The character of inspector “Goole” is a peculiar person. Priestly has used the name Goole because it sounds like “Ghoul” which suggests to the audience that he is supernatural. This creates tension because he is such an unpredictable character the audience aren’t prepared for it neither are the Birlings.
Priestly has used cliffhangers to create tension for the audience. He has mostly used them at the of acts. For example at the end of act 1 “the door slowly opens and the inspector appears looking steadily and searchingly at them”. Also at the end of act 2 “Eric enters looking extremely pale and distressed. He meets their inquiring stares. Curtain falls quickly.” And the last, at the end of act 3 “As they stare dumb founded the curtain falls.” This creates tension because priestly ends the acts just as the audience are about to learn important information. This keeps them in suspense until the next act begins.
There is a big climax at the end of the play when the Birlings receive a telephone call saying that a young girl is dead “it’s the police. A girl has just died on her way to the infirmary after swallowing some disinfectant.” This creates tension for the audience because they will want to know what happens and how they will deal with a real police investigation.
Priestly’s use of dialogue and stage directions throughout the play creates tension for the audience. For example the stage directions in act 1 “the other four exchange bewildered and perturbed glances”. This creates discomfort for the audience as they know the characters don’t know what they are involved in and it is a huge surprise for the characters.
There are a lot of stage directions focusing on body language, for example “Birling……goes out, closing the door sharply behind him. Gerald and Eric exchange uneasy glances. The inspector ignores them.” The inspector creates tension by showing that he is the one in control. Mr Birling may feel threatened by the inspector, because he is a stranger and he has come in and taken over. The simple act of Birling closing the door “sharply” shows he is trying to take control of his household.
Another example of priestly stage directions is when Shelia is warning her mother at the end of act 2. For example the stage directions say: “urgently cutting in, slowly carefully now.” This creates tension for the audience because, they know that Mrs Birling is about to drop her son in it and there is nothing the audience can do. Even though Sheila is warning her, she will not listen.
Priestly also uses language and dialogue to create tension. For example at the end of scene 2 when Sheila says “-stop-stop-.” This use of repetition creates tension because Sheila is desperately trying to get her mum to listen to her.
Another use of tension is how priestly makes Mrs Birling interrupt Sheila. For example “Sheila: But you don’t see – Mrs B : you’re behaving like a hysterical child tonight” this creates tension because the audience see her digging a hole for herself and we just want her to stop for the sake of her son.
The final example of speech used is Priestley’s use of ellipsis. An example of this is when Mrs B says “but surely … I mean …. Its ridiculous ….” This creates tension because Mrs B is slowly realising what everybody already knows.
In the play priestly uses conventions of a detective genre. For example a sleuth hero. In this play the inspector is the sleuth hero. He is a problem solver who is involved with uncovering clues on Eva Smiths death, and solving them.
Another example of detective genre is plausible setting. Priestly has chosen to set his play in the past which makes it more believable to the audience, because it has already happened and the audience knows this. For example when Mr birling says “the titanic-she sales next week and unsinkable”. This creates humour for the audience because they know the titanic has already sunk. Also priestly would have known what the class system was like in 1912 so is able to give an accurate portrayal of the situation with Eva smith and how the other characters treated her.
Priestly also uses the dramatic device of dramatic irony. A good example of this is when the inspector says “yes sir. Only recently transferred.” This suggests to that the audience that he is not a real inspector even though there is no proof; the audience is still suspicious of the inspector. Throughout the play the audience is more convinced he is not a real inspector. The audience is waiting for the characters to realize. Finally they realize at the end of act 3 when Gerald says “the man wasn’t a police officer”. This creates tension because the audience has been waiting for the characters to find out the inspector is not real and to see there reaction
