Blood Brothers: Context (Edexcel GCSE English Literature)
Revision Note
Blood Brothers political context
Written in 1981, Blood Brothers reflects the significant political context shaped by the contemporary Conservative government led by the then Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher.
Conservative ideology
Thatcher’s administration championed individualism, free market economics and a reduction in the welfare state:
These policies often drew criticism for exacerbating social inequality and neglecting vulnerable communities
The play’s narrative revolves around the tragic consequences of social inequality and a rigid class structure
It conveys playwright Willy Russell’s views about the political climate of the time
Thatcher’s government introduced significant reforms to trade union laws in an attempt to lessen the power of organised labour:
During this period, there were many confrontations with trade unions, most notably the miners’ strike of 1984–5
Within the play, Russell also criticises Conservative ideology regarding families:
Conservative ideology endorses the nuclear, traditional family
Russell highlights Conservative attitudes towards divorce
Britain’s social laws changed in 1967 under the Labour Party, relaxing laws on divorce
How this links to the play Blood Brothers | |
Single-parent families | Many Conservatives, like Mr and Mrs Lyons, disagreed with divorce, and judged any deviation from the nuclear family negatively. Mrs Johnstone’s characterisation highlights stereotypes related to single mothers. The narrator, acting as the Conservative public, asks the audience to judge her as a “heartless mother” for giving away her child. However, Russell presents her as a sympathetic character to challenge Conservative stereotypes about single mothers: Mrs Johnstone is an aspirational, loving and honest mother. |
Conservative family values | Russell’s play also depicts Conservative parenting through Mr and Mrs Lyons. Mrs Lyons represents a Conservative mother who has strong views on parenting, but uses violence to enforce rules. She insists on sheltering Eddie from the “rough boys”, isolating him from the working-class families to protect him from their negative influence. |
Fathers’ parental involvement | Mr Lyons represents a Conservative father who is mostly absent from the home and leaves the parenting to the mother. He is unaware Edward is not his real son and is absent from important decisions in his family life and relationships. Russell challenges Conservative parenting values, depicting them as dysfunctional. |
Blood Brothers social context
Social class
There was a huge social and economic disparity between the classes in 1980s Britain, which is reflected in the differences between the Lyonses and the Johnstones.
When Russell wrote the play in 1981, England had just experienced political instability which widened the social class divide
The Conservative party reduced the power of trade unions (organisations that argued for better working conditions); this affected the manufacturing industry and, in turn, the working class:
Industrial cities, like Liverpool, where Russell grew up and where the play is set, were affected especially badly
This resulted in widespread strikes and protests from the working class
Russell’s play criticises Conservative ideology as discriminatory towards the working class:
Margaret Thatcher famously said that hard work was the answer to success
Russell wrote his play just after an economic crisis in 1978 known as the Winter of Discontent, a period of time which led to increased crime and drug use
There was a shortage of housing, with many inner-city homes being run-down and impoverished:
In the play, the Johnstones are relocated from the city to new housing
How this links to the play Blood Brothers | |
Working-class hardship | In the play, Mickey, a working-class man, is made redundant from his factory job which is depicted as “A sign of the times”. Russell shows Mickey’s unemployment leading to crime, arrest and drugs, suggesting the impact of social class divisions on young men. |
The security of the middle class | In contrast, Mr Lyons, a middle-class businessman, is able to manage the economic problems due to his secure job. Furthermore, Edward’s opportunities in a middle-class family lead to a secure job in the business sector, buffering him from political pressures. Russell uses the male characters to explore Thatcher’s ideas about social class and whether individuals are really in control of their own fates. |
Gender
During this period, Liverpool faced high unemployment rates, a theme reflected through Mrs Johnstone’s employment as a cleaner for Mrs Lyons and her struggle to raise seven children alone.
Russell’s play criticises an England between 1960 and 1980 where women were still largely reliant on men for security and status:
Russell depicts the impact of single motherhood through Mrs Johnstone and reveals she was abandoned by her husband and left with seven children to raise
Russell criticises patriarchal attitudes to mental health through Mrs Lyons’ mental deterioration:
Many married women during the 1960s and 1970s were prescribed medication to treat anxiety and nerves
Up until 1969, it was common practice to institutionalise women who did not reflect an attitude in keeping with social norms
Russell highlights that contemporary gender ideals related to beauty and youth:
How this links to the play Blood Brothers | |
Attitudes towards working single mothers | Russell presents Mrs Johnstone as desperate to work: she tells Mrs Lyons she will be back at work the day after the twins are born. Here, Russell highlights a lack of support for single mothers after childbirth. Despite hard work and sympathetic circumstances, she is judged by her peers as a neglectful mother. |
Mrs Johnstone, as a single mother, is presented as unsupported by authorities. She is threatened by the police for not disciplining her children and Mrs Lyons threatens that the Child Welfare Agency may take her children. In the absence of support, Mrs Johnstone is forced into difficult situations. Her desperation has huge consequences for the children: two of her sons are arrested for violent crime, suggesting Russell’s criticism of the system. | |
The security of the middle class | In contrast, Mrs Lyons does not work and is supported by her husband. She is presented as isolated within her marriage and Mr Lyons belittles her when she asks for money: “What on earth for!” |
Stigma towards mental health issues | Patriarchal attitudes are revealed through Mr Lyons as he blames his wife’s worries on her nerves. The children of the town sing songs about Mrs Lyons, calling her “the mad woman”, reflecting gender stigma associated with mental health. |
Beauty standards | Russell criticises the female ideal of youth, depicting Mrs Johnstone mourning her youth aged only 25. Mrs Johnstone refers to the glamour and beauty of her younger years, when she was like Marilyn Monroe and her husband would dance with her and she refers constantly to Monroe in reflective songs about a lost youth, suggesting her low self-esteem. |
Blood Brothers literary context
Blood Brothers belongs to the genre of musical theatre, blending song, dialogue and choreography to narrate the events:
It contains a non-naturalistic style through narration, musical elements, ensemble acting and asides
The play has elements of both comedy and tragedy and concludes with a sorrowful conclusion
Blood Brothers aligns within the broader literary tradition of realism, which attempts to create literature in which the world is presented as it actually exists:
Its purpose is to present everyday experiences as they are in real life, even if they are monotonous and mundane
The play is structured as a tragedy using certain conventions of classic Greek tragedy:
A tragedy usually depicts the doomed journey of a tragic hero with a fatal flaw
The mothers act as the antagonists of the play and the play opens with a warning from the narrator, who acts as a chorus
He informs the audience that the deaths of the twins is inevitable
How this links to the play Blood Brothers | |
Realism | Russell portrays working-class life in Liverpool with authenticity and depicts the struggles, aspirations and social inequalities faced by the characters. Russell’s use of colloquial language and everyday settings enhances the realism of the narrative. |
Blood Brothers as a tragedy | Mickey and Edward are both tragic heroes in that their misguided decisions lead to their deaths at the end of the play. However, Russell shows how the actions of the mothers and of society play a role in the sons’ doomed fates. |
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