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In the AQA GCSE exam, you will be given an extract from the play and asked to write about how Priestley presents a particular theme, character, or idea — using the extract as your starting point but also referring to the rest of the play. This lesson analyses the most important extracts and shows you how to write about them effectively.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Paper | Paper 2: Modern Texts and Poetry |
| Section | Section A: Modern Prose/Drama |
| Time | Approximately 45 minutes (of a 2 hour 15 minute paper) |
| Extract | You are given an extract of roughly 30–40 lines |
| Question style | "How does Priestley present [theme/character] in this extract and in the play as a whole?" |
| Assessment Objectives | AO1 (response), AO2 (analysis), AO3 (context), AO4 (SPaG) |
| Marks | 34 marks + 4 SPaG = 38 total |
Examiner's tip: Unlike the Shakespeare question, you can see the extract in front of you. Use it — quote directly from it. But you must also write about the rest of the play. Aim for roughly 60% extract, 40% wider play.
"But the way some of these cranks talk and write now, you'd think everybody has to look after everybody else, as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive — community and all that nonsense. But take my word for it, you youngsters — and I've learnt in the good hard school of experience — that a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own — and —"
We hear the sharp ring of a front door bell. Birling stops to listen.
| Feature | Detail | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Dramatic irony | "cranks" — the Inspector (and Priestley) hold exactly these views | Birling dismisses the very philosophy the play endorses |
| Simile | "like bees in a hive" | Birling mocks collective living — but bees are productive and cooperative |
| Repetition | "himself and his own" | Emphasises selfishness — narrow focus on the individual |
| The doorbell | Interrupts mid-sentence with a dash | Priestley literally cuts Birling off — his philosophy is interrupted by moral reckoning |
| Stage direction | "sharp ring" | "Sharp" suggests urgency and aggression — the Inspector's arrival is forceful |
Examiner's tip: The interruption of the doorbell is one of the most analysable moments in the play. You could write: "Priestley uses the doorbell to structurally undercut Birling's capitalist philosophy — the Inspector's arrival is timed to interrupt Birling's complacent speech, suggesting that moral reckoning cannot be delayed by self-serving rhetoric."
"But just remember this. One Eva Smith has gone — but there are millions and millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths still left with us, with their lives, their hopes and fears, their suffering, and chance of happiness, all intertwined with our lives, with what we think and say and do. We don't live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other. And I tell you that the time will soon come when, if men will not learn that lesson, then they will be taught it in fire and blood and anguish. Good night."
| Feature | Detail | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Repetition | "millions and millions and millions" | Triple repetition emphasises the vast scale — Eva represents an entire class |
| Tricolon | "their lives, their hopes and fears, their suffering" | Builds emotional weight; humanises the working class |
| First person plural | "We don't live alone. We are members of one body" | Includes the audience — this is not just about the Birlings |
| Short declarative sentences | "We are responsible for each other" | Moral certainty — no hedging, no qualification |
| Prophetic warning | "fire and blood and anguish" | Biblical tone; refers to WWI and WWII |
| Religious echo | "members of one body" | Echoes 1 Corinthians 12:27 — "Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it" |
Examiner's tip: This speech is the moral and structural climax of the play. Every essay on An Inspector Calls should reference it, regardless of the question topic.
Mrs Birling: "I used my influence to have it refused. And in spite of what's happened to the girl since, I consider I did my duty."
Inspector: "But surely, Mrs Birling, you must see that—"
Mrs Birling: "I don't think we need discuss it any further."
| Feature | Detail | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Verb "influence" | "I used my influence" | Reveals her awareness of her own power — and her willingness to use it against the vulnerable |
| Noun "duty" | "I consider I did my duty" | Ironic — she defines "duty" as refusing help; Priestley defines duty as collective responsibility |
| Interruption | Cuts off the Inspector | Attempts to assert class authority — but fails; the Inspector is not impressed |
| Short sentence | "I don't think we need discuss it any further" | Dismissive; tries to close the conversation through social superiority |
Sheila: "But these girls aren't cheap labour — they're people."
This single line is one of the most important in the play:
Eric: "You killed her — and the child she'd have had too — my child — your own grandchild — you killed them both — damn you, damn you —"
| Feature | Detail | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Repetition | "you killed" repeated | Accusatory — Eric directly blames his mother |
| Dashes | Multiple dashes | Fragmented speech reflects overwhelming emotion |
| "my child — your own grandchild" | Personal to universal | Moves from Eric's personal loss to the family connection |
| "damn you" | Repeated curse | Shocking — a son cursing his mother; shows the family is breaking apart |
| Short clauses | Staccato rhythm | Creates a sense of fury and distress |
The PEAL structure works well for exam responses:
| Letter | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| P | Point | Priestley presents Birling as complacent and short-sighted |
| E | Evidence | Birling declares the Titanic is "unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable" |
| A | Analysis | The superlative "absolutely" reveals Birling's overconfidence; the repetition of "unsinkable" suggests he is trying to convince himself as much as his audience. The 1945 audience would recognise this as dramatic irony — the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage — which undermines Birling's authority and, by extension, his capitalist worldview |
| L | Link | Priestley uses Birling to represent the failures of the pre-war capitalist class; by making Birling so consistently wrong, Priestley argues that society cannot afford to be led by men who prioritise profit over people |
When you write about the extract, always link outwards. Here are some strategies:
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