Gerald Croft tells the Inspector about his kindness to Daisy Renton. Is he kind to her, in your opinion, here and later in their relationship?

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Gerald Croft tells the Inspector about his kindness to Daisy Renton. Is he kind to her, in your opinion, here and later in their relationship?

J.B. Priestley wrote ‘An Inspector Calls’ in 1945. The story is actually set in 1912 and is a comment on middle class morality. The audience is made to examine not only the morals of the characters, but of themselves too. Gerald Croft is the son of Birling’s rival industrialist, Sir George Croft. He is engaged to marry Mr Birling’s daughter, Sheila. On the surface this play appears to be a simple detective thriller with Gerald Croft being a well-mannered, likeable young man, yet as the play progresses this appearance is questioned. Inspector Goole uncovers the truth that Gerald had an affair last year with a working class girl whilst he was in a relationship with Sheila Birling. Gerald Croft had a kind heart but his weak principles overruled his good intentions so he didn’t help Daisy Renton in the best way.

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Gerald was unkind to Daisy Renton because he used her for his own benefits. When he first met her, he saves her from the awkward situation with Alderman Meggarty and sets out to help her, which suggests that he had a kind nature to begin with. However, weak morals dilute, his good intentions. He had found Daisy attractive from the start, and he had allowed his feelings to develop. He felt affection for her but admits that her feeling for him were stronger than his feeling for her. Although he loved her, he wasn’t strong enough to pursue a ...

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