How does Willy Russell present the theme of class throughout Blood Brothers?

It is evident that class plays an integral role in the play, influencing the fate of “the Johnstone twins” from the beginning of the play, demonstrated in the fact that Mrs Johnstone already has “seven hungry mouths to feed” and cannot continue to provide for her family since “two”, as opposed to the one she was hoping for, are due to be born. Russell emphasises the struggle Mrs Johnstone has in the opening scene of the play to foil the subsequent scene which depicts Mrs Lyons, a middle class woman who cannot have children, in order to convey the class divide present within 1960s Liverpool. Thus, Russell portrays the two women in such contrasting lights in order to foreshadow the impact the idea of class will have on the respectiveoves of Mickey and “Eddy” later on.


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Answered by Matt B. English Literature tutor

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