An Inspector Calls is essentially a vehicle for Priestley to criticise capitalism. Discuss. -- A* - page 10
Keywords: An Inspector Call Priestley capitalism
By georgie1 on 31/12/2009
Level: GCSE Key Stage 4 (Years 10-11)
Page Number: 10 of 10 pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
very awkward”. Such dismissive and sarcastic words mimic socialism and indicate his dislike of socialists, showing that he is a strong capitalist. However, because the audience have already seen that Mr Birling is not a very open-minded character and has been shown to be unintelligent, they are made to feel that his opinions of socialism are incorrect, therefore allowing JB Priestley to promote socialism.
In conclusion, it is clearly recognisable by an audience of An Inspector Calls that the play has a political basis with intent to influence the opinions of people supporting both socialism and capitalism. It is more likely that the people going to see the play during 1946 would have been wealthy and of a higher social class, and therefore probably capitalist. JB Priestley uses dramatic implements and phrases that present a hard-hitting, touching play that enforce a negative image of the capitalist characters. The opinions of these characters tend to be overruled or argued, usually resulting with the audience feeling as though socialism provides a community with help, regard for others and general happiness. At the present time of 2007, the dominant political party is the Labour Party, which is well known to be right-wing. However, the modern New-Labour Party also includes socialist influences. Overall, although JB Priestley has not directly criticised capitalism or targeted particular political figures, one is aware of the strong promotion of socialism and it is likely to still influence people of different political opinions of modern society.
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