Dear Felicity, Please find attached some information concerning our play 'An Inspector Calls,' which I am sure you will find helpful for your role as Sheila - I hope you find this information helpful and if you need any further details please contact me.

Dear Felicity,

Please find attached some information concerning our play ‘An Inspector Calls,’ which I am sure you will find helpful for your role as Sheila. I hope you find this information helpful and if you need any further details please contact me.

Firstly, the play is set in 1912, which was two years before the outbreak of the First World War. It was in the Edwardian Era, when Britain had a large empire and was a very wealthy country. We had an unrivalled Navy and times were good for middle class people such as the Birlings. It was not so good though for the working class such as Eva Smith as there was little or no legislation and workers were exploited. There was no Welfare state and for the majority of people it was an uncomfortable time mainly due to serious flaws in the society.

This is a condensed version of the plot:

After the Inspector interviews Sheila she is dismissed but refuses to go and argues with Gerald, her fiancé. The secret of Eric’s drinking is revealed and Gerald tells how he met Eva in the palace music hall, she wanted to talk and he found some food for her as she had not eaten. At first he felt sorry for her, their affair ended in September. Mrs. Birling pretends not to recognise the photograph of Eva and Sheila realises she is lying. The Inspector is uninterested in Eric’s departure. Mrs. Birling who was in a position of authority refused help to the pregnant Eva. Mrs. Birling thinks that the father of the child should be dealt with ‘severely’. Sheila is the first to realise Eric is the father.

Finally, the moral message, which Priestley was trying to give the audience was that Sheila and her brother Eric represent the younger generation. Priestley hopes that youngsters are open minded enough to learn to accept responsibility for others. He also shows that elders are set in their ways without being flexible where as youngsters are prepared to change their outlooks and decisions if necessary. One of Sheila’s main roles in the play is to offer hope for future generations.

Regarding Act 1, Sheila is the daughter of Arthur and Sybil Birling and sister to Eric. She is a young, middle class girl who recently became engaged to Gerald Croft. At the beginning of Act 1 we learnt that Sheila is quite selfish and jealous towards Eva Smith. Sheila’s life has been comfortable, uncomplicated and shares her parents values whom she gets on well with. Later in Act 1 we begin to see Sheila start to mould and form into a responsible, open minded individual. She becomes impressionable and deeply effected by the Inspectors revelations. She and brother Eric are the only characters in the play who show optimism and Sheila has an attractive and essentially honest character.

“No not really. It was my own fault. All right, Gerald, you needn’t look at me like that. At least, I’m trying to tell the truth. I expect you’ve done things you’re ashamed of too.”

This shows that Sheila is open, honest and prepared to accept that we all make mistakes. She takes full responsibility for her own actions and this shows a mature approach.

As for her involvement with Eva Smith, Sheila often shopped at ‘Milwards’ the clothes shop where Eva Smith worked. One day Sheila had entered ‘Milwards’ with the intention of trying on ...

This is a preview of the whole essay

“No not really. It was my own fault. All right, Gerald, you needn’t look at me like that. At least, I’m trying to tell the truth. I expect you’ve done things you’re ashamed of too.”

This shows that Sheila is open, honest and prepared to accept that we all make mistakes. She takes full responsibility for her own actions and this shows a mature approach.

As for her involvement with Eva Smith, Sheila often shopped at ‘Milwards’ the clothes shop where Eva Smith worked. One day Sheila had entered ‘Milwards’ with the intention of trying on one of their dresses. Sheila’s mother and the assistant, Miss Francis, had been against her trying on this dress as they felt it would not suit her. Eva Smith, one of the sales assistants who was a very pretty young lady held the dress up against herself to show off its potential and Sheila decided to try it on. Once on, it was plain to see that the dress was unsuitable for Sheila but what annoyed her was the sight of Eva smirking at Miss Francis as if to say ‘I told you so.’ This made Sheila furious and she requested to speak to the manager of ‘Milwards’ stating that if they didn’t get rid of that girl Eva Smith she would never place any more business there again and also persuade her parents to close their account.

With regard to the accusations made by the Inspector about the death of Eva Smith she was very agitated asking: “When was this.” This would be said inquisitively as she showed concern about the matter. When the photograph of Eva was shown, Sheila gave a half stifled sob and runs out of the room, this shows her emotion and distress on seeing the photograph. This made her feel miserable, guilty and ashamed of any part she had in the death of Eva.

The Inspector explained that this young woman had consumed disinfectant, which had taken her several hours to die. Sheila cried out in emotion and distress: “Oh-how horrible! Was it an accident?” This taunted Sheila and she couldn’t stop thinking about the young girl destroying her life so horribly.

This section focuses on what happens to Sheila in Act 2 and how her part should be played. Sheila wanted to be present while the Inspector questioned the other suspects because she felt entirely to blame and responsible for what had occurred. Listening to the Inspector asking the questions and obtaining answers might help to share the guilt. You should listen carefully to Gerald’s story and your expressions should reflect his answers. When you hand Gerald the engagement ring back, you should say the lines with strength, emotion and meaningfulness:

“But just in case you forget – or decide not to come back, Gerald, I think you’d better take this with you.”

The following speech made by Sheila should be said full of emotion, honesty and with an open heart:

“I don’t dislike you as I did half an hour ago, Gerald… We’d have to start all over again, getting to know each other.”

In the speech you, as Sheila, would explain how much she respects Gerald more than she had done before for being truthful. This shows Sheila’s maturity and should be clearly contrasted in both body language and facial expressions.

Sheila could be seen an accomplice of the Inspector, delving in detail to produce evidence. The Inspector can be seen as a ghostly figure who interrogates and gives a shattering experience to all. Sheila was very unhappy at what her mother did to Eva, she felt this was cruel and vile. She argued with them about their attitudes towards society and lack of compassion towards Eva.

Sheila is the first to realise that Eric is the father of Eva’s illegitimate unborn child and just after Mrs. Birling has unknowingly condemned her own son, Eric, Sheila cries out in sudden alarm: “Mother – Stop – Stop.” At this stage you, as Sheila, did not wish your mother, Mrs. Birling, to continue condemning Eric. It would be said with compassion and strength. Sheila is very distressed bordering into hysteria because she realises where the Inspector’s questioning is going to whilst interviewing her mother. She sees through her mother’s attempts to cover up the truth. When acting this part, you should be agitated and distressed because Sheila cannot stop her mother from condemning Eric.

Throughout the play, Sheila persists in finding out the truth about what happened to Eva. Unlike her father, mother and fiancé who are merely interested in avoiding blame. Those characters who resist telling the Inspector the truth suffer more than those who are open and honest. Sheila realises that the Inspectors role in the play is to act as a sort of chorus. He keeps himself separate from the main action, which allows him to evaluate the situation. In a way, he is Priestley’s mouthpiece, trying to get the moral of the story over to the audience.

In Act 3, Sheila believes she understands what the Inspector is doing and that he may not be ‘real.’ Her transformation of attitudes towards society and acceptance of socialist ideals become complete when she realises her parents and Gerald consider the matter of Eva Smith’s death to be nothing but an unfortunate incident. They have learned nothing from the affair and wish to return to their normal lives. Sheila realises that she has behaved badly in the past but is prepared to change her ways, learning from the experience and is now ready to accept responsibility for others. After Gerald phoned the infirmary and was told there had been no suicides by drinking disinfectant, Sheila felt no relief:

“No, because I remember what he said, how he looked, and what he made me feel. Fire and blood and anguish. And it frightens me the way you talk, and I can’t listen to any more of it.”

Sheila says: “I want to get out of this, it frightens me the way you talk.” This should be said tensely showing an expression of fear. Obviously this is fear of the unknown, an area where no person likes to tread so therefore this is a very sensitive section where fear should be strongly transferred to the audience.

Sheila says: “I tell you – whoever that Inspector was, it was anything but a joke. You knew it then. You began to learn something. And now you’ve stopped. Your ready to go on in the same old way.” This should be said seriously and disbelievingly by Sheila. She cannot believe that they are prepared to disregard the matter and go back to their old ways. People should be prepared to change for the better and accept that in some instances changes of mind do take place and we must be prepared for flexibility so that changes can happen.

Sheila says: “No, not yet. It’s too soon. I must think.” This is said by Sheila after Gerald offers her the engagement ring back. It should be said with apprehension and confusion because she is not prepared to go back to old standards. If she is to accept a reconciliation he must change his attitudes for the better, she does not wish to enter into a quick decision.

You must remember Sheila has an attractive and essentially honest character, she lacks the cold-blooded attitude of her parents but is much more sensitive than the other characters. She identifies with the dead girl and realises that by abandoning her false pride she can have an honest relationship with herself and others. Because of these characteristics and key points the part of Sheila must be played with conviction, emotion, confidence, agitation and energetically.

I hope this information, which I am sending will be of great benefit to your role as Sheila, I have no doubt of the potential which you have shown in your acting career and hope that these notes will give you the inspiration to fulfil the character.

Yours truly,

Brendan Luke.