame and I am desperately sorry”
- She recognises that she is to blame, and embodies Priestley’s key message is that as a society we must accept responsibility for our actions
Ultimately point
Ultimately, through the transformation of Sheila Birling, Priestley promotes hope for a more moral, socialist future. He exhorts the post-war audience to follow her example: developing an attuned conscience and standing up for what is right.
Ultimately… (quote 1)- how does she address her mum?
“Mother”
-through the way she adresses her mother in a more formal tone, she emphasises the fact that she has matured and transcended beyond the initial sheltered life that she led
Ultimately… (quote 2)-how does she adress her father about what he learnt
“You don’t seem to have learn anything”
- Through the way she responds to her father, she embodies the values of the inspector.
- Promoting Priestley’s hope for a more moral, socialist future. He exhorts the post-war audience to follow her example: developing an attuned conscience and standing up for what is right.
Ultimately…(quote 3)-quote the inspector
“Fire, blood and anguish”
-she explicitly embodies the inspectors role, further reiterating to the audience that change and moral reform to a more socialist outlook is absolutely necessary to progress and move on from the horrors of the two wars that the audience have just lived through
