‘An Inspector Calls’ by J.B.Priestley Essay -- Drama

How has watching a production of ‘An Inspector Calls’ by J.B.Priestley enhanced the script and furthered your understanding of the play? Refer to themes and characters in your analysis. ‘An Inspector Calls’ – J.B. Priestley ===================================== Twentieth Century Drama Coursework ---------------------------------- Task: How has watching a production of ‘An Inspector Calls’ by J.B.Priestley enhanced the script and furthered your understanding of the play? Refer to themes and characters in your analysis. Following my reading of ‘An Inspector Calls’ by J.B.Priestely, I went to the theatre to see Daldry’s production. I found that watching the play on stage massively enhanced the script and furthered my understanding of the play. The use of scenery, sound, lighting, special effects, the actors and their actual movement about the stage all emphasised Priestley’s moral message of the play, which he felt was so necessary to express. The play ‘An Inspector Calls’ was written by J.B.Priestley in the winter of 1944-1945, when Priestley, as explained in his biography by Vincent Brome, had â€Å"an idea about a mysterious inspector visiting a family... before the (second world) war.† The entire play was written â€Å"at top speed,...† and finished within a week. Even though the play was written in 1945, it was set in 1912 and written on a basis of Priestley’s early influences in life. His childhood home was a place where socialist ideas thrived and he had a real experience of working class life through numerous visits to his grandparent’s house in narrow backstreets behind a mill factory. J.B.Priestley was very interested in politics, but could not agree completely with the policies of any one political party. One of the main reasons for him writing ‘An Inspector Calls’ was to put the labour party into authority. He was a socialist and based his views and actions on compassion, the sort of compassion that the Inspector wants to see in those he questions in the play. Brumley, where the play is set, is a large manufacturing town in the Midlands. In 1912 nearly 15 million people lived in large towns and cities. Most people worked in manufacturing industries, mining, transport and trade. England had huge social divisions, based largely on wealth and income. Priestley replicates this scenario when first describing t... ...outside of his safe world, inside of the house, to answer it. This signifies that he cannot escape reality and must face up to his actions. Finally, in order to show the that morals and meanings of the play are still relevant for a modern day audience, in Daldry’s production, the house lights are switched on for the Inspector’s speech and the core message of the play he has to deliver. Even though you may be watching how the Birlings have misbehaved, this is a reminder to the audience that no one should behave as they did and always face up to their responsibilities, which is the message Priestley wanted to convey in his play of â€Å"An Inspector Calls†. To conclude, I found that watching a production of â€Å"An Inspector Calls† immensely enhanced and furthered my understanding of the play, in many ways as explained and analysed thoroughly in this essay. Although Priestley’s ideas were noted when reading the play in class, I felt they were conveyed more emotionally had much more meaning when acted. All plays are supposed to acted in order convey the meanings of them in this way and I found Daldry’s production created that emotion and meaning extremely effectively.