Another dramatic device Priestley uses, is the photograph of Eva Smith. The Inspector has power over the characters emotions with the photograph, this is shown at times such as when it is viewed by Sheila, who then runs out of the room, crying. Priestley also has control over the audience, as they never get to see the photograph, but would be curious about it. The photograph is Priestley’s means of suspense. The Inspector refuses to show the photograph to more than one person at any one time, and this shows him to be methodical and careful, when he says “one person and one line of enquiry at a time”.
We also see Priestley using dramatic irony to mock the prejudice of the capitalism revealed within Mr. Birling. Priestley gives no sympathy for what capitalism has done to the world. This is obvious in the way that Mr. Birling is used during the play, when he says, “War’s inevitable. And to that I say- fiddlesticks!” As this is set in 1912, he does not know that war will happen in 1914. He also says that the Titanic is “unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable” when the ship will in fact sink the next week. As the audience is watching the play in 1945, in hindsight, they know that he is wrong, and because of this, there is dramatic irony. Contrasting this, the Inspector is there to symbolize Priestley’s views. Priestley uses biased illustrations of capitalism, symbolized by Mr. Birling, and socialism symbolized by Inspector Goole, to prepare the audience for the Inspectors final speech.
The play also shows contrast between the old and young, by showing their differences of opinion. The younger members of the family, Eric and Sheila, are shown to the audience as the hope of change in the future. They do not agree with the older members because they understand what they did to Eva and will change their ways. ”I behaved badly too. I know I did. I’m ashamed of it. But now you’re beginning all over again to pretend that nothing much has happened” The older members of the family may understand what they did to Eva, but do not want to change their capitalist ways. This becomes obvious when Mr. Birling says, “There’s every excuse for what both your mother and I did – it turned out unfortunately, that’s all“
Each act of the play is left on a cliffhanger, including the last act. This creates suspense in the audience, and makes them wonder: ‘what will happen next?’ This question always leads to the audience wanting to keep watching.
Priestley’s language contains biblical references, which might suggest how sacred and important socialist views are, compared to capitalist views. Christianity is much more like socialism because it is about ‘loving thy neighbor as thyself’. He uses the reference; "we are members of one body," which is part of a catholic communion prayer. This means that we are all alike in the view of God, and that diversity does not exist in God’s eyes. The church is often referred to as ‘a body’ with each member playing an important part. Another biblical reference he uses is "fire and blood and anguish," which is a reference to hell and links to World War 1. He also unites the Inspector and the audience by using the personal plural pronoun "we", which highlights his activist, socialist views on the idea of community.
The Inspector is not classed as a character as he is more of a vehicle for conveying Priestley’s socialist message. He seems to want the family to profess their moral wrongdoings more than a crime they have committed. His name is “Inspector Goole”, which may be a homophone for “In-Specter Ghoul”. This shows that Inspector Goole could be Priestley in the form of a ghost. I think that the Inspector is portraying Priestley in the form of a ghost of the future. He is showing the Birlings and Croft what will happen in the future if they carry on thinking in capitalist ways. At the end of the play, because Mr. Birling, Mrs. Birling and Gerald’s views have not changed, they get a second Inspector, who is punishment for not listening to the first Inspector. Inspector Goole is not only showing the family that there would be a “public scandal” because of the bad things they did to Eva Smith, but he is showing them that “we are responsible for each other” and “if men will not learn that lesson, then they will be taught it in fire and blood and anguish.“
In 1912, women were controlled dominantly by men, and treated as if they had no minds of their own. An example of this from the play is when Sheila says, “Oh- Gerald- you’ve got it- is it the one you wanted me to have?” here, she is referring to her engagement ring, and this shows that even she cannot choose her own engagement ring, and is controlled by her fiancé. Her role is taken from childhood to marriage. This shows that her father controls her, and then her fiancé/ husband controls her. She is not allowed to have control over her own life.
However, this does not happen to only wealthy, upper class females. Eva Smith, a working class character who is never seen in flesh, is exploited by the higher-class. Her role is switched from a factory girl, to a mistress, to a prostitute. None of these roles are particularly pleasant, and because she is a female and of lower class, her mistreatment is even clearer.
As there was no welfare system in 1912, Eva was kept poor and was not given a chance to get higher wages, just because of the selfishness of Mr. Birling. This pushes her even lower and consequently makes her beg to charity.
As Eva’s situation went from bad to worse, she was unable to rely on any benefits, as the welfare system did not exist at this time. Therefore, the only way she could survive was through illegal means or by begging as her situation became worse. This shows Priestley’s thoughts about how capitalism has disadvantages, because if the world were more socialist, they would have benefits, and Eva would be able to have NHS to help with her pregnancy, unemployment benefit after she was fired, and other such benefits and help groups to lend a hand for her. In 1942, Priestley helped set up the ‘Commonwealth party’, which merged with the Labor Party in 1945, when he wrote the play. Shortly after writing the play, Priestley was a key figure in the creation of the welfare state.
Eva was exploited selfishly, as every member of the family (including Gerald) exploited her by ignorance, hatred, and especially greed. Status and wealth were more important and more valued than people when it came to this family. Mr. and Mrs. Birling did not feel any sympathy for Eva even after they found she had committed suicide. This is shown by their snobby attitude to the Inspector, and how they are not sorry for their snobby attitude towards Eva. “You’re quite wrong to suppose I shall regret what I did”
Overall, I think the play was very effective in the way Priestley conveyed his message, which made me think about how our community today acts towards each other. Something that kept me involved in the play was the wonder of what was going to happen to the Birlings. Whilst going through the play, I thought about how the story would finish, and did not expect the ending to be such a big twist! After the final curtain fall, I imagined what would happen to the characters once the second Inspector had come, and thought about the same questions being asked again, but I suppose not in quite such a curt way, and their fears of “public scandal” would come to life. I think the play was thought provoking and excellently written.
