Genre Flashcards
What are the three genres an inspector calls contains ?
The well made play
A detective story
Morality play
What is a ‘well made play’ ?
There is one main story and most of it happens before the play
- all the characters interactions with Eva smith have taken place before the play begins
What 3 devices are conventional of a well made play ? Include examples of when this happens in inspector calls
Entrances and exits: timing of these to develop tension in stage
Example: Sheila sees photo of Evan she leaves in distress heightening the tension as the audience articulate her return and confession
Revelations about identity: chain of events revealing each characters influence of Eva smiths’ life, Sheila and Eric both link this to Priestlys’ ideas on social responsibility
Complications: clashes between the inspector and characters, clashes between the younger and older generations and clashes in artistes of class. Priestly uses them to focus the attention of the audience on his socialist message
What are 4 slightly less conventional aspects of a well made play that are seen in an inspector calls?
Exposition : beginning on the play we are introduced to the characters
Climactic curtain: a scene or act ends on an incredibly tense and dramatic moment for example act 1 when Sheil is confronting Gerald don his affair and the inspector enters
Obligatory scene: a secret is revealed which adds drama and tension
Denouement: this is the scene that ties up all the loose ends however this doesn’t appear
What are the conventions of a traditional whodunnit/ detective story ?
A detective who asks questions and analyses the facts whilst narrowing down a list of suspects to reveal the final culprit who is responsible
What and how does Priestly subvert our expectations for a conventional detective story?
The inspector forces the Birlings and Gerald to look back over the events to find who is responsible
Priestly inverts the conventional detective story when the inspector reveals that all of them are responsible for Eva Smiths’ death
Why does Priestly invert the conventional detective genre ?
By subverting the aduaicnes expectations for the conventional detective genre he present his key message of social responsibility
He therefore encourages the aid since to both question and consider their own actions much like the Birlings themselves
What is a mortality play ?
A play that aims to teach people lessons about how to behave
Actors are often personifications of the seven deadly sins
What does the inspector do ? (Think mortality play)
He encourages the characters on stage to confess their sins and to repent and as with a mortality play the audience is expired to learn a moral message from this
What sin does Mr Birling represent ? (Morality play)
Greed, Money: he is a capitalist and is greed for money and will go so fast to exploit his workers for ‘lower cost and higher prices’
Gluttony, food and drink: elements of gluttony are on the table
What sin does Mrs Birling represent ? ( morality play)
Pride: her husbands social superior as she is proud of her status
Wrath: she is prejudiced against Sheila because of her class, she also feels contempt towards working class women
What sins does Eric Birling represent ? (Morality play)
Lust: he feels entitled to force his intentions on Eva
Gluttony: his appetite for alcohol contributes to his behaviour
What sins does Sheila Birling represent ?
Envy: She is jealous of Eva smith
Wrath: she was furious when she saw Eva smile at another shop assistant
What sin does Gerald Croft represent ?
Lust: like Eric he had a sexual affair with Eva as both men objectify her
Gerald turns his attention to Sheila when he offers her the ring at the end of the play
Why does priestly make the characters allegorical personifications of sins ?
To make the audience reflect on their own behaviour
