An inspector calls

Authors Avatar
Sam Watts

19 October 2006

An Inspector Calls

"How does the way Priestley creates dramatic tension in the play encourage the audience to sympathise with his views?"

Priestley wrote "An Inspector Calls" straight after the Second World War. He sets the play in the period just before the First World War in 1912, both were periods of a lot of social change. Priestley sets out to entertain his audience with a dramatic play full of suspense. Priestley's views in the play seem to be all about morals. That it is important to look after each other, and that all people should be treated equally and be able to dream of a better life. Priestley ensures that he gets across his strong socialist ideas. He offers the audience a rather foolish, self obsessed upper class family. By way of contrast he offers us inspector Goole as a very clever, classless hero of the play. During the play he develops most characters as immoral and with limited intellect.

Priestly adds dramatic tension to the play by the theatre lighting. In the beginning the room starts of in soft lighting, but when the inspector arrives the lighting becomes brighter and harsher, almost like a spotlight shining, so everyone focuses only on him. He also highlights the contrast in the wealthy clothes of the Billings and the Crofts, also the lavish furnishings of the home compared with the inspector who looks relatively plain.
Join now!


Arthur Birling, who is the main character accused by the inspector, doesn't care about anyone unless they make him richer or improves his social standing. He is a stupid man and says things in his speech which turned out to be untrue. "The Unsinkable Titanic" and that there would "never be a war with Germany". He sacked Eva Smith because of his greed and the lack of understanding, he only want cheap labour (so more money for himself). He couldn't understand that Eva Smith needed more to live on. He thinks that Gerald's family is socially superior, so ...

This is a preview of the whole essay