'An Inspector Calls' and temporal clauses
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Help students enhance their understanding of GCSE English Literature modern drama with this language-focused activity.
An Inspector Calls and temporal clauses
For students studying An Inspector Calls for GCSE English Literature, this resource helps support a closer linguistic analysis of the text to enhance their understanding of authorial technique. For GCSE English Literature Paper 2, students have to consider a question focusing on a key aspect of the play and link to the text as a whole with an exploration of wider concerns and contextual issues.
This helpful resource allows students to think about how meaning is constructed through language to help them build a more detailed analysis of the play as a whole. It can also help them become more confident with temporal clause analysis which is useful for GCSE English Language examination questions.
Key features of this resource
Students gain a clear definition of temporal clauses and learn how these are used in texts. An explanation of punctuation use around temporal clauses is also shared with students, helping them to identify temporal clauses more easily.
There are a number of examples and an activity where students have to identify temporal clauses in An Inspector Calls. Students are then asked to write their own analysis paragraph about Inspector Goole's role in the text and use at least three temporal clauses in their response.
What's included
Get everything you need to teach An Inspector Calls effectively:
- Free printable PDF worksheet for analysis of temporal clauses in the play.
- Editable worksheet (subscribers only) to adapt and customise.
How to use this An Inspector Calls resource
This resource is perfect for:
- Building analysis skills for GCSE English Literature study
- Revision sessions and exam preparation
- Consolidating language technique evaluative practice for GCSE English Language exam papers
Additional An Inspector Calls resources
- Questions on Act 1 of An Inspector Calls
- The Inspector: Planning a response for An Inspector Calls
- Essential quotations from An Inspector Calls
- Wordplay in Act Two
- Theme definitions
Browse additional resources in our An Inspector Calls section.
A sample extract from the resource:
Temporal = time, clause = part of a sentence
Temporal clause = a subordinate clause (can’t be a main clause or sentence) that tells us when the main action happened.
Examples:
- When Gerald is off-stage, the Birlings question if Goole was a real Inspector.
- Eric gives an inappropriate laugh near the start of the play.
Notice the punctuation. A comma is needed if the temporal clause is at the start of the sentence. It is not needed if the temporal clause is at the end of the sentence.
Task: in each example, underline the temporal clause.
- At the start of the play, Sheila is depicted as a frivolous, infantilised character.
- Priestley suggests that Sheila matures and changes as the action develops.
- Throughout this well-made play, Priestley makes use of documents, such as photographs and Eva Smith’s diary, to add credence to the guilt of the Birlings.
- In the denouement of this modern morality play, privileged characters such as Gerald Croft and the older Birlings have little motivation to challenge the status quo.
