The plot revolves around the Birling family who are enjoying a meal to celebrate the engagement of their daughter Sheila to Gerald Croft. During the course of the evening a police inspector arrives to ask the family members questions about a recent suicide. Although at first nobody appears to know anything about the young woman, as the Inspector questions the characters it becomes apparent that each one has a certain amount of responsibility.
Arthur Birling is described to be a heavy- looking, rather portentous man in his middle fifties with fairly easy manners but rather provincial in his speech. Arthur Birling’s ambition is to get a knighthood. Sybil Birling his wife appears to be socially superior to him.
“Arthur you are not supposed to say such things”.
This shows Sybil Birling is very aware of correct behaviour. Birling is unsophisticated, self important and pompous.
“I’ve learnt in the good hard school of experience that a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own”.
He thinks he is only responsible for himself and his family.
He regards those who look after each other as “cranks”. Arthur Birling employed Eva Smith, but sacked her after she had asked for a pay rise from “twenty-two and six” to “twenty-five shillings a week”. During the questioning of Arthur Birling the Inspector suggests Eva Smith’s dismissal could have led to her suicide. Mr Birling disagrees.
“Still, I can’t accept any responsibility”.
Arthur Birling uses his position as a friend of the chief constable to make the inspector feel uncomfortable.
“Perhaps I ought to warn you that he’s an old friend of mine”. Still Birling can’t accept any responsibility for Eva’s situation.
“Yes. The girl had been causing trouble in the works I was quite justified”.
Worst of all Birling can only see Eva’s misfortune and eventual downfall, for which his family has been mainly responsible as obstacle to his knighthood. He believes that he has the right attitude for a business man.
Throughout the play Priestley’s use of suspense as the story unfolds and added dramatic irony contribute to the engagement of the audience. In the final scene the audience see the ‘coup de theatre’ of the play. There has been another telephone call. A.B. puts down the phone and looks in a panic stricken way at the others.
“That was the police. A girl has just died on her way to the infirmary- after swallowing some disinfectant.
The audience will be left wondering, but it appears that the family’s problems have not been resolved.
Although ‘An Inspector Calls’ was written in 1947 it is still relevant today at we are all sensitive to the vicissitudes of life.
