Once Mrs Birling, Sheila and Eric leave the room, Mr Birling tries to boast to Gerald. Birling says, “ I was lord mayor here two years ago when royalty visited” Birling is saying he is important enough to meet royalty, so he thinks he’s great and an above average human being. He then says, “I gather there’s a very good chance of a knighthood – so long as we behave ourselves, don’t get into the police court or start a scandal – eh?” and he laughs. That’s a hint that its going to happen and Birling thinks no police would try to find anything wrong with the Birlings. So the audience think he’s as stupid as ever. Preistley using dramatic irony with the police actually then appearing adds tension.
When Eric comes in and Gerald and Birling are laughing. Eric thinks they were laughing about him and he’s very tense and paranoid. He is already uneasy because he hopes no one finds out he got a woman pregnant and left her. Preistley shows this by having Eric drinking some decanter and changing the subject so he knows they aren’t talking about
him. “I left ‘em talking about clothes again. You’d think a girl had never had any clothes before she’s got married. Women are potty about ‘em.” Eric is nervous and very tense which makes Birling and Gerald tense thinking why does he care so much about women and there clothes or has he just had to much to drink.
Eric says “Yes I remember” but he suddenly stops realising he shouldn’t of said that and he’s had a bit to much to drink. Gerald and Birling are realising something’s definitely a bit odd with Eric. In an amused way Gerald says, “Sounds a bit fishy to me.” The audience realise Eric is keeping something secret from the family.
The doorbell rings when Birling is saying capitalism is the correct way to live. He starts saying “A man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own – and” The sharp ring of the front door sounds and makes the atmosphere even more tense by wanting to know whose at the door and what was Birling about to say. Birling was interrupted to create tension in the family.
The person who rang the door was a police inspector and whilst Edna goes to let him in. Gerald and Birling joke about Eric doing something and he gets very paranoid. Gerald says, “Unless Eric’s been up to something” nodding to Birling “ That would be awkward, wouldn’t it?” Birling say’s “Very” in a humorous way. Then Eric say’s “Here what do you mean?” Eric is much more tense knowing an inspectors come and Birling and Gerald sounding as if they know something. Eric being on edge and him being annoyed with Birling and Gerald creates tension. Eric wants to know if they know anything about the girl and what they were talking and laughing about before he entered.
The inspector creates tension by staring at the characters first before saying something, which makes you feel uneasy “He speaks carefully, weightily and has a disconcerting habit of looking hard at the person he addresses before actually speaking.” The inspector is sort of trying to read the persons mind from their facial expressions and he makes the person he’s looking at worried and frightened.
The inspector and Birling speak to each other using only short sentences. This creates tension by showing that they are angry at each other using quick short sentences that will stick in the audience’s head. The inspector comes in and says “Mr Birling?” and Birling replies “Yes. Sit down, inspector.” Inspector says sharply “thank you, sir” etc…they use short sentences trying to prove each of them and genuine. They try to thrive over the other. There’s tension between them because Birling is trying to prove there’s no reason for the inspector to be at their house.
Birling tries to say he has nothing to do with her because he was a lord mayor so he’s saying why would he have anything to do with her. “I was an alderman for years – and lord mayor two years ago – and I’m still on the bench.” Birling is trying to show off and that he sticks on the correct side of the law by saying he knows people. He’s trying to tell the inspector he’s better than him and he better not suspect him for doing anything wrong or he can get him in trouble.
The inspector repeats an end of a sentence to get it to stick in your head. The inspector say’s “burnt her inside out, of course.” Then at the end of the next sentence the inspector he says “suicide, of course.” This makes it sound obvious and will stick in the audiences head also because it’s a horrific description.
The inspector interrupts Birling as if he doesn’t care about what he’s talking about. Birling says, “But I don’t understand why you should come here, inspector -” and the inspector cutting through massively says “I’ve been around to the room she had.” This would annoy Birling but he just forgets about it. Audience are surprised that Birling doesn’t reply when the inspector interrupts.
The inspector creates a lot of tension when he show’s Birling a photo of Eva Smith but blocks Gerald and Eric from seeing it. “ Both Gerald and Eric rise to have a look at the photograph, but the inspector interposes himself between them and the photograph. They are surprised and rather annoyed. Birling stares hard, and with recognition, at the photograph.” The audience wants know if he’s got a special reason for making sure Gerald or Eric don’t get to look at the photo. This could be because they know who the girl is and could have something to do with the suicide. By blocking them from sight of the photo tension is created between the inspector and Gerald and Eric.
The inspector puts the photograph back into his pocket when only Birling has had a look. Gerald says showing annoyance “ Any particular reason why I shouldn’t see this girl’s photograph, inspector?” But the inspector just stays calm not caring that he’s annoyed and looks hard at him and just says, “ there might be” Priestley uses just a short sentence so it sticks in the audiences head and that he does have something to do with the girl but he isn’t going to say yet, creating a sense of mystery.
The inspector believes in socialism and shows this when he says “Because what happened to her then may have determined what happened afterwards, and what happened to her afterwards may have driven her to suicide. A chain of events.” The inspector is saying what we do can effect others to do something so it is partly Birling fault she committed suicide. Birling says, “ Still, I can’t except any responsibility. If we were all responsible for everything that happened to everybody we’d had anything to do with, it would be very awkward, wouldn’t it?” Birling is now saying socialism doesn’t work and that everyone should look after just himself or herself. So the inspector and Birling have conflict of ideas creating tension. The inspector just says “very awkward” showing he doesn’t care what he says and that he’s going to get in trouble for her suicide anyway.
Eric is very drunk from the port and he starts being confident and aggressive at his dad instead of being shy. Eric says something, which displeases his dad “Why shouldn’t they try for higher wages? We try for the highest possible prices. And I don’t see why she should have been sacked”. Eric shows he doesn’t feel his father’s method of business isn’t fair and he doesn’t want to be like Birling when he’s older. Birling gets very angry with his son for disagreeing with him when Birling thinks he’s always correct. Birling replies to Eric rather angrily “Unless you brighten your ideas you’ll never be in a position to let anybody stay or to tell anybody to go.” Birling sounds as if he’s disappointed in his son that he isn’t has strong as him and he thinks he won’t make a very good businessman.
Sheila and Eric start telling Birling he’s wrong. Sheila says to Birling “But these girls aren’t cheap labour – they’re people.” She doesn’t agree with her dad that they just are something to give him money and they have lives too. This shows she thinks capitalism is wrong. When Sheila is told about the girl pouring disinfectant down her throat to end her own life partly because of her dad. Sheila is turned from being happy to absolutely horrified. Sheila says rather distressed “Sorry! It’s just that I can’t help thinking about this girl – destroying herself so horribly - and I’ve been so happy tonight.” Sheila being completely cheerful and suddenly becoming totally horrified from what’s been said creates tension. Sheila can’t believe her dad could do such a thing but then she is angry with her dad and feels he is self-interested.
The inspector slowly says “ are you sure you don’t know.” Then he looks at Gerald, then at Eric, then at Sheila.” By looking at them all separately you guess all three of them have had a part in the girls life that has made her commit suicide. This creates tension by wanting know what they even though they have never heard her name. Looking at them individually is like he’s trying to read their minds and this scares them and will worry them making them feel guilty which will show on their faces.
The Inspector tells Birling what Birling thought the inspector wouldn’t be able to answer. The inspector gives a list of all the problems the girl had with in her life after she was sacked. The inspector says “so after two months with no work, no money coming in, and living in lodgings, with no relatives to help her, few friends, lonely, half-starved, she was feeling desperate.” The list creates a lot of tension by the sentences getting shorter and the inspector saying the list as if it was obvious what would happen to her. The inspector makes Birling look even worse to the audience by saying this is Birling done to her life from sacking her. Because Birling looks bad capitalism looks bad.
Birling believes the women who work in his company are just investments for an increase in money. Sheila says “But these girls aren’t cheap labour – they’re people.” Birling doesn’t care if he pays lower wages than the women deserve as long as he makes money. Birling probably thinks he is helping them by giving them a job.
Birling says sacking the girl had nothing to do with her committing suicide that was two years I sacked her. “Nearly two years ago – obviously it has nothing whatever to do with the wretched girl’s suicide. Eh, Inspector? The inspector replies saying “No, sir. I can’t agree with you there. Birling quite angry about the inspector not agreeing with him says “Why not?” Birling wouldn’t like this because he believes he is always correct and we no he’s probably wrong from what he said in his speech. So the audience prefers to believe the inspector rather than Birling and we then think socialism is better than capitalism.
When Sheila finds out Eva Smith was sacked from Milwards for a customer complaining she becomes agitated. Sheila wants to know more and says staring at him, agitated “When was this?” Then the Sheila says “What – what did this girl look like?” The audience feel Sheila is arrogant but she knows she has done wrong and she feels guilty. She’s starting to get nervous hoping it wasn’t her who made the girls life worse and being involved in the chain of events before her suicide.
Sheila looks at the photograph knows she was the customer that got the fired and runs out the room. “He produces the photograph. She looks at it closely, recognizes it with a little cry, gives a half stifled sob, and then runs out.” Sheila running out cry bewilders the other three and Birling gets angry with the inspector and says, “We were having a nice little family celebration tonight. And a nasty mess you’ve made of it now, haven’t you.” This reminds the audience they were all relaxed at the start of the play and the tension has increased a lot more since the inspector arrived.
Gerald and Eric become very tense when they are the people left in the room with the inspector. The inspector hints that all of them have a part in the chain of events towards the suicide. Gerald becomes uneasy and says, “Well, I don’t suppose I have –” but Eric suddenly burst out saying, “Look here, I’ve had enough of this.” Audience think Gerald and Eric aren’t as tough as they show they are and that they deserve what they get. They are both getting very tense at what’s happened to their celebration has been demolished.
The inspector says short and direct sentences to them dryly “ I dare say.” He cuts in when Eric say’s he’s had enough and the inspector knows he has but he has to stay because he has an important part to play still yet and if he goes he will just have to come back. The audience just want to know what Eric has done to be in the chain of events.
Gerald say’s “after all, y’know, we’re respectable citizens and not criminals.” The inspector gives an ironic reply and you want to know what he knows about them “ Sometimes there isn’t much difference as you think.” The inspector is also saying everyone can be a criminal sometime in there life.
Sheila re-enters the room and tells the truth about what she had done to make herself run out the room in tears. Because she tells the whole truth and is distressed about what’s she done and regrets it the inspector softens up on her. Sheila admits, “It was my own fault” because she was in a bad temper and jealous. The audience like the inspector for softening up on Sheila as she is telling the truth and rather distressed about what she done.
After Sheila has confessed everything to the inspector he becomes aggressive again and doesn’t care what she says she’s guilty anyway. Sheila says, “if I could help her now, I would-” The inspector cuts in telling her she can’t change what she’s done and she should except the consequences. The inspector says in a harsh voice “Yes, but you can’t. It’s too late. She’s dead.” This is a harsh thing for the inspector to say but it is the truth and straight to the point. Tension is created because after the inspector being nice he turns back to his usual harsh self.
When the inspector says the name Eva smith changed to Gerald is startled. The inspector tells them what she done next with her life “Now she had to try something else. So first she changed her name to Daisy Renton-” Gerald cutting in is startled and says “What?” None of them know why Gerald suddenly got even tenser from hearing the name. Gerald the wants a drink showing he’s very shocked but he tries to then act normal again. Gerald tries to pull himself together and says, “D’you mind if I give myself a drink, Sheila?” It’s obvious he knows it’s all going to go down hill for him now from that name being mention.
Gerald confesses to seeing another women and tries to tell Sheila they don’t have anything to do with the murder. Once Gerald has admitted it all and Sheila has told him to stop being an idiot and that the inspector already knows so he can’t lie. Gerald say’s, “You don’t. Neither of us does. So – for god’s sake – don’t say anything to the inspector.” Sheila has realised the inspector knows everything that happened to the girl that committed suicide and she laughs hysterically at Gerald for being shocked, nervous and acting naive. The inspector walks in and just say’s “well?” Which finishes Act One on a cliffhanger because you want to know whether the inspector was listening through the door or if he already knew?
The beginning of the act is a party and everyone is happy and cheerful but at the end of the act Gerald, Birling, Sheila and Eric are very tense and shocked. But miss Birling has been out of the act ever since the inspector arrived and has only been involved in the party. The atmosphere is very tense now unlike the start where it was a happy celebration.
The unity of place for An Inspector Calls is only in the lounge. This creates more tension because the audience can just focus on one place so it’s easier to know what’s happening and imagine the setting.
The unity of action for An Inspector Calls is only one plot line the girl’s suicide. Having just the girl’s suicide makes the audience able to understand what’s happening and increases the tension. An Inspector Calls time to watch and the playtime is the same, which makes it more tense and easier to concentrate on what the time is in the play.
Tension is increased in An Inspector Calls throughout the play. First the atmosphere is happy and they are having a celebration. Hints of tension are lights changing to white harsh light and Eric acting unusual. Preistley gives you detailed opening staged directions of the celebration. He describes what each character is like so you know if they are acting strange. When the inspector arrives the amount of tension increases tremendously. The inspector reveals secrets each of the characters have and telling all the other characters. The audience want to know how he knew so much and he end’s Act One in a cliffhanger by saying just “well?” The tension increases by the inspector falling out with each character one by one. The inspector knows they are all selfish, lying, snobs and doesn’t care what they say but they should accept the punishment. So Preistley is very subtle in creating and increasing the tension in the play.
