He thinks that he is better than the Inspector because he is from a higher class - "I don't propose to give you much rope"
His wife, Sybil, is from a higher social class than he is. Marriages of this sort would have been common in 1912 as the upper classes had the stature and the middle classes had "new money" from industry, so the marriages were mutually advantageous. His daughter Sheila is marrying into an even higher class - Gerald's parents have titles, which will benefit Birling because it will mean a merger between their two businesses. However Gerald's parents look down on him slightly and feel that their son could have done better for himself. Birling tells Gerald that he is expecting a knighthood and jokes about the family having to keep out of trouble for a few months. This is a very important moment, as it will colour his whole outlook on the evening's events. Birling thinks about money and business a lot, which you can tell by the way he starts talking about business in the middle of his daughter's engagement party, and by the way that he offers money even after he has learnt of his family's involvement in Eva's death - " I'd give thousands - yes thousands". Another example of his insecurity is the way he namedrops to the Inspector - "this is Gerald Croft, son of Sir George Croft, you know, Crofts Limited" and when he tells the Inspector he used to play golf with the Chief Constable.
The Inspector arrives in the middle of Birling's big speech just as he is telling Gerald and Eric that they have to mind their own business and look after themselves and their families. The fact that the Inspector interrupts at this point gives him power as he has the opposite view and will prove Birling wrong.
The Inspector is also in his fifties, but this is where the similarities between him and Birling end. His views are the exact opposite views to Birling's. He is a Socialist, which means he is very left wing, and believes that everyone is responsible for looking after everyone else. He is upper working class, or maybe lower middle class, but lower than Birling, which is why Birling is so angry when the Inspector talks to him in a way that he considers impertinent, and then when he will not apologise. He has no respect for class, which is why he talks to Birling in that way, and why he will not say sorry. It says in the stage directions that the Inspector creates an impression of massiveness, solidity and purposefulness and that he speaks carefully and weightily and has a disconcerting habit of looking hard at the person he is addressing before actually speaking. This all helps to make him more powerful.
The two main speeches
The first main speech is Birling's. He says it at the beginning, during the engagement party. It is significant because it shows the character of Mr Birling - what he thinks of himself, politics, and other things and people.
He thinks that he is right about everything.
"You can ignore all this silly pessimistic talk"
"You'll hear some people say…war's inevitable…I say - fiddlesticks"
"You'll have forgotten all these silly Capital versus Labour agitations"
"There'll be peace and prosperity and rapid progress everywhere"
"A man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own - and -"
At this point he is interrupted by doorbell - Inspector's arrival
The next main speech is said by the Inspector just before he leaves. It is the opposite of Birling's - for a start it is much shorter and more to the point, whereas Birling's waffles on for four pages, making him seem pompous. In the speech, he says that "there are millions…of Eva Smiths and John Smiths…all with their lives, their hopes and fears, their suffering and chance of happiness, all intertwined with our lives and what we think and say and do. This is the exact opposite of what Birling was saying to Eric and Gerald before the Inspector came. J.B. Priestly uses several speech-making techniques to make the Inspector seem more powerful. The Inspector says, "you can't do her any harm. And you can't do her any good now." This uses antithesis - a pair of opposites used to make a point. He also uses repetition, for example when he says "millions and millions and millions". Another famous technique he uses is making 3 points leading to a summing up sentence, to make them stand out. Examples of this are:
"their lives (1) their hopes and fears (2) their suffering and chance of happiness (3) all intertwined with our lives and what we think (1) and say (2) and do (3) (summing up)"
"We don't live alone. (1) We are members of one body. (2) We are responsible for each other. (3) And I tell you that the time will soon come when, if men will not learn that lesson, the they will be taught it in fire and blood and anguish (summing up)." "Fire and blood and anguish" is a reference to the World Wars. J.B Priestly is saying that if people had done what the Inspector said, the Wars would not have happened.
After that, he says simply "Good night." and leaves. This is abrupt and sudden - almost an anticlimax. It is another surprise for the family, and does not give them a chance to reply. By this time, he has devastated the family. Sheila is crying, Mrs Birling is collapsed in a chair and Eric is brooding desperately. It shows that the Inspector has total control over them.
Dramatic tension
Dramatic irony is the creation and build-up of suspense. The more intense it is, the more the audience want to know what happens next.
In Act 1, the first point of dramatic tension is when Sheila says that she doesn't know where Gerald was last summer. It is mot a very big point of dramatic tension, but it is the first time we can see that the situation is not as perfect as it seems. The next point is Birling's speech. The audience knows that he is wrong about the Titanic being unsinkable and about there not being a war in the near future. When the audience knows something that the characters don't, as in this example, it is called dramatic irony. The dramatic irony in this case undermines Birling's authority and makes the audience slightly uneasy. The next point is when the Inspector comes in. The tension goes down a bit after this when Birling says it is probably some trouble about a warrant as he is still a magistrate. It goes up again straight afterwards to the most it has been yet when the Inspector reveals that there has been a suicide. When Birling recognises Eva's photo, the tension goes up again because we know he is involved. The level of tension goes up again when we learn of Sheila's involvement - "When was this?" and when Gerald reacts to the name Daisy Renton and we know that he has something to do with her as well. When the Inspector comes in after Sheila has found out that Gerald knew Eva, the level of tension rises again, and the act ends. Each act ends with a "cliff-hanger" like this so that the audience will want to know what happens next.
In Act 2, the tension starts building again when it is clear the Inspector hasn't finished asking questions. It goes up again when we learn the details of Gerald's involvement and when Mrs Birling comes in and is dismissive of the Inspector because she doesn't know what's going on. This is another example of dramatic irony. The dramatic tension gets more intense when we learn that Eric has a drinking problem, and when the Inspector says, "We do need him here" and we know that he is involved. The next point is when we learn of Mrs Birling's involvement - "saw her (Eva) only two weeks ago"
Another example of dramatic irony used to create tension is when Mrs Birling says to the Inspector that the man who got Eva pregnant is responsible for what happened to her and that he should be treated severely and made an example of, and the audience and Sheila have guessed that it was Eric. The cliff-hanger in this act is when Eric appears at the door and says "You know, don't you?"
In Act 3, the first point of tension is when we learn that Eric has stolen money. The next is the Inspector's final speech, by which point the family and the audience are quite shaken. After this, the tension starts going down when we learn that the Inspector wasn't a real police officer, when Gerald realises that it might not have been the same girl, and finally when we learn that there hasn't been a suicide at the Infirmary. Birling starts to regain some power at this point, and says that it was obviously just a hoax. However, he is proved wrong again and the tension shoots up to its highest level when the phone rings to say that a girl has died at the Infirmary and an Inspector is on his way over to ask some questions.
Themes and messages of the play
This play is mostly about politics.
The Inspector represents left wing, Socialist views - "We are all members of one body. We are all responsible for each other."
whereas Mr Birling represents right wing, Capitalist views - "A man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own.".
J.B. Priestly was a Socialist. You can tell this by the fact that the Inspector ends up with the power, while Birling is humiliated. The Inspector is J.B. Priestly's spokesperson. He is saying that people should look after each other and that with money comes responsibility - "public men have responsibilities as well as privileges".
Conclusion
You can see the power shift in this play from Birling to the Inspector by the way their relationships with the other characters change. In the beginning, Birling has the power because of the way he has brought his children up - spoilt and not realising the consequences of their actions. They have been told to look after themselves and not bother about anyone else. He is especially protective of Sheila "I don't see any reason why my daughter, a young unmarried woman, should be dragged into this" and doesn't see how ironic this view is when compared to how he feels about Eva Smith - that she is just cheap labour, and a trouble maker for wanting a higher wage. Both children have a very superficial view of the world. The inspector breaks down this view and brings reality into their lives by showing them the consequences of their selfish actions. After the Inspector leaves, and they find out that he was not a real policeman at all, Birling is ready to forget about everything and go back to how he was before, but Sheila and Eric do not want to go back. They have taken notice of what the Inspector says and respect him more than Birling. You can tell that they have lost their respect for their father when Eric says, "I'm ashamed of you" and when Sheila says "if you want to know, its you two who are being childish". Although this play is a bit dated, I enjoyed it because I thought that it was exciting and I agree with its message that everyone should care about everyone else.