What is the function of Inspector Goole in J

What is the function of Inspector Goole in J.B Priestley's 'An Inspector Calls'? Introduction This essay will explore the functions of inspector Goole and the techniques he uses. This essay will explore the functions of inspector Goole in the play "An inspector calls" and the techniques uses to express the views of the playwright. The play "An inspector calls" was written at the end of world war two by J.B Priestley who was a socialist. The play was set in 1912 because J.B Priestley wanted the audience to support the socialist government so people could build a better future through social responsibility. At the end of world war two women started getting more equal rights because during world war two, women did most of the work that men did, so they were accepted to do jobs because they did most of the work. The new labour government proposed a National Health Service. In the play "An inspector calls", the inspector's character in the play is used to examine the lives of Birling family which is wealthy and find faults in the class system. This shows how all of the members are involved in the downfall of Eva Smith a young women who is treated unfairly and lack of social responsibility in the working class. Then eventually is driven to suicide due to their selfish and arrogant attitudes. The functions of inspector Goole are revealed in his physical appearance. The

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Discuss the ideas of Community and responsibility for our fellow humans in 'An Inspector Calls'. How successfully does the National Theatre Production convey this idea?

Ruth Hill-Tout 10N GCSE Coursework: Discuss the ideas of Community and responsibility for our fellow humans in 'An Inspector Calls'. How successfully does the National Theatre Production convey this idea? "We don't live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other. And I tell you that a time will soon come when if men will not learn that lesson then they will be taught it in fire and blood and anguish" Inspector's Final speech. An Inspector Calls is as its name implies- a detective play with a twist. Written by John Boynton Priestely in 1945 after WW2, it is based in 1912 in the industrial city of Bromley in the North Midlands and is centred around the Birling's- a respectable upper middle class family who all in some way contributed to why Eva Smith- lower class girl, committed suicide- yet who shun their responsibility and then reap the consequences. In the years between 1912 and 1945, there were two huge world wars that had affected millions of lives. The casualties had been staggering and the destruction overwhelming and people were now beginning to ask why- why had all this happened- why had so much misery come about- who was responsible for it all? Before the 1939, theatres had been extremely versatile in its styles and it had been a popular form of entertainment with the people to whom the theatre was a means to get away from the horrors

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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What Dramatic Devices does J.B. Priestly
use in 'An Inspector Calls' to convey his 
attitude about society at that time?

'An Inspector Calls' was written in 1945, although it was set in 1912. Priestley's view of society at that time was that there was a social injustice of the working class, and he used the play 'An Inspector Calls' to convey this. 'An Inspector Calls' is a play portraying progression from ignorance to knowledge, not only for the characters but also for the audience themselves. Using dramatic devices such as setting, lighting, props, dramatic irony, character action and dialogue, and indeed the main protagonist himself, J.B Priestly has put his views and opinions across to society in a way that enables effortless interpretation. Priestley did not like the capitalist society in which he lived, where the higher class of people had such a great influence over society that it was in their power to decide if someone could keep their job, or whether or not they deserved help from a charity. Exploring Priestley's intentions in getting society to change is the unexpected twist at the end of the play, surprising both characters and the audience alike. It is interesting to see how the younger generation learnt something from the experience, whilst the supposedly 'superior' generation did not. Enhancing Birling's ignorance and naivety is the dramatic irony used by Priestley. Priestley has used dramatic irony by setting the play earlier than when it was written, because the audience know

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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An Inspector Calls By J.B Priestly - The play has been described as a play of social criticism. What is being criticised?

An Inspector Calls By J.B Priestly The play has been described as a play of social criticism. What is being criticised? The play An inspector calls was written in 1945 within a week of world war two ending but is set before world war one. J. B Priestly wrote this play intentionally as he saw an urgent need for social change and used the play to express his desire for social equality. The time in which the play was set is used because Priestly hoped that the play would give society the chance, with hindsight, to look back on the past and learn from its mistakes. Priestly also used this method so that it would make the audience realise how wrong they may have been assuming future events. The play of an Inspector Calls centres on society's lack of collective responsibility. The character of the Inspector is talking about a collective responsibility, everyone in society is linked, in the same way as the characters, although they live a completely different social class, were all linked to Eva Smith. Everyone is part of "one body"; the Inspector sees society as more important than individual interests. The views he is propounding are in fact those of Priestly who was a devout socialist. The Inspector hovers over the characters acting much like a conscience. Priestly uses the Inspector's questioning of the characters as a means of underlining most of the social criticism in the

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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I definitely do not think that you should get rid of 'An Inspector Calls' as a G.C.S.E book

Dear Miss Garcia I definitely do not think that you should get rid of 'An Inspector Calls' as a G.C.S.E book the future pupils at West Hatch will read, as it is an outstanding book and I'm sure many peopole who have read it would agree with me. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading it and I think it would be a great shame if others missed out on the opportunity of reading it. I hope you take this letter seriously and I will sway your thoughts so 'An Inspector Calls' stays in the curriculum. As I give you an excellent coursework piece about the book I hope you realise how good the book really is. I will tell you personally what lessons are to be made from the book and why 'An Inspector Calls' is a brilliant book. So read carefully please. John Boynton Priestley was a socialist. He believed that whether we acknowledged it or not, we are in a community and have a responsibility to look after others. He wrote "An Inspector Calls" to highlight these beliefs and share them. In writing this essay, I intend to show Priestley's aims in writing the play, how he showed these aims and how successful he was in conveying his ideas. You can only speculate on the aims of a playwright in writing a play. In the case of "An Inspector Calls", a valid speculation would be that the author aimed to educate the audience through the characters' realisation of their role in Eva Smith's demise and thus

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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“An Inspector Calls is full of mystery and suspense.”Show by detailed reference to the text how this atmosphere is created and maintained through the play.

"An Inspector Calls is full of mystery and suspense." Show by detailed reference to the text how this atmosphere is created and maintained through the play. J.B Priestly uses a lot of ideas to give the audience an idea of suspense and mystery. At the start of the film and play production the audience can hear music, this makes them wonder what is going on as the family inside the house is happy and joyous, yet the music seems eerie and almost scary. Minutes into the play a grand entrance is made (that of the inspector) which creates a feeling of unease, as the audience and the family wonder what he is doing there. The entrances and exits are used in the best possible way, he makes the entrance of a character leave a big impression, but the exit of a character leave an even bigger one. The biggest entrance during the play is that of the inspector during Birlings speech about "looking after himself and his own family, yet when the inspector leaves he makes a speech about not living alone but looking after everyone and that we are responsible for one another." This creates another feeling of unease as this is the complete opposite of what Birling said at the start. This leaves a cliff-hanger which J.B. Priestly also uses to great effect. The cliff-hanger which leaves the biggest impression on the audiences mind is that at the end of act 1 between Gerald and the

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Firstly, I am going to consider each of the characters involved in the resultant death of Eva Smith, and decide who is most likely to be responsible. The first person to change the course of Eva's

An Inspector Calls In this essay, I shall be looking at J.B Priestley's play 'An Inspector Calls'. The play was written in 1940, but was set in the year 1912. I will be considering the themes conveyed by the writer, and how they relate to the social background of that time. Although the play only has one setting- the Birling household- I still found the play most interesting. Therefore, I am also to look into what makes the play gripping and powerful for the audience. Firstly, I am going to consider each of the characters involved in the resultant death of Eva Smith, and decide who is most likely to be responsible. The first person to change the course of Eva's life was Arthur Birling. Birling was the owner of a large company, and Eva had worked for him for over a year at his factory. Birling regarded her as 'a lively good-looking girl' and a 'good worker', but felt he had to sack her, as she and four other girls had stepped up on behalf of the rest of the workers, and asked for a rise in wages. It wasn't a large amount, only three shillings four pence. Although it wasn't just Eva and the other four girls requesting the rise, they were fired chiefly for being the 'ringleaders' of the group. Birling dropped Eva regardless of the fact that she was on the verge of promotion: "A good worker too. In fact, the foreman there told me he was ready to promote her into what we call a

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Discuss the function of the Inspector in An Inspector Calls

Discuss the function of the Inspector in An Inspector Calls John Boynton Priestly in 1945 wrote the play 'An Inspector Calls' but set it in 1912. This time difference creates a sense of dramatic irony as the play was written after it was set. The audience would be aware of the events which had taken place between 1912 and 1945, including world war one and two which they would no doubt have experience first hand. 'An Inspector Calls' was first performed in Russia, Moscow. This is significant because of the Russian Revolution, which was a system of collective social responsibility where the sate owned everything and used the wealth to look after its citizens. As England was left destroyed due to the world war, therefore there would have been very few playhouses, so Russia had to be alternative for performing the play. The play is set in three scenes. The entire play is set in the dining room of Mr Birling's house. In contrast this creates claustrophobia and tension as the characters in the play feel as if they are trapped, nowhere to go until the truth is revealed. Although the play is about the death of a young girl called Eva Smith who has committed suicide. Due to this mysterious death, the Birling family has a nasty surprise waiting. The Birling's are meant to have a high status in their community and they all have done bad things, which has forced a young woman to kill

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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How does J.B Priestley use Inspector Goole to dramatise what he wants to say in 'An Inspector Calls'.

How does J.B Priestley use Inspector Goole to dramatise what he wants to say in 'An Inspector Calls'. 'An Inspector Calls', J.B Priestley's pioneering exploration of the attitudes of upper-middle class families in 1912, was based on a battle between the socialist and capitalist systems. Inspector Goole, was the socialist, and the Birlings were capitalist (the believing that personal enterprise is the correct path to a steady social system). Inspector Goole was used by Priestley to convey his socialist opinions to the audience (the belief that enterprise should be owned by the community). Arthur Birling is an obvious capitalist because he comments cynically, '...you'd think everybody has to look after everybody else, as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive.' In 1912, the First World War was two years away, the cruise liner, 'Titanic', sank in the Atlantic ocean, the Suffragette movement was demanding the right to universal suffrage, and the British class system was in full force during this period. The Inspector's entrance is dealt with in great detail in Priestley's stage directions. As he enters the Birling's dining room, the lighting in the room changes, 'The lighting should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter and harder.' This change in lighting may suggest to the audience that the family is being

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Explore the ways in which Priestley uses the inspector as a dramatic device in Act1 to extract information from Mr. Birling and Sheila

Coursework- Explore the ways in which Priestley uses the inspector as a dramatic device in Act1 to extract information from Mr. Birling and Sheila Priestley uses the inspector as a dramatic device to open up the lives of the Birling family, after the horrible suicide involves a young lady each family in turn have met and caused misery to, and create drama whilst using a wall- building method to break into the characters individually. The Inspector adds mystery to the play as to where he has come from and to what purpose he is there for. The inspector adapts his technique to the individual he is interrogating and links each members stories in an un-ravelling effect. The play was written 1945 set back in time to1912 so that the audience have the advantage of knowing what was to happen in the 'future'. The inspector has many roles within the play to add drama and encapsulate the audience, one of which is to insert more mystery to the play and leave the Birlings reviewing themselves as well as the so-called inspector who has just appeared on their doorstep. Edna invites the inspector into the dining room where the Birling family are celebrating the engagement of Sheila and Gerald. Throughout the play there are doubts over where the inspector has come from and who exactly he is. At the end of the play after which the inspector has left, Gerald comes back form a walk where he

  • Word count: 1864
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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