I will now examine the role of the Inspector in order to fully appreciate the effect and meaning priestly intended “An Inspector calls” to have. An intention that was misread by London critics and so similarly was the majority of the play.
The Inspector in the detective thriller capacity is an ageing average conforming man yet it is still initially obvious that he has an aura of authority and is a man with a purpose this is initially depicted by the stage directions describing him to create “an impression of massiveness, solidity and purposefulness”
As the Inspector is introduced by the house- maid he is immediately business like and authoritive. This is first portrayed to Mr Birling as Inspector ghoul says “I’m on duty” refusing a drink is in effect declining the hand of Mr Birling in order to disassociate himself with those that are in the circle of sinning against humanity and unbeknown to everybody as yet those that he has come to destroy with their own deceit and atrocities.
He commenced with an identical approach as he had in his inauguration to graphically illustrate how a young lady committed a horrific suicide whilst simultaneously gauging the reactions of the Birlings and it is this initial depiction of the family that will determine how the Inspector will deal with them at a later time and any emotion that is shown towards the death of a desperate and respectable young lady will alleviate the consequences of the inevitable scrutinization.
It is at this moment that the particularly perceptive people in the audience will begin to perceive that the Inspector is actually more than a police inspector as they will notice the connotations surrounding him and his motives. The name Inspector Ghoul is very thought provoking and symbolic. Most obviously Ghoul is a pun of Goole and gooles are associated with death and the more sinister side of life after it. This is by two accounts purposefully ironic on priestleys part as the inspector is visiting as a result of Eva Smiths death and it later as the mystery emerges that Inspector Ghoul is to all intense and purposes’ non existent and had uncovered a death before it had happened. Less markedly was that Goole is the title of a sea port town at the mouth of a river and so it may suggest that the Inspector is going to trawl through the Birlings clandestine dealings, fishing for information, in order to unearth the truth. Sheila also later notices that although Mr ghoul was not a police Inspector he was an Inspector as he dissected them and their furtive ways. This was true because the word “inspector” conjours up the image of somebody uncovering things and this is exactly what he set out to do and successfully attained.
The Inspector gains more knowledge as the interrogation compiles increasing amounts of evidence against the Birlings and their atrocities. He remains unyielding and purposeful whilst his victims commit social suicide. Nothing distracts him from his mission to avenge Eva Smith.
The Inspector arrives just after Mr Birling significantly enlightens Gerald and Eric that “Every man should look after himself” It is the Inspectors role to discredit these pompous view and explicate Priestleys. The Inspector is a catalyst without him none of these revelations would have been made. He controls every situation in every way as it is the Inspector that decides who will speak, those that can or cannot leave, the development of events and even what people say as Sheila admits to Gerald “some how he makes you.” The Inspector has the diary and letters of Eva and with those things he compiles an image of her life. With that portrait he creates a portfolio of Evas life and the accumulating incidents leading up to her death. He uses constant reminders of how Eva died and the life she could and should have lead to compel the perpetrators into confession. He uses this knowledge to portray the image of being all knowing, and Sheila recognized this declaring, “We never told him anything he didn’t already know” Priestley used the Inspector as a representation of himself. The Inspector has strong moral views and is compassionate, even in the end to the Birlings as if they realise the error of their ways then they will be exonerated for future good behaviour. The Inspectors significance lies with the ethical right and wrongs rather than the law and so is ultimately very different from a police inspector. His desire for truth and justice out weigh his social etiquette and so is again distinguishable from a police Inspector.
The Inspector was very misconstrued both in the play and by the audience and so he had diverse effects on different characters in the play I am going to examine what these effects were.
Mr Birling is very pompous and so initially he acts that way trying vainly to intimidate the Inspector with his status in the local community. This is of course futile and so he becomes hostile and even at times aggressive towards the inspector and his family. However as the true role of Mr ghoul materialised and the Inspector had the capacity to impair Mr Birlings status he attempted to restrain his habitual pompous arrogance and distantly apologised to the Inspector in order to selfishly keep countenance whilst still not being subservient or even truly respectful towards the Inspector He is obviously not truly sorry but is in fear of his surreptitious deeds being under scrutiny so he is trying to keep things agreeable with the Inspector. This action epitomises Mr Birlings and may other upper class gentlemen’s relationship with people, as although it is explicitly obvious to the audience that as Mr Birling is so arrogant he would be absolutely outraged at the prospect of his secure home being upturned by an Inspector of no social standing avenging the suicide of a common factory worker and obliterating his family in the process. But instead he simulates respect and remorse for his gain.
Mr Birling is obviously allianced with the equally pompous Mrs Birling who has a glacial imperviousness, she is originally immune to the Inspectors interrogation. However this proves to be her key downfall. Mrs Birling treated the Inspector with such contempt that she ended up immensely regretting it at the hands of her son Eric. Mrs Birling found the Inspector “assertive and rude” and as a consequence of her arrogance she did not realise how influential her damming words would later be. Both Mr and Mrs Birling had such intense views toward the Inspector because they could not except that they were the people that were being blamed and so concluded that the lack of Inspector ghoul’s social grace and his abruptness they thought only about his faults and forgot about their own.
Sheila acted very differently towards the inspector she was very astute and so realised that the Inspector was “giving you enough rope” and depending on how hard you pulled against him you were damage. Sheila was “easy with” him and so she ended up being very poignant. As she took on board what the Inspector said and realised that she was wt a great fault and that her actions had a devastating effect upon Eva smiths life.
Gerald was treated slightly differently by the Inspector as he felt “he had shown her some care.” However Gerald vainly tried to conceal his undisclosed affair yet Sheila was incisive and realised the potential consequences at the hands of the Inspector and so notified him to do otherwise Gerald reluctantly excepted and was on the whole honest with the knowing Inspector.
Eric was very much like Sheila in his approach to the death of Eva and they formed a coalition. Eric was repentful for what he had done and was honest with the Inspector he received a lot of blame from the birlings as this was another way for them to shift their responsibility and the focus of themselves onto somebody else.
