What lessons does JB Priestley wish to convey to the audience in the play An Inspector Calls? (Critically analyse the way and why he does this)

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What lessons does JB Priestley wish to convey to the audience in the play ‘An Inspector Calls’? (Critically analyse the way and why he does this)

‘An Inspector Calls’ is one of the greatest and poignant plays written by JB Priestley in 1945, at a time of unrest and war. The play is based in 1912, when there was a lot of segregation between classes and injustices to women in society. The play contains controversial and political messages which reflect the political opinions and ideologies that JB Priestly believed in. The play is based on a wealthy, upper class family, otherwise known as ‘The Birling’s’, enjoying a dinner as their daughter is getting engaged to an aristocrat, until a mysterious Inspector walks in, leading an enquiry into the death of a lower class woman. In this essay, I will be stating what JB Priestly thought of society and the morals he tries to convey to us in this play.

In the play, the character of the older generation is contradicting to the younger generation. They seem to be a lot more proud, snobby, optimistic and extremely selfish. This is highlighted in Act 1, when Mr Birling tries but fails to impress the Inspector when he boasts about his years as a mayor, and the likelihood of receiving a knighthood by the Queen. The message that JB Priestly tries to make is that your character is a representation of yourself. Whether you’re young or old, your character will always define who you are. Furthermore, JB Priestly correspondingly tries to point out, that you’re status in society isn’t everything, your family and their well- being comes first. The younger generation seems to be a lot more compassionate, perceptive, curious and much more mature than Mr and Mrs Birling. A prime example would be Sheila, when she is unhesitant to accept the fact that she played a role in Eva Smith’s death, when she got her fired from Milward’s. This shows us that the younger and older generations have two completely different characters. It also shows us that the young will get far in life, rather than the old, who will always have tight security over their wealth and heritage.

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Eva Smith, like any other woman, is a victim of patriarchy. Eva Smith represents this through having been mistreated by Arthur Birling, Gerald Croft and Eric Birling. This is highlighted in Act 2 when the moralistic Inspector states: “And you think young women ought to be protected against unpleasant and disturbing things?”, “Well, we know one young woman who wasn’t, don’t we?” (Act 2, p.27-28). This shows that Eva Smith was the person who was mistreated the most by the men who lie to themselves and claim they are protecting women. They do not allow women to be part of ...

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