The family is shown to wealthy by the description of their surroundings and manners, but their relationship is distant. For instance, when the father is in trouble, he says of the rest of his family, “Unlike the other three, I did nothing that I am ashamed of. I consider that I did my duty” Not only is this disloyal to his family, but in mentioning his duty of firing a disruptive employee, he shows the audience that he puts his duties towards his business above his family and community. He implies that the success of his factory is more important than protecting someone’s life.
Next, the author uses dramatic irony as a device to put his ideas of capitalism across. Mr. Birling is the main example of this. On pages six and seven he proudly proclaims to the audience, “The Titanic sails next week, forty six thousand, eight hundred tons. New York in five days time, every luxury, and unsinkable!” His self-assured tone to an audience that knows the result of that voyage sounds both preposterous and boastful. He also states, “I say there isn’t a chance of war.” The emphasis on the word, “chance,” shows his pompous attitude with strong beliefs, which the audience know are not to be trusted as both statements have been proved wrong by 1945 when the play was released. As he is a stereotypical representative of capitalism, the audience are encouraged to reflect on the certainties on which capitalism is based. Priestley has ensured that the audience will no longer be taken in by the character’s boastful tone and by encouraging them to listen critically he is also engaging them in the dialogue more actively.
In making the stereotypical capitalist look like a fool, Priestley makes it much easier to teach the audience what he wants. Birling says, “The way some of these cranks talk and write now you’d think everyone has to look after everybody else.” With the audience now wondering if everything he says is foolish, they may be more likely to believe that socialism (or at least “everybody looking after each other”) is a good idea. This dramatic device used by Priestley works on two levels, as a character we see his flaws and the audience is engaged by actively questioning his words. This dramatic irony also creates humour for the audience, involving them in the play through the enjoyment of laughing at another person’s mistakes.
Another dramatic device that Priestley uses is lighting. Near the beginning of the play, as shown in the stage directions, the lighting is “pink and intimate”, suggesting a friendly and homely atmosphere. This is created by the use of candles, possibly using their flickering light as a metaphor for hiding their secrets. A harsh ringing doorbell, then silence, breaks this mood, as the inspector turns up, and the lighting gets much brighter and harder. At first glance this could just be a way of inducing dramatic tension as the audience wonder why this harsh mood is brought on, ruining the previous homely set up. If you look deeper however, this light could be seen as revealing secrets - previously hidden in the ‘cushioned’ pink light - as is later done by the inspector. You could even say the whole family is a metaphor and that Priestley is the light, exposing the unpalatable side of their comfortable lifestyle.
This lighting is a part of Priestley’s use of dramatic tension, which is possibly the most important device used in his play. He creates tension for the audience, which in turn will make them watch more carefully and possibly take in his morals and ideas more willingly. As each new character is brought in to the tangle of lies, the tension is increased, until the story reaches a climax. J. B. Priestley uses ‘cliff-hangers’ to make the audience want to carry on being involved in the plot. This is a very effective device and is used for example at the end of Act One. “Well?” As Gerald’s part in the story is about to be told, the play is cut off and the audience go on wanting more. Priestley leaves the audience to this rhetorical question because it forces them to try to answer it and therefore think about the problems arising in his plot and politically. At the end of the play we are left wanting to find out if the inspector is real as much as the characters in the play. The audience is then engaged in the play by waiting for the resolution of this cliffhanger.
This essay shows that J. B. Priestley uses 4 main dramatic devices: stereotyping, effective lighting/props, dramatic irony, and dramatic tension. These are used both to convey his message to the audience in a sympathetic light, for example that a purely capitalist approach to life is morally questionable, and to involve them in the plot, for example, encouraging critical examination of characters’ views. This essay shows that J. B. Priestley knows the importance of engaging the audience if his message is to be understood and has ensured that this occurs through the use of dramatic devices.