5.3.2
Sheila Quotes Act 2
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Sheila - Key Quotes
Sheila says the following key quotes in Act 2:
‘I’m afraid you’ll say something...'
- ‘I’m afraid you’ll say something or do something that you’ll be sorry for afterwards.’
- At this point, Sheila understands the Inspector’s role in the story. She tries to warn her mother that the Inspector knows more than he seems to.
- She knows that Inspector Goole is giving each character the rope to hang themselves with – he is letting them explore their own involvement and work out their own guilt.
‘We really must stop these silly pretences’
- Sheila quickly becomes the mature voice of reason (person who influences others to act sensibly) – she knows that the Inspector already knows how every member of the family was involved with Eva Smith.
- She tries to get her family to just play along and tell the truth. This could also link to the idea that these upper-class people cared so much about presenting perfect personas that they never presented their true selves to anyone.
- Priestley, through Sheila, tells these upper-class people that they need to care less about social appearances and more about the consequences of their actions.
‘You and I aren’t the same people who sat down to dinner here’
- Sheila shows a great deal of emotional maturity.
- She breaks her engagement because she realises that she does not really know her fiancé.
- Although she had said many sarcastic, harsh comments to Gerald during his interrogation (questioning), she does not hate him. But she feels that she cannot commit to spending her life with a man she does not know – she is not worried about losing a close business connection (unlike her father).
Sheila - Key Quote (Act 2)
‘Mother, I think that was cruel and vile.’ Here's an analysis of this key quote from Act 2:
Breaking social rules and maturing
- By Act 2, ‘mummy’ has become ‘mother’ in Sheila’s eyes.
- She has shifted from her initial child-like behaviour to telling off her mother and openly disagreeing with her.
- This was completely unacceptable in pre-war etiquette. This suggests that she is so upset and angry that she is happy to break social rules at this point.
Changing relationship with parents
- Her using the more formal word ‘mother’ suggests that she is annoyed with Mrs Birling, and that she refuses to be viewed as a child at this point.
- She may no longer feel a sense of closeness with her mother.
- Her illusions (false images) of her parents have been shattered by the Inspector’s interrogation; her parents are not who she thought they were.
1Plot Summary
2Context & Key Themes
2.1Context & Key Themes
2.1.1Social Class & Equality2.1.2Class Tension2.1.3Abuse of Power & Corruption2.1.4Socialism vs Capitalism2.1.5Blame & Responsibility2.1.6Attitudes to Women2.1.7Characterisation of Women2.1.8Dramatic Function of Characters2.1.9End of Topic Test - Context & Key Themes2.1.10End of Topic Test - Context & Key Themes 22.1.11Grade 9 - Key Themes2.1.12Diagnostic Misconceptions - Socialism vs Communism2.1.13Diagnostic Misconceptions - Edna2.1.14Diagnostic Misconceptions - Women in the Play2.1.15Diagnostic Misconceptions - Eva Smith
3Key Characters
3.1Mr Birling
3.2Mrs Birling
3.6Inspector Goole
3.7Grade 9 - Key Characters
4Authorial Method
5Recap: Main Quotes
5.1Mr Birling Quotes
5.2Mrs Birling Quotes
5.6Inspector Goole Quotes
Jump to other topics
1Plot Summary
2Context & Key Themes
2.1Context & Key Themes
2.1.1Social Class & Equality2.1.2Class Tension2.1.3Abuse of Power & Corruption2.1.4Socialism vs Capitalism2.1.5Blame & Responsibility2.1.6Attitudes to Women2.1.7Characterisation of Women2.1.8Dramatic Function of Characters2.1.9End of Topic Test - Context & Key Themes2.1.10End of Topic Test - Context & Key Themes 22.1.11Grade 9 - Key Themes2.1.12Diagnostic Misconceptions - Socialism vs Communism2.1.13Diagnostic Misconceptions - Edna2.1.14Diagnostic Misconceptions - Women in the Play2.1.15Diagnostic Misconceptions - Eva Smith
3Key Characters
3.1Mr Birling
3.2Mrs Birling
3.6Inspector Goole
3.7Grade 9 - Key Characters
4Authorial Method
5Recap: Main Quotes
5.1Mr Birling Quotes
5.2Mrs Birling Quotes
5.6Inspector Goole Quotes
Practice questions on Sheila Quotes Act 2
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