How far does Priestley portray Sheila as a likeable character?
At the beginning of the play, Sheila is not a very likeable character. She has
superficial interests and talks like a child about her engagement ring: ‘Mummy – isn’t
it a beauty?’ Her use of the word 'mummy' shows her immature nature at this point.
The fact she focuses on the ring's appearance indicates how superficial she is. In
this way, Sheila represents a stereotypical, young upper-class woman of the early
20th century by fulfilling her role of marrying well and embracing superficial interests.
Sheila becomes more likeable when she shows humanity in the face of her father's
ignorance. Sheila says of Mr Birling's factory workers, 'but these girls aren't cheap
labour – they're people'. Here, Priestley is using Sheila as a mouthpiece for the
socialist principle of social equality. The juxtaposition of 'cheap labour' and 'people'
shows the conflicting views of capitalist businessmen Mr Birling, who sees his
workers as money-making tools, and Sheila, who recognises his workers as hard-
working individuals.
By the end of the play, Sheila is a likeable character as she accepts responsibility for
her role in Eva Smith's death and stands up to her parents. She confronts her
parents by saying ‘you don’t seem to have __learnt anything’ in Act 3. This is a
significant structural change from Act 1, where she acted very passively ('Mummy
sent me in'). Here, Sheila represents the rise of outspoken socialists who were
beginning to stand up for social causes in 20th century Britain.
At the beginning of the play, Sheila is not a very likeable character. She has
superficial interests and talks like a child about her engagement ring: ‘Mummy – isn’t
it a beauty?’ Her use of the word 'mummy' shows her immature nature at this point.
The fact she focuses on the ring's appearance indicates how superficial she is. In
this way, Sheila represents a stereotypical, young upper-class woman of the early
20th century by fulfilling her role of marrying well and embracing superficial interests.
Sheila becomes more likeable when she shows humanity in the face of her father's
ignorance. Sheila says of Mr Birling's factory workers, 'but these girls aren't cheap
labour – they're people'. Here, Priestley is using Sheila as a mouthpiece for the
socialist principle of social equality. The juxtaposition of 'cheap labour' and 'people'
shows the conflicting views of capitalist businessmen Mr Birling, who sees his
workers as money-making tools, and Sheila, who recognises his workers as hard-
working individuals.
By the end of the play, Sheila is a likeable character as she accepts responsibility for
her role in Eva Smith's death and stands up to her parents. She confronts her
parents by saying ‘you don’t seem to have __learnt anything’ in Act 3. This is a
significant structural change from Act 1, where she acted very passively ('Mummy
sent me in'). Here, Sheila represents the rise of outspoken socialists who were
beginning to stand up for social causes in 20th century Britain.
