Discuss the way Sheila and Gerald's relationship evolves through the play. What hope do you think there is for their future happiness together?

        The first doubt of their relationship is early on in the play, when Sheila says ‘…all last summer when you never came near me, and I wondered what had happened to you.’ Although she says it half serious, half playfully, it is clear she thinks Gerald has been up to something, but she does nothing about it. This again shows her naivety about the relationship and shows that she allows herself to be controlled by Gerald.

        Even though Gerald dominates her, and Mr Birling pushes her relationship with Gerald, Sheila seems happy and unaware of it.

        The balance of their relationship starts to change when Sheila admits she has done something wrong and says to Gerald ‘I expect you’ve done things you’re ashamed of too.’ At this point, Gerald doesn’t deny he has done things he is ashamed of, which is ironic, because throughout the rest of the play, he denies everything, and tries to persuade everyone he doesn’t come into the suicide business.

        By the end of Act One, Sheila is aware that Gerald has been up to something the previous summer, and because she has admitted she has done something wrong but he denies he has, Sheila gains some control of their relationship. She works out what the Inspector is doing, and says ‘Why – you fool – he knows…and I hate to think how much he knows that we don’t know yet. You’ll see. You’ll see.’ It also says ‘She looks at him almost in triumph. He looks crushed.’ She feels triumphant because she has stood up to Gerald and gains control over him.

        Act Two is the act in which their relationship changes the most. Sheila seems less naïve and more aware of herself.  She says ‘But everybody knows about that horrible old Meggarty. A girl I know had to see him in the Town Hall one afternoon and only escaped with a torn blouse.’ In the beginning of the play, you wouldn’t expect her to know about something like that. Mrs Birling is shocked also, because Sheila has had a secluded, protected life and she doesn’t think Sheila would know about Alderman Meggarty. She is not naïve anymore.

        Gerald tries to make Sheila go out of the room to stop her hearing about his affair with Daisy Renton. He says ‘I think Miss Birling ought to be excused from this questioning. She’s nothing more to tell you.’ But Sheila needs to know about the affair, and says ‘It can’t be any worse for me than it has been. And it might be better.’ She is saying no to Gerald for the first time, and standing up to him.

        Their relationship is directly affected by the action of the drama. They find out things about each other and see sides of each other they had never known about before as a result of the Inspector’s visit. Gerald says ‘You’ve been put through it – and now you want to see somebody else put through it.’ Sheila says ‘So that’s what you think I’m really like. I’m glad I realised it in time Gerald.’

We see some of Sheila’s nasty side in Act Two, Gerald says ‘I didn’t feel about her as she did about me’, and Sheila replies with sharp sarcasm ‘Of course not. You were the wonderful Fairy Prince. You must have adored it Gerald.’ She is angry about Gerald’s betrayal.

Sheila is now in control of the relationship. She is the one asking all the questions, and Gerald asks for her permission to leave, come back, and asks if he may have a drink. She has the power to decide if the relationship will end or continue, and she gives him her engagement ring back. She says they aren’t the same people they were when they sat down to dinner. She says ‘Gerald, I think you’d better take this with you’ and hands him the ring back.

Mr Birling tries to persuade Sheila to ask for the ring back because he is worried he will lose money and business he was going to get from Sheila’s relationship with Gerald. He says ‘Look you’d better ask Gerald for that ring you gave back to him hadn’t you? Then you’ll feel better.’ He tries to speak to Sheila assuming she is still naïve and speaks in a patronising tone to her when he says ‘Then you’ll feel better.’ Sheila has changed very much throughout the play, and is not impressionable and immature like she was at the beginning of the play, so she can make decisions for herself, and decides not to take the ring back straight away.

Gerald then says to her ‘Everything’s all right now Sheila. What about this ring?’ But Sheila refuses to take the ring, and says she needs more time to think about it.         

Gerald recognises everything will not be back to normal because when Mrs Birling says ‘I think we’ve just about come to an end of this wretched business’, Gerald says ‘I don’t think so.’ He then goes out for a walk to cool off and think about things, and when he returns, asks if Sheila will take the ring back.

I think Gerald thinks their relationship is worth continuing, but Sheila doesn’t. When she hears that the father of Eva Smith’s baby wasn’t Gerald’s, she says ‘Thank goodness for that! Though I don’t know why I should care now,’ suggesting she is going to leave him. Also when Sheila says they aren’t the same people they were when they sat down to dinner, she says ‘You and I’ rather than ‘We’, referring to her and Gerald separately, indicating they are not in a relationship.

However, Sheila also says ‘We’d have to start all over again – getting to know each other’ which could mean she wants to start over again with Gerald. I think she could be encouraged and persuaded by her parents to stay with Gerald because Mr Birling says she had better ask for the ring back. Mr Birling is very eager for them to stay together because it will benefit his business and he will make money out of it, and money is the most important thing to him; I think even more important than his daughter’s happiness.

I don’ t think they will ever be the same after finding out so much about each other. Sheila has realised what Gerald is like. Even in the opening of the play, there was no honesty or romance in their relationship, and Gerald lied to Sheila about the affair and about where he was in the summer. Their relationship wasn’t very strong, and I don’t think it can last after all that has happened. They may be questioned more, and find out more things they didn’t know about each other when the second inspector comes.

I think they will not get back together, even if the Birlings do try to persuade Sheila, because she has changed so much during the play, and can stand up to her family. Sheila emphasises that they shouldn’t go on behaving like nothing happened, and they should learn from the experience, and I think she might leave Gerald because of what she has learnt about him and the things he has done.