In An Inspector Calls, JB Priestley expresses the importance of the interconnected nature of society through his exploration of how his characters react to their responsibilities; this theme is also addressed through ideas of societies present both at the time of writing and at the time in which the work was set. Priestley primarily uses the character of Inspector Goole to convey the theme of interconnectedness and responsibility, which catechizes the Birlings to the belief that "We are members of one body." We are responsible for each other.' Through statements like this, the play demonstrates how the Inspector believes that every member of society is influenced by everyone else. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay There is no escaping association with others, as the Birlings believed at the start of the show. The short, definitive sentences create a commanding, authoritative tone that suits the "massiveness" of the inspector, as he is originally described. The inspector continues to warn that "if men will not learn [this] lesson, then it will be taught to them in fire, blood and anguish." This reinforces the Inspector's message and brings a powerful, menacing tone that confronts both the Birlings and the audience. The use of a syndetic list of three, "fire, blood and anguish", evokes images of divine punishment, thus making the Inspector the ultimate force of good against the evil of complacency and selfishness. Furthermore, the use of the syndetic list shows the audience that the inspector is passionate and angry. This shows how ardently the work criticizes a society in which one is responsible only for oneself. “Lesson” shows how the Inspector is a didactic or perhaps hypocritical character, who can be said to be a representation of Priestley with his message about the need for an interconnected and just society. Indeed, Priestley had strong socialist and left-wing views which the audience can see were transferred to Inspector Goole. At the time of writing, in post-war Britain, the public had been exposed to the abundance of poverty in the country and there was a call for a more just society, which led to the Beveridge Report and the creation of the welfare state. Priestley witnessed the creation of the welfare state; therefore, An Inspector Calls was written with the idea of social equality as the fundamental theme of the work and indeed as the main axiom of the inspector's lessons. An audience of 1945 would recognize the inspector's call for social responsibility and see the proleptic irony in the Birlings' original contempt for the lower classes of society. This is particularly poignant considering that the time period of the play, 1912, is immediately before the outbreak of the First World War and therefore just before the beginning of changing attitudes and the desire for an integrated society. Another way the play highlights the need for an interconnected society is by highlighting the complacency and arrogance of the Birlings. In the Act I speech Mr Birling states that "a man must have his own way, he must take care of himself", showing how he is selfish and only cares about himself. Birling is then immediately interrupted by the Inspector's arrival, foreshadowing how the Inspector contradicts Mr Birling's ideologies and beliefs later in the show. It could also be said that this is linked to the difference between capitalist and socialist beliefs and the tensions between the two ideologies at the time of writing, with the election of a new Labor government, but also to the.
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