Wealth and materialism

Question 1

Wealth intro

Answer 1

In AIC Priestley criticises the fact that wealth and materialism are main interests of a capitalist society, by revealing its immense effect on a person’s lifestyle and power and society and how it encourages dehumanization and exploitation of the lower classes

Question 2

Wealth para 1

Answer 2

In the stage directions and the start of the play, Priestley suggest how obsession for material wealth can lead to people not being able to care, forming real relationships with each other

• ‘prosperous’ household but not ‘homelike and cozy’- reveals a lack of domestic relationships, not a close family, between the characters, perhaps as a result caring more about wealth than love and intimacy, family is a just a superficial façade
• ‘you’ll realise that men with important work to do sometimes have to spend all their time and energy on business- captures the workaholic nature capitalism and greed creates- men (the stereotypical money makers of the household) spend most of their time making money as suggested by the quantifier ‘all’, leaving little time for love and relationships, implying Mr and Mrs B’s poor relationships view

Priestley criticises how upper class children are indoctrinated into having a materialistic and superficial of the world through Sheila’s acceptance of the ring.

-now I really feel married’ Gerald - superficial, viewing the ring as determining whether she feels ‘married’ or not

By positioning

By establishing parallels between and Sheila, Priestley explores the detrimental effects wealth has on the lives of people.

-Sheila is ‘in her early twenties’ and unmarried like Eva, albeit from a wealthier family- which allows her to be ‘ pleased with life’ and is able to freely spend money, while people like Eva are left ‘counting their pennies in their dingy little back bedrooms’- clearly worse conditions, hidden away from society

Question 3

Wealth para 2

Answer 3

Priestley also criticises how desire for wealth can lead to selfish and wreckless behaviour

-the true incentives of Gerald and Sheila’s marriage ‘lower costs and higher profits’

-’come down on some of these people sharply, they’d soon be asking for the earth- exaggeration reveals his view of the lower classes are greedy- ironic in the light of his own greed, ‘sharply’ emphasizes his strict nature in keeping costs down for higher profits, suppressing the lower classes, hyperbolic
Priestley critiques the progression system in capitalism (you need to be a ‘hardheaded’ businessman, every man for himself) desire for wealth encourages selfishness and wreck less

-Too ‘heavy’ a ‘price’ contrasted with the ‘heavy price’ Eva had to pay suggesting how greed blinds people from seeing other people’s needs and suffering

Question 4

Wealth para 3

Answer 4

Priestley also recognises how wealth for survival vital to society, but that money cannot solve everything.

• Gerald ‘insisted on a parting gift’ of ‘money’,Eric ‘insisted on giving her money to keep her going- both men use money to try and help Eva- they cannot offer love, support or kindness- reducing her to an object that they can throw money at.
• Mr Birling ‘I’d give thousands- yes thousands’ – possession of money encourages corruption, but paying won’t reverse his or his family’s actions
• Inspectors says that she needs ‘not only money, but advice, sympathy, friendliness’- asyndetic listing of her other needs highlight that money not the only thing needed to make a good life.

Does this to deflect his audience from money-orientated capitalism as they realise that money isn’t the only import thing in life.