Sheila Birling

Question 1

“sheila is a pretty girl in her early twenties, very pleased with life and rather excited,”

Answer 1

“pleased” and “excited”

suggests that she is not a particularly serious character

Question 2

“Yes, go on Mummy. You must drink our health.”

Answer 2

“mummy” immature

“must” telling her mum what to do, a spoiled brat

Question 3

“I don’t believe I will. [Half playful, half serious.]”

Answer 3

-challenging typical gender roles

“believe”
-hanging onto the faith that she would never have to surrender to restrictive expectations

“don’t”
resisting her mother’s attempt at indoctrinating her
shows she doesn’t want to be treated poorly or neglected emotionally by her partner.

“half”
she is not committed to her own opinion
testing the waters to see her parents’ reaction- she is fearful of the consequences
-priestley presenting how women had the potential to change society but were restricted due to misogynistic views embedded into their daily lives

Question 4

annotate “What was she like? Quite young?”

“Pretty?”

Answer 4

“young” “pretty”
comes across as shallow
questions about her appearance
only cares about people that are like her

Question 5

“But these girls aren’t cheap labour, they’re people”

Answer 5

• doesn’t share the same wholy capitalist views as her parents
• she has socialist sympathies

“people”
recognises the individual experiences and struggles of the workers
humanises them unlike her parents
she doesn’t see them as just cogs in a capitalist machine
values them regardless of gender

• 1912-1945
• shift in the role of class in society as a result of two world wars
• gap between the classes were gradually narrowing

Question 6

“he didn’t think it amounted to much- but I felt rotten about it”

Answer 6

shows generational differences between sheila and her parents
-younger gen is able to recognise the effect their actions have on others

“rotten”
connotations of a fruit that is rotten or mouldy
insinuating that her actions have made her indecent

Question 7

“Don’t interfere, please Father. Gerald knows what I mean, and you apparently don’t.”

Answer 7

"don't"
command
interrupts her father 
shows a level of maturity and independance
inverts the family scene in 1910s

Question 8

“(eagerly) Yes that’s it. And I know I’m to blame- and I’m desperately sorry- but I can’t believe- I won’t believe- it’s simply my fault that in the end she- she committed suicide. That would be too horrible-“

Answer 8

“eagerly” suggests guilt, overflowing emotions and a sense of recklessness

the use of dashes make her come across as distraught and hysterical

• her speech is stunted and fragmented
• having trouble expressing herself
• links to the idea that she struggles dealing with emotions

“know” -certainty, acknowledgement, awareness

juxtaposition between “can’t” and “won’t”

• cant shows that she can’t comprehend the situation, naivety, sheltered
• wont suggests choice, coming across as childish

"can't"
furthermore highlights how if something is too hard for her to bear, she will dismiss it
-reflective of her upbringing 
-spoiled and sheltered
-bourgeoisie 

“horrible”

• pathetic, childish, spoiled
• emotionally immature
• upper class repressing emotions so she can’t deal with it
• unable to face the consequences
• limit to her acceptance of responsibility

Question 9

“(slowly, carefully now) You mustn’t try to build a wall between us and that girl. I If you do, then the Inspector will just break it down.”

Answer 9

() stage directions present her as more emotionally mature, self-aware and more controlled. there is a sense of acceptance to her actions and her language is more considered. She is trying to influence her parents and she is learning to do that from in the inspector.

“you mustn’t” -directly telling her parents what to think, becoming more assertive

“build a wall”
the verb build suggests that she thinks her parents imposed the divide.
wall is a metaphor, using rhetoric language
-clever, influential, persuasive
-implies that without the wall everyone is equal
-naturally promoting socialist values
-“they’re people”

“that girl”

• still subtly and subconsciously influenced by her parents
• “girl of that sort”
• Priestley reminding us of the journey of the younger generation will have to go on so they can break bad patterns and habits