J.

B Priestley
John Boynton Priestley was an English novelist, playwright, screenwriter, broadcaster and
social commentator. He was born on the 13th of September 1894 and died on the 14th of
August 1984.

His politics

J.B. Priestley believed in socialism- the idea of an equal society with it being regulated by the community as a
whole. He first became concerned about inequality in Britain in the 1930’s, calling capitalism a self-absorbed,
amoral system. Being a socialist, Priestley passionately believed in social justice and the widening of democracy.
He wanted equality in society, not for people to be discriminated against for their gender or class. Women should
have a voice and rights in society, he believed. J. B. Priestley was a strong advocate for the National Health
Service (NHS) as it provided for all, regardless of social standing.

Since his beliefs were so strong, he helped to set up the Common Wealth Party in 1942. The Common Wealth
Party argued for public ownership of land, greater democracy, and a new ‘morality’ in politics. 3 years later, in
1945, the Common Wealth Party merged with the Labour Party, another left-wing political party. In November
1957, he helped to make the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, which, as the name suggests, goes against
the use of nuclear weaponry.

His experiences of the war

Before becoming a writer, Priestley served in the British Army during the First World
War; In September 1914 he joined the army at the age of 19 and after almost a year of
training in England, his regiment was sent to the front in the summer of 1915. He
voulenteered for the Duke of Wellington's Regiment in 1914 and being posted to the
10th Battalion in France as a Lance-Corporal in 1915. Priestley took part in the Battle of
Loos and in 1917 he accepted a commission. After being wounded later that year he
was sent back to England for six months. After returning to the Western Front, he soon
endured a German gas attack and was treated at Rouen; he was
classified by the Medical Board as unfit for active service. Priestly
served in the army for 4 and a half years.

He shared his experience in the army and stated that he thought it 'behaved as if a small
gentlemanly officer class still had to make soldiers out of under-gardeners' runaway sons
and slum lads known to the police', and criticises the way men were packed into 'rotten
trenches', leading to greater casualties and despair among survivors. After the war, he
became active in the early movement for a United Nations as he believed that further world
wars could only be avoided through cooperation and mutual respect between countries.

Antonia, Ishika, Elise

London then vs now

Antonia, Ishika, Elise