The characters in An Inspector Calls were faced with their secret guilts. Mr Billing’s fault is he sacked Eva Smith from work due to the workers asking if the rates could be raised. Mr Birling started the depressing life for Eva Smith. Sheila’s fault is she had been jealous of Eva Smith because she looked better in a specific hat. She went to the manager and told him that Eva Smith had been very disrespectful and rude, so indirectly she made Eva lose her job. Gerald on the other hand gave Eva shelter and loved her for 6 months. Eric who was drunk on the night he met Eva Smith had sex with her, as result of this Eva became pregnant by Eric and she would not receive money from him because Eva was aware that the money was stolen. Although, Eric asked Eva for her hand in marriage but she turned his generous offer down, she knew it was not love. Mrs Birling was Eva’s last hope, unfortunately for Eva Mrs Birling turns down Eva’s application for help.
Only Eric and Sheila, the children, recognised their mistake. Sheila says “I’ll never, never do it again to anybody” this means that she feels guilty and responsible for her actions and wants to make changes of her lifestyle and Eric feels the same. Eric and Sheila are the only ones who learn the moral of An Inspector Calls, which is “RESPONSIBILTY“, but for Mr and Mrs Birling they do not really change because they are relieved that the Inspector is not real, which means they off the hook.
The play “An Inspector Calls” is based on responsibility and morality. The moral of this play is to get people thinking about whether each of us has any responsibilities to others living in our society or community.
The significance and importance of Inspector Goole is to get John Boynton Priestly’s moral across to the audience and the characters of this play. John Boynton Priestly represents himself by using the Inspector to get his strong moral views across to people of different ages and class. The Inspector makes things happen and allows secrets to be revealed .He also demonstrates how people are responsible for how they affect the lives of others.
Inspector Goole makes a bigger impression on the younger Birling members, Eric and Sheila who are very impressionable and is willing to accept new ideas and concepts. The Inspector’s revelations about family and society affects them both and makes them realise that there is more to life, which causes a change in their attitudes.
Sheila is a “pretty young woman in her early twenties, she is very pleased with life in general” meaning she has nothing to worry about. Sheila is very intelligent, self-confident and independent but snobbish. (Stage directions that show what Shelia is like at the start of the play).
The confession scene is important in terms of analysing Sheila’s character because she expresses sadness when she says “if I could help her now”; when she says “I could help her now, I would”. This shows she regrets and has developed an interest in Eva’s story.
This makes her feel responsible for “KILLING” Eva, she feels genuinely remorseful, Inspector Goole affects and influences Sheila in her ‘confession’ scene by constantly reminding them about responsibility when he says “we do not live alone”. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other and with the Inspector having more connection to Sheila than the other family members. This makes her admit everything she did to Eva and she encourages others who are been interviewed to accept their wrong deeds when she says “don’t lets start dodging and pretending now. Between us we drove that girl to suicide”. This makes her change from a person who does not care to a person who wants a change of life style and feels very sorry for what she has done. She takes the Inspector’s lesson to heart and changes. Sheila begins to think more critical clearly and starts to accept criticism.
Sheila’s eagerness to learn from experience is like a great deal to her parents because it makes her seem more honest, responsible and mature, which helps her in gaining the audience’s approval at the end of the play.
Sheila has an honest and attractive character that is not cold blooded like her parents are, she shows more sympathy and concern through out the play, so does Eric. Although she has been spoilt, pampered and given everything lot girls of age will not have and hasn’t got any responsibilities. The Inspector makes Sheila realise that there are people in society that aren’t as well off as she is, He also makes her realise being rich is not to be used as a weapon. He also makes her see and be aware of her “furious temper” which she used in the shop where Eva worked, which affected Eva’s fate, because she has destroyed Eva’s destiny and hadn’t allowed Eva to fulfil her goals or dreams.
The Inspector also makes her understand she has a responsibility to others and actions have consequences. “We do not live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other” said by Inspector Goole stands for Responsibility. This shows that not only our family are our only responsibility but others as well whether they are friends or strangers. “Actions have consequences” referring to what happened in the shop. Sheila didn’t mean for her to get sacked, she only threatened to show that she comes from a higher status and can get what she wants plus do whatever she pleases thinking that she’s got all the power and nothing to worry about.
Sheila has learnt her lesson and she will forever feel guilty about what she did to Eva Smith and it will always be a reminder to her. These are the reasons why Sheila is the member of the Birling family of whom the audience will approve of the most because she has learnt her lessons and will never make the same mistakes again.
The audience sees the transformation in Sheila from a spoilt rich girl to a more mature, understanding and responsible adult at the end of the play because she encourages everyone to say the truth and not hold any little detail back. “Don’t let’s start dodging and pretending now”. Between us we drove that girl to suicide”. This quote shows that she’s coming to accept the fact that she has something to do with Eva death and she is willing to tell the whole story the way it was, also she would love the other members of her family to do the same. By having this kind of attitude the audience begin to forgive her little by little until the end of the play because she has learnt her lesson. Sheila was on the Inspectors side throughout till the end of the play, because she was interested and furious to know about who this girl was and her story.
She even echoes the Inspector’s saying’s, “if men will not learn that lesson, then they will be taught it in fire, blood and anguish” which she and Eric are frightened of. This quote relates to the war that is about to happen, which the Birling members do not know of or any other person but only Inspector Goole knows. This shows that Inspector Goole is like an angel who shows you a vision of what will or might happen in your life or future.
The quote also means that if people do not learn the lesson now, while there is peace and enjoyment, they will learn it in “fire”, which is pain, blood and anguish” which is suffering. This also relates to the 2nd war that is about to happen.
From reading this play I see that Sheila and Eric learn from their mistakes, they become more mature and “real grown-ups”, but for Sheila it doesn’t matter whether the Inspector is real or not because what’s important to her is that she now knows the truth about what happened to Eva, but for her parents it seems to make a big difference because of how Sheila as involved from a snobbish woman to someone is more sensitive to others in her society and how the confession to a real police man would have meant a public scandal. It will take them time to realise this lesson of "RESPONSIBILTY" but “in fire, blood and anguish” maybe they will.
