The Birlings live in Brumley, an industrial city in the North Midlands. Arthur Birling is a factory owner and self made man. Sybil Birling is a cold woman and is her husband’s social superior. Sheila Birling is young, pretty and was brought up to behave in a ‘suitable’ manner. Her brother, Eric Birling, is irresponsible and immature. Gerald Croft is a well-bred traditionalist.
SINISTER:
Damian Darke as the inspector
Mr Birling is a self-made business man described in the stage directions as “pompous”. It is clear from the start that he only cares about making money and looking after his family. His only business interest is to get ‘lower costs and higher prices’.
Eva Smith encouraged other workers to go on strike for higher pay and she was sacked for standing up to Mr Birling.
J.B. Priestly makes it apparent that he is an ignorant fool because he is certain that he is always right. However, when he lectures Eric and Gerald he says things like; The Titanic is unsinkable, there won’t be any more wars and there won’t be any more labour agitations. This is ironic and the audience would know that the Titanic had sunk, there had been two world wars and there had been a general strike and the rise of the labour party.
He shows no remorse for Eva Smith’s death and after the Inspector is exposed as a fake he wants to pretend that nothing has happened and things can return to the way they were before. Mr Birling is callous when he suggests to Sheila that they will ‘have a good laugh over it yet’.
Sheila had Eva Smith sacked from Milwards shop because she thought that Eva was laughing at her. Unlike Mr Birling, Sheila is sorry for, and ashamed of, her actions. The events of the evening have changed Sheila’s outlook on life. At the beginning of the play Sheila is pampered, spoilt and “very pleased with life”. Sheila is protected from the harsh realities of life and is kept under her mother’s wing. As the play progresses, Sheila becomes aware of herself and is sure about her own opinions. At the end of the play, Sheila has become so perceptive that she acts like the Inspector. She asks lots of questions and even orders her father not to “interfere”. The fact that Sheila and Mr Birling are from different generations is significant. J.B Priestly shows the older generation as being stuck in their ways and looks towards the younger generation to change the future.
The Inspector speaks with authority and a strong moral tone. He uses emotive language. A normal Police Inspector would have said that Eva Smith had committed suicide by drinking poison, whereas Inspector Goole describes her as now lying “with a burnt-out inside on a slab”.
His role is to piece together the story of Eva Smith as he speaks to the family. Up to the point when a phone call reveals that Inspector Goole isn’t a Police Officer the play is like an ordinary detective story. After the phone call the Birling’s and the audience realise that it is themselves and their morals that are being inspected.
The Inspector comes into the play at the point where the Birling’s are having a family celebration and are very pleased with themselves.
The Inspector is strange and has a spiritual air. It is almost as if the Inspector is conjured up by Mr Birling’s “every man for himself” speech, were he states that “a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own”. The inspector could represent a spirit or a religious figure but neither the Birling’s nor the audience know.
The props used on stage help to indicate what a prosperous family the
Birlings are. The huge clock indicates the importance of the time.
The mirror is a metaphor for looking back at yourself, and is used by several characters as they talk about past meetings. The set is stuffed with props which gives an oppressive feel.
All the action takes place in the dining room. This room acts as a cocoon which closes the Birlings off from the real world. The lighting in this scene is warm and pink, this reflects the mood of the characters.
The lighting changes when the Inspector appears, it becomes colder and harder and resembles a spotlight.
The Birlings and Gerald Croft are wearing expensive elegant evening clothes. Whereas, the Inspector is wearing a ‘plain darkish suit’, which highlights the contrast between the characters.
The inspector builds up tension by making lots of delays.
The way the inspector only allows one character at a time to see the photo of Eva shows that the inspector dictates the speed of how the story is unveiled, this is ironic because the Birlings, who are used to being in power, have no control over the evening events and the inspector. J B Priestly creates suspense by having crucial entrances and exits, when the door bangs both the characters on stage and the audience wonder who it is.
The beginnings and ends of the acts are dramatic moments. When act one ends the inspector ‘slowly opens’ the door and we suspect that the inspector has overheard Gerald’s partial confession. At the end of act two the family realise that Eric is deeply involved with Eva’s death. The inspector holds up his hand and everyone on stage and in the audience, is silent and looks towards the door. Eric enters.
At the close of the play the Birlings and Gerald are relived and begin to congratulate themselves that they have avoided a scandal.
Mr Birling feels ‘triumphant’ and ‘jovial’ when suddenly the telephone ‘rings sharply’. After a moment’s silence, Birling reveals that a dead body of a girl has been found and an inspector is about to call. The play has a great deal of anticipation and excitement for the audience and the characters on stage.
One important theme of the play is hypocrisy. The upper classes believed that it didn’t matter what you did as long as nobody found out.
The only thing Mr and Mrs Birling are concerned about with Eva’s death, is the possible public scandal that could come out and the fact that Eric stole money from them. Mr Birling sees himself as the victim and that the main disaster of the night is the possible scandal and loss of his knighthood. The Birlings have learnt nothing about social responsibility and by the end of the play they can still regard the plight of a young woman as a ‘joke’.
On the other hand, both Eric and Sheila show great remorse for what they’ve done and can see that the fate of all social classes is connected.
J B Priestly believed that everyone had responsibility for each other. He was a socialist and at the time when this play was written and performed there was about to be a general election. He wanted people to ask themselves what sort of world they wanted to live in. He hoped that this play would help them make up their mind.
I think that An Inspector Calls is a good play because it has many twists and turns in the storyline and also the audience can get involved with the play, thinking about what’s going to happen next.
Is the play still relevant today?
I think it is because there will always be people like Mr Birling, who only care about themselves and never help anyone else. Whereas, the younger generation, like Eric and Sheila, can change themselves and the future. A lot can be learned from this play.
I would recommend you go and see this play.
Rating:
STACY CLARKE
Showing until 17th February.
Tickets available at the box office.
Concessions available for students.
