Shelia Birling Flashcards
‘Shelia is a pretty girl in her early twenties, very pleased with life and rather excited.’
Highlight her youthfulness, looks and happiness
not a serious character
‘Yes, go on, mummy. You must drink our health.’
‘mummy’ - childish, immature, inferior
seems assertive in a soft way
Shelia is spoilt
What form is shelia ?
Anagnorisis - she realises her faults throughout the play
‘Eric’s absolutely right’ ‘its the best thing any one of us has said tonight’
shows her anagnorisis
mustn’t try to build up a king of wall between us and that girl. If you do, then the inspector will just break it down.
strong separation Mrs Birling tries to make between her and other classes
‘just’ done with ease, Inspector can point out societal problems, very easy to find flaws with the inequality.
what does Shelia represent?
How the younger generation can adapt and change more.
Feminism, sufferogette movement
how does Shelia change with conversation terminology?
she begins back-channelling her father but when the inspector arrives , shows shift and change in her views, capitalism to socialism.
(half serious, half playful) (trying to be light and easy)
connotations fit with expectations of women at this time
hints she is much more emotionally complex than society wants ‘half’ shows how she has to pretend, isn’t easy, deliberately creating a persona
(with irony) (bitterly) (with sharp sarcasm)
when inspector comes she doesn’t hide her feelings
gained moral power, recognises her wrongs and societies problems.
Breaking away from traditional woman view, prioritising her views.
‘i’m sorry daddy’ ‘look mummy isn’t it a beauty’
‘mummy sent me’
mode of address, childish and immature, innocent, under control of sexist patriarchal views of women.
‘of course, mother. it was obvious from the start.’
‘go on, gerald. Don’t mind mother’
change in her language, shows sas and her shifting her political ideology, use of blunt language.
‘I suppose we’re all nice people now.’
‘im getting hysterical now’
irony, ‘hysterical’ = hyseria, only effected women, was seen as woman couldn’t control their emotions.
Shes in control of the conversation so seems in control, shes topic managing.
How does shelia contrast her parents?
She begins to seem more like the inspector with her blunt language.
‘these girls aren’t cheap labour- they’re people’
back channels inspector, rehumanises the people, contrast to her fathers earlier quote,
‘cruel and vile’
speaking to Mrs Birling, extreme condemnations of peoples behaviour, contrast in values of shelia and Mrs birling.
