“Blood Brothers’ is a play that could be played like a tennis match with every scene showing first the working class situation and then the middle class side of it. The only way I allowed myself to do that was in the scene,if I only did it once, it would be very effective” Willy Russell study the contrasts that Willy Russell sets up in the musical and write about different life styles and life chances that Eddie and Mickey have. The play ‘Blood Brothers’ was written by Willy Russell who really show the contrast between class in this play.
The main difference in this play is class because right from the start to the end the class effects the two boys in every way. This class difference is shown by the way that their parents treat them, the contrast in the language that they use, where and how they live, compare their education, compare the way police treat them, compare the work that they do, and also contrasts in the power they have. All of these are main parts of the play the effect of class is contrasting all through their lives, like Eddie and Mickey have been separated at birth, one to a wealthy family and one has gone to a working class struggling family.
Eddie has gone to the wealthy family and Mickey has gone to the working class family. Willy shows the first major part this is how their parents treat them by the way they speak to them. Like for example Mickey’s mother says to Mickey “just shut up, you never mind, You don’t go near there”. This shows that working class get treated with less respect. Also Eddie is shown with a lot more love than Mickey, this is not because Mrs. Lyons loves Eddie more, its because she is feeling guilty when she shouts at him.
It’s her own guilty conscious. Sometimes she is strict towards Eddie and she feels guilty about it because he is not her own son but it could be the class effecting her love for Eddie. Mrs. Lyons sometimes shouts at Eddie and then freaks out. Like for instant she is slightly out of control and this quote also shows that she is trying to keep him to herself, and not let anybody else take him away from her, and trying to keep Eddie away from Mickey because she wants him to have a good education and good life. ” You see…
You see why I don’t want you mixing with boys like that filth, you learn filth and you behave like that, like them and I wont have it you’re my son mine you wont… you wont… ” she sees he is scared and almost crying, she gently pulls him to her and cradles him ” oh my son… my son… ” Another way their parents treat them is by their names. where Eddie his mum calls him by his full name Edward, how ever on the other hand Mickey is called by a nickname which is Mickey. This shows the contrast of the two mothers. The difference of language used by Eddie and Mickey stands out a lot.
This is because obviously, class is a major factor in both of their lives and it effects their use of language. Mickey is from a working class family where he has grown up using slang. “You know like when they ask you what your name is EH EH. Well we say, Linda don’t we say things like Adolph Hitler. ” Instead of saying ‘yes’ he says ‘yeh’. Also Mickey uses swear words like the ‘f’ word. “You know the f word” Mickey said to Eddie who was puzzled. Mickey didn’t know what it meant but still said it. This shows he uses slang. However Eddie has better English than Mickey.
Eddie’s English is perfect. And this is all because of their class and they way that they have been bought up. “They still don’t bleeding give you one. ” And Eddie is like “you say some smashing things don’t you” Like posh language. Another example of Mickey is “I might do. But I’m not playing now because I’m pissed off. ” This is a stereotypical scenario created by Willy that working class people are more likely to swear and use slang. The area that both Eddie and Mickey live in also contrasts the difference of class. We could imagine Mickey’s house is all messy and dirty because Mrs.
Johnston has too many children and she would only have enough time to do the cooking and there would be a lot for her to do seeing as she would be only one doing it. We assume that Eddies house is more nicer than Mickey’s house because of their class that’s how Willy Russell builds up a picture in our mind of how Mickey and Eddies house looks like. Eddies house is portrayed like a rich person’s house, all nice and tidy no dishes to wash, no dust, no toys lying around on the floor.
This is also shown because Mrs. Lyons has a cleaner who is Mrs. Johnston. This also shows the difference in their class, their jobs. Mrs. Johnston is a cleaner in Mrs. Lyons house. “It’s smashing thank you. Mrs. Lyons its such a lovely house it’s a pleasure cleaning it” this quote backs up that Mrs. Johnston had a low class job and Mrs. Lyons has a cleaner so that show a lot of difference in class. It also shows Mrs. Johnston is poor and Mrs. Lyons is rich. Mickey’s and Eddies education is hugely contrasted throughout out the play. This is because all of their lives depends on the education they get. Like Mickey, his mother cannot afford for him to go to a private school, because it costs a lot of money and she don’t have that type of money to spend.
On the other hand, Eddie’s mother has more than enough money to spend on his education so he has a chance of success in the future. Mickey would probably end up making boxes at the education he’s getting, where as Eddie would have a great chance of success at the amount of money Mrs. Lyons is spending on his education like a doctor or lawyer. Mickey- “I’d crawl back to the same job for double the hours and half the money, just making up boxes it was. ” This quote shows what Mickey has become from his education, and class effected his whole life hugely.
Where as Eddie has had a great education and its paid off, he is the owner of his business and he has a lot of power, and Mickey works for that business. This is ironic because mrs. Johnston used to work for mry lyons and now Mr Johnston-Mickey is working for Mr Lyons -Eddie. Don’t you think? “yeh yeh we both work in the same place. But you own the place , Mr lyons” See this shows that Eddie has a lot of power. Also when they were younger and they were using the air gun in the park the policeman was treating Mrs. Lyons to Mrs. Johnston. Willy Russell shows this in great depth.
When the policewoman were speaking to Mrs. Lyons they were talking as if they were talking down to her as if she was a little child like she didn’t understand or was thick or something. “And he was about to commit a serious crime” The policewomen was speaking down to her where as when she spoke to Mrs. Lyons she was speaking with some respect to her as if they were scared of her “as I say, it was more of a prank really” she was let off easily. She refers to Mrs. Johnston as ‘love’ and mrs. Lyons as Mrs. Lyons. So that’s a huge difference in class. Because Eddie owns a business and Mickey was making boxes.
Class has effected this hugely because if Eddie had stayed with Mrs. Johnston he would have probably ended up making boxes as well but he didn’t and just because he went to a wealthy family he became a better success then his brother-Mickey. “Eddie thanks! Eddie we’ve been trying to get a house for five years and you fix it up in five minutes. ” This also shows the power of Eddie and Mickey. Eddie can do anything he pleases but cannot get the one thing that he wants … Linda. This is because of class and this is the only bad thing for Eddie but it means the world to him.
“Linda my loins are burning for you… let me lay my weary hand upon your warm breast: Linda I love you, I want you, the very center of my being calls out for you. ” This shows how much he likes Linda. He now likes her more than ever before. I Conclude that Willy Russell makes a huge impact on the way that class effects everyone in those days. He also showed how the working class people are more down to earth, they live in the real world. I think that Willy has expressed what he was trying to put across in a good way. He has showed it in great depth.
