The Birlings and Sheila’s fiancé Gerald were having a party celebration for Sheila and Gerald as they were going to get married and the door bell rings, the maid Edna answers the door and announces that an inspector called ‘Inspector Goole’ has arrived Birling tells Sheila and Mrs Birling to leave and brings the inspector into the room. The inspector tells them that a girl called Eva Smith had committed suicide. He then wants to ask them questions even though Birling protests. So the inspector starts asking questions he begins with Birling and goes on to ask everyone in the family questions including Gerald and it seems that every single one of them has a dark secret that links them with the death of Eva Smith. The inspector leaves and shortly after they find out that inspector Goole isn’t an inspector at all and no one under the name of Eva Smith had died so Birling, Gerald and Mrs Birling began the celebration again like nothing had happened but Sheila and Eric thought it was still very serious and complain at them. Then they get a sharp phone call Birling answered and the man on the other side of the line tells them that a girl had committed suicide and a police inspector was going to go round to ask a few questions.
The inspector takes the main role in ‘An Inspector Calls’ which means that he has a high significance in the play. He asks everyone in the Birling family questions about what there involvement in Eva Smiths death was. He gives a very strong impression of size, strength and intelligence towards them this causes them to confide in him as he stays solid throughout each of them. Inspector Goole also uses the information he already knows to create an impression that he already knows what they all have done this makes him look powerful and mysterious in the eyes of the Birlings. The inspector’s sympathy for Eva is so strong that the sympathy also takes a hold on the more venerable of the Birlings; Eric and Sheila.
Mr Birlings first impressions on me are that he is a wealthy man but he hasn’t come from a rich back ground, I believe this because after he’s had his meal that he enjoyed he tells Mrs Birling, ‘tell cook from me’ that he enjoyed it but unlike Birling, Mrs Birling is from a rich background and tells him not to be so silly as he should expect a good standard meal anyway but if your poor your grateful for anything you can get your hands on. When the inspector arrives, Mr Birling reacts with surprise and unrecognition therefore he goes back into business mode after being so relaxed. Mr Birling treats the inspector with complete disrespect and disregard. I think Mr Birling treats him like he is a fool and thinks the inspector’s social status is below him and takes him as a joke by saying “we’ll have to play golf sometime,” inspector Goole replies “I don’t play golf,” and Birling replies with the smarmy comment “Didn’t suppose you did.”
When Sheila finds out about the death of Eva Smith and her role in her death which is that she got her fired from the job she loved as a shop assistant at Millwards for looking at her trying on a dress and smiling, and because Sheila looked at her and got jealous of her beautiful shape and acted like the spoilt brat she was, used her status as the Daughter of Mrs Birling to make the manager fire her. On finding out what her part was she changed from this spoilt brat to feeling sorry for Eva and became very caring of her part in the suicide. Whilst talking to the inspector Sheila treats him with full respect unlike her parents she listens to the inspector and understands what she has done wrong. I think that Sheila represents the youth of that day and how easily there minds can be changed about there way of life. She shows that young minds are very fickle.
