Gerald Croft seemed shocked when he was shown the photograph of Eva Smith. He knows Eva Smith as Daisy Renton. He looked after her and gave her a flat and money in return for sex. He did this behind Sheila’s back whilst he was engaged to her. Gerald is questioned by the inspector and in the end is very distraught and this quote shows this “in that case – as I’m rather more – upset – by this business than I probably appear to be – and – well I’d like to be alone for a while – I’d be glad if you’d let me go” The hyphens emphasise the upset in his voice because it makes his speech broken. It may also show that he is trying to hide something from the rest of the characters.
Sheila Birling shows signs of guilt from start of her questioning as is shown in this quote “no not really. It was my own fault” this quote shows that she takes full responsibly for her actions, unlike the others who try to “pass the buck”, and thinks her family have mistreated Eva. Her guilt worsens when she discovers that she got Eva sacked from her job in a department store she works in. This happens because Sheila sees Eva holding a dress up to herself, which looks much better on than on Sheila. So out of jealously Shelia complains to the manager and Eva is sacked.
Eric Birling has quite a few connections with Eva Smith. He helped Eva as much as he could, but she didn't love him enough to marry him. Still, Eric wanted to help her so he offered her money that was stolen from Mr Birling’s safe but she refused it as it was stolen. He also has a child and Eva is the mother. When he is questioned he becomes distraught in a similar way to Gerald. We can tell from this quote “(shouting) and I say the girl’s dead and we all helped to kill her –and that’s what matters.” From this quote we can see that he is upset due to the hyphen breaking his speech and because he is shouting.
Mr Birling is the head of the household and was the employer of Eva Smith but he sacked her. When he is questioned he becomes very stern and irate. He wants nothing to do with Eva Smith and this is shown by the quote “ I can’t accept any responsibility for this wretched girl.” This quote shows how little Mr Birling cares for other people he is always “looking out for number 1”
Mrs. Birling is very strict and snob like, she also doesn't care about anybody else, just her self. She is a member of the 'Brumley Women's Charity Organisation'. Eva Smith went to this society for help. When she arrived there, Mrs. Birling asked Eva her name, and she replied, "Mrs. Birling". The real Mrs. Birling got very angry with this, and thought that the girl was being impertinent which is shown in this quote “it was simply a piece of gross impertinence – quite deliberate- and naturally that’s what prejudice me against her case.” This quote shows the Mrs Birling, like her husband, doesn’t wish to take any responsibility for Eva’s death.
“An inspector calls” is set in 1912. J.B Priestly used this time to show how society did not act responsibly, and then there would be wars and fighting leading to disaster. An event at this time that is mentioned is the Titanic. The gap between higher and lower classes is shown by different clothes, the way that they talk, money, big houses, posh food, servants and power. People like Gerald Croft thought it was fine to have a mistress. The events of the First World War showed how Birling’s attitude didn’t work, if you just act for yourself there will be peril and people could get hurt.
“An inspector calls” differs from a novel in that it is a script designed to be performed. To enable an actor to do this the playwright used dramatic techniques. The first I will examine is stage directions. An example of a stage direction is “Enter Gerald, The door is left open to enable the other actors to come on without interruption. This shows the actor what to do on stage. Next I will look at characters descriptions. An example of a character description is “Birling is a heavy-looking, rather portentous man in his middle fifties with fairly easy manners.” This shows the actor how to portray Mr Birling in a way that the audience will know the character straight away. I will look at lighting ideas now. An example of lighting ideas is “the lighting should be pink and intimate until the inspector arrives and then it should be brighter and harder” This shows the audience that the beginning of the play is cosy and intimate as they are having celebratory dinner for Sheila and Gerald but when the inspector arrives it is harsher like an interrogation. The final technique I will look at is emotive technique. An example of this is “ Inspector (very sternly). This shows the actor the way in which to say the line.
In conclusion I believe that none of the characters hold all the responsibility for Eva Smith’s death but they all have equal responsibility as all of their actions were thoughtless and cruel.
