women in aic

• what is priestley's message about gender?

  - traditional gender stereotypes are damaging & they actively stop society from progressing
• what is the significance of priestley setting the play in 1912 when he wrote it in 1945?

  - in 1945, women were beginning to gain more and more rights

  - in 1912, these rights were non-existent so the audience would have been shocked to see such archaic treatment of women
• what does priestley suggest through the interactions between male and female characters in the play?

  - he comments on traditional gender roles and shows how he thinks society needs to progress in future
• how do the interactions between male and female characters show the need for societal change? (equality in dialogue)

  - equality in dialogue: male and female characters in the play engage in dialogue on equal footing

  - by giving female characters a voice, priestley advocates for a more egalitarian society

  - lack of dialogue from eva smith and minimal dialogue from edna represents society at present
• how do the interactions between male and female characters show the need for societal change? (assertive women)

  - sheila - assertive and challenges the status quo

  - e.g when she rejects the ring from gerald - "it's too soon"; takes responsibility and empathises with eva smith - "i know i'm to blame", "i'm desparately sorry"; when gerald told her to leave during his interrogation - "i'm staying"; interrupts and challenges everyone at different times

  - eva smith - assertive when standing up to mr birling - "she wanted twenty-five shillings a week instead of twenty-two and sixpence"; refused to accept eric's stolen money instead of relying on a man to save her - "until she refused to take any more"
• how do interactions between male and female characters show the need for societal change? (collaboration/socialism)

  - priestley breaks down gender barriers and encourages society to act as one whole - idea of socialism - regardless of gender

  - all of the birlings + gerald come together to collaboratively solve the 'mystery' of who the inspector was; "he wasn't an inspector", "pretending to be a police officer"
• how does priestley use the inspector to break down gender stereotypes?

  - although he is male, he isn't hypermasculine like mr birling and gerald; "need not be a big man but at once creats an impression of massiveness, solidity and purposefulness"

  - he has more power in the play - takes over from mr birling as dominant male figure - which shows masculinity doesn't need to depend on violence, aggression or intimidation

  - inspector is impressive, intelligent, compassionate & patient -> opposite of typical, toxic masculinity
• why was the audience's understanding of gender more progressed than when the play is set?

  - during the two world wars, women took over jobs that men traditionally had whilst the men were fighting

  - as a result, women realised they were able to contribute to society and societal norms were broken
• how does priestley bring about reasons for the need for change in the play?

  - he focuses on the dark side of the era and illustrates the conflict and suffering that gender stereotypes caused

  - he confronts his audience with the harsh reality of what it would be like if these traditions were upheld
• what does mrs birling represent?

  - traditional 1912 women

  - when in the presence of men, she acts as their subordinates

  - she doesn't get involved in any men's business; whenever she has opinions they are about female characters (e.g eva)

  - despite being from a higher class then mr birling, she is a woman so is automatically his subordinate
• how does priestley show that a woman's status in society was dependent on her husband's position?

  - mrs birling introduces herself to the inspector and references her "husband" and his position as "lord mayor only two years ago"

  - adheres to traditional view of family where man is in charge; "now just be quiet so that your father can decide what we ought to do" - act 3 once inspector leaves

  - by doing so, priestley suggests that women invalidate themselves & other women when they believe the narrative of male dominance
• how does priestley use mrs birling to show how women were meant to be kept within the constraints of societal gender norms?

  - she actively works to suppress other women and tries to pass down her traditional values about women to her daughter

  - teaches sheila to be dependent on and loyal to men - internalised misogyny passed through generations

  - "when you're married you'll realise that men with important work to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time and energy on their business. you'll have to get used to that, just as i did"; teaches sheila to resign herself to mistreatment and neglect because it is necessary; "just as i did" presents it as a tradition through generations which has been normalised; "important work" implies that only a man's work is valuable
• how does priestley suggest that women in 1912 were seen as stupid?

  - when mr birling is talking about business matters with eric and gerald, mrs birling says "i think sheila and i had better go into the drawing room and leave you men"

  - "drawing room" shows mrs birling wants to physically separate the two genders
• how is mrs birling's attitude to other women presented?

  - mocking & reductive; mirrors her husban'ds sexist comments

  - refers to sheila as "over-excited", "a hysterical child", "childish" - priestley highlights how women undermine other women, emphasising this by using mrs birling to do so to her own daughter

  - "hysterical": female hysteria was an offical medical diagnosis; associated with the weakness of femininity; an insult to silence women who weren't acting the way the men wanted them to

  - invalidates sheila's concerns and comments to present her in an irrational & immature light

  - misogyny is normalised so much that women even dismiss other people of their own gender
• how does priestley portray eva smith?

  - directly opposite to mrs birling; works and isn't afraid to voice her opinion

  - she isn't portrayed as a weak, self-pitying victim

  - assertive, outspoken, determined, righteous

  - atypical presentation of femininity, subverting stereotypes
• why does priestley present eva smith with these qualities?

  - priestley does this to suggest that these qualities were part of the reason why she was treated so poorly by the birling family

  - she defied their expectations of working class women being respectful and passive which angered them
• what does eva smith represent?

  - eva smith is symbolic of the working class as a whole

  - each step of eva's story outlines a different way women are treated unfairly
• "she'd had a lot to say - far too much - so she had to go"

  - mr birling says this about eva smith; he wanted to censor her rebellious opinions and silence the lower classes; narcissist

  - shows eva smith was a ringleader of the factory strike implying she had strong voice and leadership qualities

  - eva having "far too much" to say in mr birling's opinion shows he didn't like eva disagreeing with him and questioning his authority; he thinks she was acting out of line

  - this shows how women were expected to be demure, reserved, modest and soft-spoken
• how does mrs birling imply women should be kind and respectful?

  - she refuses to help eva as she acted with "impertinence" as she suggests eva didn't act in the kind and respectful way a women should

  - mrs birling also suggests women shouldn't make moral decisions or have any independence when eva refused eric's money; mrs birling expected eva to follow the path given to her by taking the money
• what allows priestley to explore taboo topics?

  - eva's experience with eric and mrs birling allows priestley to explore taboo topics and stigmas women had to stick to

  - for example, unmarried women were seen as different to married women and having a child before marriage was seen as a scandal

  - eva's story about having a "husband who'd deserted her" was an attempt to make her story seem more respectable and pitiable; if she admitted to being pregnant before marriage she'd seem lustful and irresponsible
• "she had no claim to the name, that she wasn't married, and that the story she told at first [...] was quite false"

  - outlines various societal views on marriage and motherhood

  - eva thought that introducing herself as "mrs birling" would improve her chances of receiving the help she needed; reflects her dependence on their family for security
• what did priestley show about stigmas surrounding unmarried women and marriage between classes?

  - many women were left trapped for help

  - while eric (an upper class man) could sleep with a working class girl and face almost no consequences, eva was left with a baby she couldn't support
• what does sheila represent?

  - acts as a bridge between conservative mrs birling and assertive eva smith
• how does sheila change?

  - she undergoes a transformation from a stereotypical upper-class girl into an assertive, self-assured and independent woman
• what does the inspector enable sheila to do?

  - to construct and voice her own opinions and by doing so she becomes self-aware

  - this empowers her, showing how respecting women and their intelligence gives them a confident sense of self

  - priestley suggests the ways in which society treats and portrays women makes them appear weak and 2d because they're not allowed to explore their own identities
• what does sheila represent in terms of suffragete movement?

  - she represents the new woman

  - her character arc imitates the progression of women's suffrage from 1912 to 1945