The theme of selfishness is central to an Inspector Calls. With this play being written in 1945 it would show people how the upper middle class were living and also their attitudes to those below them. He does this by showing their lack u.of respect and care for any one who is below them in social classes. Priestly firstly uses the difference in class and economic to draw attention the Eva Smiths first lead to her suicide, he does this by using the lack of the minimum wage. As he can set whatever wage he wants.
In Bellamy’s opinion, the agricultural economy and the private capital was inefficient and only benefitted the wealthy, while the working class continued to suffer. The lower class people of the nation had to work unreasonable conditions to escape, what seemed to be, the inevitable fate of poverty. Many workers protested their jobs in hopes of change, which ultimately lead to furthering their poverty because the upper class had no sympathy for the poor, even when they tried to stand up for themselves. Bellamy clearly shows his thoughts of hopelessness in his community that he lived in by the following passage: “…it was merely a question of thickness of their skulls when they would discover the fact and make up their minds to endure what they cannot cure” (12). Bellamy saw the select few who were wealthy as abusers of their power and money.
An Inspector Calls can be seen as a morality play, as it teaches a lesson, as well as conveying morality through Priestley's eyes, with the main aim being to show that capitalism has an effect on all members of society, in very different ways. He attempts to show that most of the public suffer due to the lack of moral fibre, which makes the audience sympathise with the plight of the lower-class. It is key that the play is set in 1912, as it was a difficult time. There were food shortages, strikes and continuous political tension. The audience are also aware that during this time, the world was on the verge of war.
The source does express how Churchill disliked any political movements from the working class. Churchill especially hated the Trade union acts which were made throughout the 1920s. Because the policies that Churchill made didn’t affect David Low he interpreted that there was no problems with the policies. Unlike in source B which is from left-wing labour M.P Emmanuel Shinwell, Emmanuel claimed Churchill “was accused of taking decisions that led to a sharp increase in unemployment, and of rejecting attempts to compromise in the general strike.” This contrasts with source A because unlike source A, Source B mentions the effects some of Churchill’s policies and attitudes has on the general public which don’t affect the rich and higher up in society. The 1926 general strike was a strike that lasted nine days, from 4 May 1926 to 13 May 1926.
Secondly, Priestley makes Birling a selfish, rich upper class symbol of moral corruption. This is continuously emphasised through his over obsession of money and social superiority. without money and status Mr Birling i believe would feel worthless and isolated, as he doesn't have anything else that means more to him. we can recognise this when everything he mentions that should mean something to him for example sheilas engagement is straight away turned back to
Another way in which Birling tried to make himself seem important by mentioning his connections with influential people – playing gold with the ‘Chief inspector.’ The Inspector is used within ‘An Inspector Calls’ is used to express the views and opinions of JB Priestley, as he contrasts/threatens Arthur Birling’s middle class values (the reputation of his company, his important connections). Arthur Birling reacts to these views ‘(angrily)’ and ‘(savagely)’. This then shows the selfishness of Arthur’s personality. Another sign of Arthur Birling being selfish would be that he dismisses the idea of social responsibility – a
Due to General Zaroff’s savage doings for satisfaction, he seems to have lost his humanity and de-valued human life far more than the Villagers and their customs did. Both characters in these two short stories felt that what they were doing was the right thing. In “The Lottery,” they mention “that over in the north village they're talking of giving up the lottery.”(Jackson, paragraph 32). Old Man Warner calls the north village a “pack of fools” stating that, that is not the way to go. He believes they must carry on this tradition and he never has come to realized how awful it is.
As a result, it is possible to interpret the industrialization like another form of slavery because it is a nuisance to the worker’s freedom. Indeed, it is a fact; factories owner have a total control on the workers. They take decision without any consent, and they only seek their profits. In fact, Sam tells us about the factories owners’ behavior by denouncing the changes in the lunch hours. (Patch, 67) It is true that the workers are proud of their skills especially the spinners like in Sam Patch, but sometimes fighting back is an obligation.
The protesters are merely discontent or refusals to accept the status quo of social and economic inequality, joblessness, and homelessness issues to name a few. The protesters feel the job is of the occupiers to form a strong path as much as to be a human barrier to the indifference that allows corporations to gain over the country, the world and people’s lives. Occupy Wall Street speaks protest for utilitarian action plan for a system to work. Wealth is the god, political offices can be bought, and Government is hounding the people, there is nothing gained but a stay of execution for the middle class. There has been a class system struggle, but revolutionary form of class has penetrated from the wealthy for decades OWS has refused to let it die, and accept the oppression, shrinking incomes, loss of jobs from a dying job market, the lack of access of homes sales due to the corporate bottom line.
Glen’s quandary first results from his incompetence in the capitalist society. Glen represents working class men, the proletariat, “who, having no means of production of their own, are reduced to selling their labor power in order to live “. Therefore, Glen suffers from exploitation of the bourgeoisie, the capitalist class. This is reflected in Glen’s petty wages, which cannot support his family’s already poor living standards. Even worse, despite being strong and skillful at manual labor, Glen, known for his “hot temper, bad memory and general uselessness”, is labeled as a counterproductive factor in the capitalist system.