Sheila Flashcards
Changes in how she speaks/behaves from the start of the play to later
Effects of her relationship with Eva
Effects of her relationship with other characters
How do her reactions change during the play? E.g. Gerald’s ring -> give back ring
How do her attitudes change during the play?
Comments at the end
“But these girls aren’t cheap labour – they’re people.”
Direct juxtaposition of Capitalism and Socialism
Hints that capitalism makes people think of others as ‘cheap labour’ - focus on profit + business
Priestley is exposing his audience to the harsh reality of capitalism
Capitalism dehumanizes people, makes us think of them as profit e.g. Mr B sees Sheila’s engagement with Gerald as profitable, views his daughter as a commodity
“The point is, you don’t seem to have learnt anything.”
Evidence for how she has changed throughout the play
More assertive towards her parents, different to beginning where she did what they said
She is insightful + intelligent: she understands the point while her family don’t
‘but these girls aren’t cheap labour- they’re people’ - sheila
conjunction of ‘but’, clear rebuttal; phrase ‘cheap labour’ is dehumanising and reduces working class to machines; also categorises people solely on their economic value; ‘people’ highlights the juxtaposition + sheila engages with a motif (younger generation are more susceptible to change, seen in eric + sheila)
‘i told him that if they didn’t get rid of that girl, i’d never go near the place again and i’d persuade mother to close our account with them’ - sheila
highlights that sheila and birling are alike, upper class control the working class by using their power + status to manipulate the situation, more abrupt and dismissive language used, ‘that girl’
‘if she’d been some miserable plain little creature, i don’t suppose i’d have done it’ - sheila
dehumanising, zoomorphism, disdainful, also displays sheila’s insecurities and jealousy
‘i’m staying’ - sheila
defiance to the patriarchal norms, assertive, also highlights sheila’s ability to reject gerald’s control in a way eva could not
‘you wait, mother’ - sheila
drastic change from sheila’s old ‘mummy’ (shows sheila’s character development) and seems more spiteful + threatening, acts as a statement, not a term of endearment
‘[horrified] no! oh- horrible- horrible!’ - sheila
short syntax, fragmented speech repetition + exclamatories mimics sheila’s disjointed frame of mind as she realises what has taken place (eva was pregnant). also highlights how sheila is the complete opposite of her mother who has no remorse or emotion towards eva
‘and it’s what they don’t seem to understand’ - sheila
us and them language, separating herself + eric from their parents, a clear divide, young + old
‘it frightens me the way you talk’ - sheila
more us and them language showing the clear divide between parents + children, verb ‘frightens’ indicates how appalled and disgusted she is with her parents + their lack of morality
“I was in a furious temper” and “it was my own fault” and “I behaved badly too. I know I did.”
Sheila, responsibility
Act one beginning
Sheila is instantly open toward accepting responsibility and is self critical of her selfish actions
Sheila went to the manager to get him to fire Eva on what could be called a mere whim. She was angry with a mere smile and destroyed Eva’s life. There is a huge imbalance in power between the rich and poor in society, in addition to the imbalance in actual money. Britain is not quite the completely feudal society of the medieval period but it is quasi-feudal in terms of huge class differences.
When I was looking at myself in the mirror I caught sight of her smiling at the assistant, and I was furious with her. I’d been in a bad temper anyhow
Sheila
Act one - beginning
She by chance saw Eva smiling. Smiling in of itself is not a breach of any job or being rude to a customer. Sheila being in a negative state emotionally may have transferred some of her anger on to Eva by either being unhappy at seeing someone smiling or being paranoid that the smile was indicative of her sneering at Sheila. Regardless of all this it does not warrant someone losing their livelihood and having their life destroyed.
Priestley is showing how much at the mercy of the wealthy elite the working class are. There is a huge power imbalance and this power if abused can even ultimately be fatal
” if I could help now, I would” and “I’ll never, never do it again to anybody”
Sheila, responsibility
Act one - beginning
Priestley evidences Sheilas commitment to changing her attitudes towards social responsibility.
“I suppose we’re all nice people now”
Sheila, responsibility
Act three- end
Priestley uses this rhetorical device, coupled with a sarcastic tone to convey Sheila’s disapproval of her parents and Gerald’s lack of remorse. The lack of a potential criminal conviction doesn’t alleviate their immortal actions.
This is said in response to Mr Birling saying Goole not being a real inspector makes all the difference.
Sheila is concerned about the reality regardless of external factors such as the police, authorities but the real, deeper, fundamental world of right and wrong and not of ‘well we be caught and shamed publicly or not?’. The latter mentality is borne out of a self-centred desire to remain safe and to preserve status and image. Sheila does not care about such things. For her a mother and her child died.
You see, Gerald, you haven’t to know the rest of our crimes and idiocies.
Sheila
Act 3
Again Priestley using Sheila to say the Birlings and thus the upper-middle class are not perfect, that they too have their share of ‘crimes and idiocies’. They are not any less or any more human than their working class counterparts.
The discriminatory classist attitude of social apartheid and prejudice prevalent at the time made some of the rich see the poor not quite as ‘sub-human’ but definitely not on the ‘same level’ of humanity as them. Priestley seeks to tear this apart and show ‘look, we are all people, we all have good and bad, mistakes, be we rich or poor’.
(eagerly) That’s just what I feel, Eric. And it’s what they don’t seem to understand.
Sheila
Act three- end
This is said to Eric who is upset by what he sees as his parents indifference to Eva’s death. Again inter-generational differences and both of the younger Birlings being far better people than their parents, so thus a hope for a better future.
And Eric’s absolutely right. And it’s the best thing any one of us has said tonight and it makes me feel a bit less ashamed of us. You’re just beginning to pretend all over again.
Sheila
Act three- end
Eric says the same as Sheila, it matters whether the inspector is real or not, what matters is a young woman died.
Also the parents do not understand and it seems do not want to understand. This lack of understanding is borne out of ignorance and also the values being disseminated amongst the upper classes at that time which inhibit interaction between the rich and poor and thus perpetuate class hierarchy and the attendant inequality and discrimination that come along with it. Priestley wants people to understand. Sometimes to understand, people need to be shocked, to be stunned and this is what he hopes the play would achieve in its own small way, but he is aware that like the elder Birlings some may not care and seek to maintain the unfair, classist, capitalist society of Britain at that time.
