"An Inspector Calls"
In this essay I will analyze the play "An Inspector Calls" by J.B Priestley. The play was first produced in London on 1st of October 1946. The play takes place in the dining room of the prosperous Birling family in the North Midlands of England. J.B Priestley was born in Bradford, his mother died in the same year. The emphasis of the play is who or what is accountable for the death of Eva Smith/Daisy Renton. The focus of this play is individual, social, and collective responsibility. The fact that every person of the Birling household and Gerald Croft came in contact with Eva Smith none of them know the others association with her until the Inspector arrived. The two characters I will be concentrate on are Sheila and Mr Birling because to me they played the largest part of Eva Smith death.
We found out about Eva's character from the inspector and the other characters, to me she was a bight young beautiful girl who was hard working, who of no fault of her own was punish because the time she was living in and how people of other classes treated each other. So the inspector uses the girl to try and make people see that the actions you do will have an impact on someone else.
As the play opens, all is well with the family. Arthur Birling is the leader of a well-known company. Arthur can see in the upcoming future that he is going to receive a knighthood. They all are celebrating the upcoming marriage of Sheila (daughter of the Birlings) to the well-placed Gerald Croft. Into this atmosphere arrives the mysterious Police Inspector Goole. The family at first is very angered by the intrusion of the inspector on their evening. The Inspector eventually tells the family the news of the suicide of a young girl (Eva Smith). Gradually the inspector reveals (under intense questioning) that not only did she die in a horrific manner, but that all of the Birlings and Gerald Croft had same responsibility for her death. The play ends with a surprise twist.
Sheila Birling was the second person to come in contract with Eva Smith/Daisy Renton.
It was just two months after Eva got discharged by Mr. Birling, she managed to pick herself up and find another occupation as a sales assistant. It was then that Sheila came in connection with Eva Smith. Sheila and her family are cherished clients and Sheila used this to help her get rid of Eva Smith/Daisy Renton "I told him that if they didn't get rid of that girl, I'd never go near the place again and I'd persuade mother to close our account with them." This shows that Sheila is very childish and spoilt child where she uses the status of her family to belittle people. This is very true to the time the plays was written the upper class people were very stubborn and like to use their power, over the working class.
At the start Sheila is very immature and spoilt. She had not travelled much and she has led a very protected life. Although she does have a lot of influence and status because she comes from a wealthy family, she does not know the real story. I don't think she is aware of what is happening on the streets and behind closed doors. At the same time she is mature and she doesn't tell their parents everything about Eric drinks problems "No, that's not fair, Eric. I could have told her months ago but of course I didn't. ...
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At the start Sheila is very immature and spoilt. She had not travelled much and she has led a very protected life. Although she does have a lot of influence and status because she comes from a wealthy family, she does not know the real story. I don't think she is aware of what is happening on the streets and behind closed doors. At the same time she is mature and she doesn't tell their parents everything about Eric drinks problems "No, that's not fair, Eric. I could have told her months ago but of course I didn't. I only told her tonight because I knew everything was coming out¨. You can tell that she had a lot of influence because of what she did to that girl who worked at Millwards; the Inspector says so "you used the power you had, as a daughter of a good customer and also of a man well known in the town, to punish the girl". She is horrified when she hears about the girls death; "Sorry! It's just I can't help thinking about this girl I have destroying herself so horribly and I have been so happy tonight. Oh I wish you hadn't told me." Sheila is the only one who actually comprehends what the Inspector was trying to do. She is the only one who actually learns something from the whole incident. "Well he inspected us all right and don't start escaping and pretending now, Between us we drove that girl to commit suicide". She is very changed; in fact she is a lot more mature. I think that her life has completely changed from this one experience that's what's important not whether he's was a police inspector" this shows us that she has learnt from her mistake. I think she will act less spoilt and she will be more cautious about everything she does.
My thoughts on this character is that she was envious of Eva Smith and is the most to blame because Eva got sacked for no apparent reason and she couldn't pick herself up after that and started a different way of life. Eva smith is going to play a big part of her Sheila's life to come as she feels more remorse than the rest of them.
I say she is the most to blame because Eva had done nothing wrong this time, whereas last time she made trouble and asked for more money. She got the sack so she knew her mistake. She learnt from it but, this time she has nothing to learn from so she had thought that she had no chance of getting another job.
Also it was a small neighbourhood where everyone knew everyone and getting sacked twice people would assume all kinds of things and be less reluctant to give her job. This is then what pushed Eva to go and start an alternative life "she decided she might as well try another kind of life." This alternative life made her life more complicate because this is where she has met Gerald and Eric and this pushed her on the edge.
It is obvious from what Sheila says that she believes she is entirely to blame and feels great guilt, for which she will be forever affected. I think that guilt and remorse for this character is linked, I think as she played the largest part in the death of Eva Smith she feels the most remorse out of all the characters.
J.B Priestly shows Sheila as a stereotype woman from early on in the play, "Oh - it's wonderful! Look Mummy - isn't it a beauty?" I can interpet this in two ways either he see's women in this way or he is trying to show us the way women acted.
J.B Priestly show's us this by stereotypying her again by just because she's a female she has to cry and feel all emotional. Priestly make us feel sympathy to sheila's character as she feels very guilty "I'll will never, never do it again to anybody". He showing us that people make mistake but how you rectify them that counts.
My View on this character is that she was jeaolus and envious of Eva Smith and is the most to blame because Eva got sacked for no apparent reason and she couldn't pick herself up after that and started a different way of life. Eva smith is going to play a big part of her Sheila's life to come as she feels more remorse than the rest of them.
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Mr. Birling's involvement with Eva is the first link in the chain. Eva was one Mr. Birling's minor employees working on the machine. Mr. Birling describe her as a "lively good looking girl" he also said she was a good worker and he was willing to promote her to a "leading operator" (that is someone one who is in charge of a small group).The question that I'm asking myself is that, if she was a good worker and only asked for more money and he refuses, why would he let her go so quickly. If someone is a good worker wouldn't you want to keep them?
At the beginning of the play Mr Birling acts very self-confident and smug. He believes, strongly, in a capitalist world. You can tell this from his speech "a man has to make his own way¨ Birling doesn't know-how his actions affect others." We were paying the usual rates and if they didn't like those rates, they could go and work somewhere else. It's a free country, I told them." "Eric replies it isn't if you can't go and work somewhere else." He is almost self opinionated and believes that everyone has to look after themselves and no one else. He is arrogant and doesn't seem to learn.
The Inspector tries to change this by showing him exactly how his capitalist view can affect others. "But just remember this. One Eva Smith has gone but there are millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths still left with us, with their lives, their hopes and fears, their suffering, and chance of happiness, all intertwined with our lives" I think what the Inspector was trying to saying here would be important for all of us. The writer is trying to teach the audience, as well as Mr Birling, that everything we do changes other peoples lives in some way. That decision we make somehow affects other people's feelings and actions. The last part of the speech is where he talks about the war that is about to break out. The writer knows this will happen and uses it as a threat in the play.
As soon as Birling finds out about Eric's involvement in the whole thing he loses his confidence.
Birling is scared mainly for himself and what it would do to his knighthood. Also, of what the whole thing would do to his general public image.
At this point I think that the Inspector is partially successful. I think that Birling understands what the Inspector sets out to do. But as soon as he finds out the Inspector is a fake he reverts straight back to his old, unchanged, self. Sheila says, "You began to learn something. And now you've stopped. You're ready to go on in the same old way?
Birling replies and you're not eh? This shows that Birling eventually learnt nothing and was ready to continue about his old life thinking of just himself and his family. But then at the end, just as you think Birling is ready to carry on as usual the writer leaves it open for Birling to change again; that was the police. A girl has just died on her way to the Infirmary after swallowing some disinfectant and a police inspector is on his way here to ask some questions.
My opinion on Mr. Birling is that he is ignorant and he doesn't care for the community, his only priority is to look after number one. He is very sexist as he tries to hide the truth form his family particularly from Sheila. He does this because he believes young girls like Sheila should be protected from atrocious things like death, because he thinks women are too weak to manage with cruel reality, but he believes men can.
Birling attempts to use status and power to influence the Inspector. He was forever reminding him that he was an ex mayor and a magistrate. He becomes extremely angry when he is accused of being involved with Eva's death. Mr. Birling thinks that just because he's got money he should be treated different by the inspector.
When the truth comes out about Eric getting Eva pregnant and stealing money, Birling is more worried what people will say when it gets out, `you've confessed to theft, and now he knows all about it, and he can bring it out at the inquest'. The Birling's are a respectable family; it should be kept that way. He doesn't think that Eric's problems could be partly his fault and that his drinking problem is a cry for help.
J.B Priestly makes us feel no sympathy towards Mr. Birling's character because Mr. Birling character is very sexiest and feels no remorse to what he has done "can't accept any responsibility for what happened to her, even though it may have been a chain of events". He believes that if everyone was responsible for each other, "it would be very awkward". J.B Priestly is trying to teach the audience that we are a community and we should look out for one another and that the actions we take contribute towards the community. J.B Priestly teaches the audience through Mr Birling's character that everyone is equal and we should have a more open mind.
I will now investigate the attitudes to class and gender that are shown in this play, and how they affect Eva smith. Firstly I will start by she is a working class and at the time she was living, the working class was discriminated and they had very few rights but in this day and age we have equal rights because of groups and politicians who have enforced laws. I think the out come of Eva would have been different if she was more upper class or her parents were. Eva would have been discriminated more because she was a female, were they thought in them days that men were more superior to women and that women should be protected against the world. Eva smith would have found it harder to bounce back up because she was a woman and that the people less reluctant to give her a job.
The character of Inspector Goole is mysterious. We as an audience never find out who this Inspector is. There are many possibilities - he could be the ghost of Eva Smith avenging her death; he could be anybody or anything. Priestley left the character as a mystery so as to have a larger impact on the audience, making them think more about the play, and helping them think more about the messages the play brings. Through the Inspector, the audiences are educated in their social understandings and behaviour, seeing the examples of the Birlings and hearing Inspector Goole's prediction.
Whatever it was, I know it made me finally loose all patience with her. "She was giving herself ridiculous airs. She was claming elaborate fine feelings and scruples that were simply absurd in a girl in her position" This shows she is very narrow minded and that she thinks people of other classes, should treat her with more respect and look up to her.
Mrs Birling always agrees with her husband and she is brought up to let the man run the family and take care of the business. Mr Birling
Mrs. Birling is stating that a girl in her 'position´ has no right to give her own opinions. This also links up with the main theme 'collective responsibility´. We should treat everyone the same however poor or wealthy they may be. Mr Priestley connects this very well showing how people of other classes treat each other.
I think Priestley's message of the play (his aim) was to explain to us that if we are like the Birling´s then we need to change, and be more considerate and caring towards others,
