A busy person Essays

A busy person Essays A busy person Essay A busy person Essay Priestley places his hope in the characters of Sheila and Eric, the next and younger generation, in his play. Sheila accepted her share of responsibility for contributing to the death of Eva Smith. At Milwards, a posh clothes store, Sheila had met Eva when she was trying a dress and it didnt suit her. Eva laughed at her and Sheila didnt like her laughing. And said to the manager of Milwards, if you will not get rid of that girl, Id never go near the place again and Id persuade mother to close our account with Milwards. When she was shown the photo of Eva Smith and told by Goole of the consequences of her actions she reacted by little, cry, a half shifted sob and ran out. She felt ashamed, emotional and responsible for Evas death. We sympathize with Sheila because she learned something, in Act three, page 71 that:- It was anything but a joke. You knew it then. You begun to learn something. And now you are stopped. By the end of the play she has clearly learned her lesson, and shown that unlike her parents, she cared for others and represented a socialist outlook on life. The character of Eric changes as the play progresses. In act one we initially find him to be shy, unconfident and squiffy. He then appears to grow in confidence especially when he stood instead of his father on a number of occasions. Gooles questioning provokes and encourages Eric to confront Mr. Birling. For example in Act one, page 15 Eric accuses his father of throwing out Eva Smith of the job. He could kept her instead of throwing her out, I call it tough luck. He also complains about Evas death because of his father. The part of the play highlights the fact that despite all of the money and wealth with in the Birling family household, they are not happy together and cannot understand or respect each others point of view. This is mainly because Erics view is that of a socialist and Mr. Birlings is that of a staunch capitalist. Eric, like Sheila, accepts their share of the blame A for their behavior that contributed to the death of Eva Smith. Gerald is an interesting character in the play. In the early stages of the play we learn that he is a busy person. He was very suspicious Eric was up to. Evidence to support this opinion is found in Act one, page 9, when Gerald Croft says:- Sounds a bit fishy to me. He is in a difficult position at this engagement party and is under pressure to marry Sheila of Mr. Birling because if he do something wrong it might affect to his marriage with Sheila. It might be fair to say that Gerald had socialist tendencies because when he met Eva Smith in the stalls bar at the palace. She was half drunk and goggle eyed and had wedged herself into a corner. He helped her by giving her money and place to live. But he didnt tell the truth to Sheila and he betrayed her trust. Gerald was very nai ve because after the discovery that Goole was hoax he still believed that he and Sheila would not break their engagement. Gerald thought it easy, just like Mr and Mrs Birling, to pretend that nothing had happened and that he could simply marry Sheila after all. He had not learnt his lesson, he was thinking that nothing had happened and he could still marry Sheila. It is clear that an inspector calls is an effective piece of social criticism because it makes us question how we should try to lead our own lives. Through the character role of Goole, Priestley encourages us to behave properly and respect and care for others unlike Arthur and Sybil Birling. In the bigger picture he is really saying that society can only live together in peace and harmony if people cooperate together and work and support each other. I feel that the play was a very enjoyable theatrical experience. A play is memorable if it keeps you thinking, exciting and to learn a new message. The play had a number of cliff hangings, exciting moments, for example, in Act one, page 10 when the door bell rings and Eric says:- Somebody at the front door. Then Edna says to Mr. Birling. Please, sir, an inspectors called. Also in act three, page 53. I was riveted by Eric when he told that he was going to be a father! And the next time or the time after that she told me she thought she was going to have a baby. She wasnt quite sure. And then she was. Every Act ended with suspense. This made the audience to continue seeing the play. An Inspector Calls also had many examples of dramatic irony. This is when the full meaning of a situation or a speech is understood by the audience but not by the characters on stage. There was also considerable dramatic irony the fact that each of the Birlings and Gerald all seemingly had a part to play in Evas death without even being aware of it, until Gooles arrival. Perhaps most dramatic of all was the ending of the play when the telephone rings and after answering the telephone Mr. Birling says:- That was the police. A girl has just died on her was to the infirmary after swallowing some disinfectant. And a police Inspector is on his way here to ask some questions. This leaves the audience feeling what will happen afterwards. In conclusion, reading and understanding the play made me reflect and think carefully about my own life. The play, the characters and Priestleys message has made me think that all of our lives are connected with one another. If we do something with others it will affect us as well because in reaction they can harm us as well. On the other hand if we do good to others their will be happiness all over the world.