What is the message in An Inspector Calls and how does priestly communicate it?

middle class man of the time and the rest of the family to represent the average middle class family. Mr Burling believes that through his experience he knows that there will be no war and as he claims the Titanic is unsinkable the audience can easily understand his foolishness. This is just the start of his message, do not be as foolish as to think just because England has won the war it does not mean that it is safe from trouble, the use of dramatic irony helps to express this. Priestly has given a good description of upper middle class men in the very first act of the play, making sure the audience can relate to Mr Burling as representing the average middle class man. Just as Mr Burling begins to finish his speech saying a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own-and-a ring of the doorbell interrupts him. When the Inspector calls unexpectedly on the prosperous Burling family his startling revelations not only shatter the very foundations of their lives, but also challenges us all to examine our consciences. The timing of the entrance of the inspector is quite a prominent part of the play. Inspector Goole is portrayed as quite a sinister character that is quite persistent about finding out the truth. He believes in quite the opposite to what Mr Burling believes in. He feels every person should help each other as he quotes, "we are members of one body-We are responsible for each other". The inspector interrogates each character in turn, with each of them he makes a point that they have acted selfishly and used Eva Smith the girl involved for their own purposes and they have not thought about the effect they have had on her life. Priestly uses the inspector to show us how hypocritical and arrogant the upper middle class men and women were. The Inspector also brings to our attention the vast differences between the upper middle class men and lower class citizens. The inspector refuses to acknowledge the fact that the Burling family is a middle class, knowing that he is more of a threat to them then they are to him. He hovers over the characters acting much like their conscience; he is described as creating 'an impression of massiveness, solidity and purposefulness'. He speaks carefully and has a disconcerting habit of looking hard at the person he addresses, forcing the truth out of each character in question. While the Inspector moves Arthur Burling to anger, he is not affected by being confronted with the effects of his actions until the Inspector is about to leave. Sheila, Arthur Billing's daughter, however is moved to tears of shock and guilt; the Inspector has been successful in making her see the consequences of her actions. The fiancé, Gerald Croft, finds that the Inspector similarly disrupts his 'easy manner'. He is distressed by his part in the destruction of the girl's life though he did try to deny knowing her at first as through the first part of the play, he feels completely relieved and innocent to any possible part in the suicide of Eva Smith. He never knew this girl but when the name Daisy Renton came up he gives himself away completely. Mrs Burling, however, remains entirely untouched by the Inspector's questioning. She refuses to see how Eva's death could have followed as a consequence of her actions and tries to blame the father of Eva's child for the suicide. As the Inspector questions Eric he becomes entirely weak and helpless in front of his parents. Revealed as the father of Eva's unborn child, Eric reacts in a similar way to his sister. It is not until now in which Mrs Burling is finally affected, faced now with the realisation that her actions eventually lead to the death of her grandchild. As the whole family begin to come to terms with the real crimes they have committed the Inspector intervenes to deliver his final judgement, that while Arthur Burling started it all, they are all to blame for Eva's death. Eva is one of the most important characters in the play yet the audience never actually see her. Priestly has intended for Eva to represent all other people who were in similar situations at the time, the use of the name Smith is cleverly used, as it is a common name, representing all the working class people. She is at the mercy of wealthier people giving her work. It seems she never expected much only enough to keep herself but in the end she found herself getting less. When she did find a fairly well paid job she probably found a little comfort having had little chance of getting another job after having been thrown out of her last job. When it is found she is forced to leave her second job she must have been quite frightened at the thought of having to make a living with nothing left in her life. By now she must have been quite desperate for help and when she meets Gerald she would have been quite relieved to have somebody to rely on even if she may have known the relationship was going to be short lived. When she could tell the relationship was coming to an end she accepted it, though she was still not particularly happy, she went away for a while to think over her situation. Gerald had not done anything terrible to Eva, he had simply felt sorry for Eva who had called herself Daisy Renton throughout her relationship with Gerald. But it was while he was with Sheila when all this had happened. This helplessness would have made the audience take pity on her understanding her plight at the fact that anybody of her class without help could be in the same position. When Eva met Eric he was drunk and she only let him into her lodgings because he was in such a drunken state that he might have caused a row. When she realised she was to have Eric's baby they were both in a state. She thought of Eric as a child, knowing he was young and foolish she realised it would not be a good idea to marry him. It is at this point that she went to the voluntary help provided by the richer families of the town. Mrs Burling was one of these voluntary helpers yet she refused to help this poor girl at a time when she most needed it. Priestly shows the audience that Mrs Burling has a part in this crime and is certainly not innocent. The only person in the Burling family willing to help this young girl was Eric who even stole from his father to do so, Eric being the most irresponsible member of the family, this says a lot for respectable families. When the Inspector leaves the Burling household, they gradually come to the conclusion that he was an impostor. Mr and Mrs Burling immediately criticise their children for being taken by the inspector. This shows how hypocritical Mr and Mrs Burling can be. They still feel innocent to all that has happened. Both Sheila and Eric who have realised the wrong they have caused are ashamed at their parent's readiness to exclude themselves from any wrongdoing. Through the inspector acting as our conscience we are made aware that there are those in higher positions in society who have power yet abuse it. They take advantage of those weaker then themselves. Eva Smith was a working class girl trying to make a living. Through those in power she was used terribly, then when she was no longer of any use she was gotten rid of. JB Priestly wanted to show that this would continue to happen if society does not learn from these mistakes. Priestly has shown us how the middle class people act in society and the way in which they regard lower citizens. He hopes we will realise how the younger generations are the ones who can change the society in which we live. He shows this when Mr and Mrs Burling learn nothing from their mistakes while Eric and Sheila learn from their mistakes. The inspector brings the play to a close, summarising Priestly message when he says we don't live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other this is exactly the opposite to what we are told to believe by Mr Burling, that everybody should look after himself or herself. Priestly conveyed his message well, showing us how the situation can be changed and who to depend on to change it.