An Inspector Calls: In act one of An Inspector Calls how does J.B Priestley use dramatic devices to convey his concerns and ideas to the members of the audience, as well as interest and involve them in his play?
An Inspector Calls Coursework Essay 2005
In act one of An Inspector Calls how does J.B Priestley use dramatic devices to convey his concerns and ideas to the members of the audience, as well as interest and involve them in his play?
A traditional "whodunit" mystery reveals who the real criminal is. Inspector Calls can be addressed, as one of these mysteries however there is not a true criminal in the story, as nobody literally killed Eva Smith but the members of the Birling family all had a part to play in her death. One of the most important themes conveyed in An Inspector Calls is that we all have a responsibility for each other, and that differences in upper and lower classes should not matter. Another central theme is looking at the treatment of women, women were seen as the social "underdog" who just stayed at home, had children and did the housework in the 1930's Priestley had become very concerned with social inequality and he wants to convey the idea to the audience about this and show how this kind of inequality comes about in our everyday lives. Inspector Goole wants to teach the Birling's some morals and the Inspector is introduced as a contrast to Mr Birling, the Inspector can see Birling is passing his selfish thoughts and opinions on to his children however the Inspector wants to teach them an alternative way of thinking and behaving. Priestly uses Birling as the typical businessman who thinks only for himself and Eva smith a down trodden working class girl who has nothing Priestley wants to show and prove how people who were of lower class were mistreated by other people who thought themselves as better, the Inspector is used as like her spokesperson he wants to argue her case against the Birlings and to show them what they have done its almost as if he is here to get his won back on the Birlings as she is now not here to stick up for herself, Priestly uses the inspector to convey the socialist message to the audience.
The setting is an extremely important part of a well made play-which includes many different points and was a criteria set up to create suspense and tension, it can show what the characters are like and in particular for this play the class and social well-being of the characters. However when looking at the setting of a play it isn't always the place setting which we must look at but the time setting this is because between the time of the play and the time it was actually written many things changes socially and politically and by using this technique Priestley conveys that things have changed over time and a lot of these changes were socialist views which proves some of Priestley's beliefs are right. The place setting helps create mood and tension and sets up how characters are conveyed to the audience and can help get the message of a play across better.
Looking at the time description first, the time the play is set is 1912 this was just before the world war but the play was actually written in 1945 this means that many things have changed over the years. Also concerning the time we can look at something called real time this means that the audience are there when everything happens meaning there are no flashbacks or the play does not jump ahead this creates much tension within the play. The place setting is quite unusual in that there is only ever one set, which is that of the Birling's Dining room all the enquiries are carried out in the dining room and each conversation, movement and speech goes on in this room. This also allows for the mood of the play to be shown each time from friendly and cosy to a very intimidating and uncomfortable atmosphere The main description of setting is page one which includes use of lighting "the lighting is first pink and intimate until the inspector arrives then it should be brighter and harder" At first the light is pink to show the families closeness it signifies the intimate connection between the family, as the inspector arrives the lighting is changed to brighter and harsher as this shows the family is under pressure, Priestley does this as it conveys to the audience the idea that the Birlings aren't exactly what they seem and they do have deep, dark secrets! It can almost represent a police interrogation with lights beaming down the whole dynamic/mood has been changed. The bright and intimidating light then comes into play on page 10 when the Inspector makes his first appearance.
We know the Inspector is coming as the doorbell signifies the presence of a new character, however they don't know who it is which adds suspense, also before the inspector arrives Birling says " a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own" this shows that Birling is going to keep himself to himself and is not bothered about the welfare of others, from this Preistley conveys to the audience that Birling is a very selfish man but also the fact Preistley supports the socialist idea of reliance on each other and we can obviously see Birling doesn't share the same views as Preistley. And this is conveyed to the audience: the difference between Birling and Priestley and later in the play we can see how Priestley has written this play to make Birling and his capitalist views sound like total rubbish
Lighting is also used on page 21 I quote "he moves near a light - perhaps standard lamp and she crosses with him" in this part of the play Sheila view's the photograph of Eva Smith, the light helps greatly as it's almost like Sheila is under a spotlight it shows the pressure Sheila is under and contributes to seeing Sheila did have a part to play in Eva Smith's death, it conveys this to the audience and again Priestley is conveying his ideas on relying on each other and the fact the light is beaming down on her draws the audience in and makes them take full notice of what she is saying and what she did wrong.
The actual objects described on page 1 help greatly for the reader to picture the Birling's home and from the way there home is set out we can tell a lot of things. Firstly "the dining room of a fairly large suburban house" it tells us the householders are of upper class the "good solid furniture" indicates the family enjoy showing what they have. However I quote again "the general effect is substantial and heavy comfortable but not cosy and homelike" this shows that the Birling family like to imply a feeling of warmth and friendliness, they want visitors to think they are an honest family who have been well brought up, it is almost like the good furniture and the assortment of upper class things are like a cover up of what the Birling family are really like. This helps Preistley convey the message that even though capitalist followers may have money and wealth it's not always enough as now all there dark secrets. In the story we know that Mr Birling is a much-favoured capitalist and the furniture represents this, an upper class family; the man of the household has worked in life to become rich whilst the women stays at home looking after children and Preistleys aim is to prove all what Birling values wrong. The assortment of goods laid out on the table as well e.g. decanter of port; cigar box and cigarettes show their upper class ness.
A major factor in the use of the dramatic effects is dramatic irony and the exposition of the play. The exposition serves as a gentle introduction to the reader showing information on main characters, background and the themes/ideas of the play this is displayed on pages 2 and 3. From the first line that Birling speaks we can tell he is of upper class the port indicates this, as this was a luxury to have in 1912. When Birling states, "As a matter of fact Finchley told me it's exactly the same port as your father gets from ...
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A major factor in the use of the dramatic effects is dramatic irony and the exposition of the play. The exposition serves as a gentle introduction to the reader showing information on main characters, background and the themes/ideas of the play this is displayed on pages 2 and 3. From the first line that Birling speaks we can tell he is of upper class the port indicates this, as this was a luxury to have in 1912. When Birling states, "As a matter of fact Finchley told me it's exactly the same port as your father gets from him" he says this to Gerald immediately we get an impression that Birling wants to impress Gerald almost as if he wants to show off. As you read through page 2 the reader begins to realise that Gerald and Sheila have a relationship because of the playful gestures and comments she makes towards him "(gaily, possessively) I should jolly well think not Gerald. I'd hate you to know all about port - like one of those purple faced old men". They all seem very comfortable in each others company and first impressions of the characters would be that the young couple are very happy together and the older Birlings are delighted at the fact they are together. However when you read on to page 3 Sheila says "Yes except for all last summer, when you never came near me and I wondered what had happened to you" Mrs Birling is quick to stand up in Gerald's defence saying "when you're married you'll realise that men with important work to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time and energy on their business" this could make the reader think twice about what truly is going on in Sheila and Gerald's relationship. The fact that Birling makes this comment again proves the point about social inequality and that when a man does something it goes and the women must not question it and these are again capitalist views Preistley is trying to prove wrong. From these first pages the background info we get is basically just about Sheila and Gerald's relationship and how the Birling's wish to celebrate it but even now in the beginning the cracks are beginning to appear. I already know that in this play looking out for your fellow man is a main theme and even in these first few pages we can see that Sheila and Gerald's engagement can signify part of this they rely on each other for support and help.
Dramatic Irony is a very important part of An Inspector Calls it is used very effectively as this play is set in 1912 but written in 1945 it gives the reader more knowledge than the characters. The use of dramatic irony is used to make characters especially Mr Birling look extremely stupid, one reason for this could be the fact that Priestly was a commonly known socialist whereas Birling is a capitalist and Priestly is trying to prove a point that capitalists viewpoints are wrong. The first use of dramatic irony is on page 6;during Birling's speech he mentions strikes that have been gong on "Last month just because the minors went on strike there's a lot of wild talk about possible labour trouble in the near future. Don't worry". However later in 1912 an increasing amount of companies went on strike. Birling then states "we're in for a time of steadily increasing prosperity" however there was the great depression just 18 years later affecting all of America and parts of Europe causing much aggro and unrest. This just goes to show that Birling doesn't really know a lot he just believes what he wants to believe and as he states later in his speech "a man has to look after himself". Another use of dramatic irony is on page 6 Birling talks about the prospect of a war "Just because the Kaiser makes a speech or two, or a few German officers have too much to drink and begin talking nonsense, you'll hear some people say that war is inevitable. And to that I say fiddlesticks!" However we know this is untrue in two years time in 1914 World War 1 would begin and would shortly be followed by World War 2 a few years later, this first mistake shows the amount of stupidity Birling has he doesn't even contemplate the risk of war he just blatantly ignores it showing his ignorance and maybe even coward ness. And Priestley has done this to purposely draw the attention of the audience to Birlings stupid ness.
In a well-made play there should be one main focus the plot should focus around one major storyline. An Inspector Calls focus' around the death of Eva Smith but each character becomes involved as the storyline goes on. The play involves a lot of complications and crises, however all these problems that occur are placed strategically well creating dramatic effect and an intense build up. Priestly touches on the theme that everyone is responsible for each other. He looks at the way upper class people are considered "better" than others; the poorer people are pushed down as if they are the "dirt" of society.
One of the most interesting things about the plot of this play is the way the Inspector carries out his inquiry, "one person and one line of inquiry at a time. Otherwise, there's a muddle." This technique is used to draw the audience in so they can concentrate on each character individually. Firstly the inspector talks with Mr Birling, he doesn't particularly make it obvious he wants to talk to Birling first however the fact he does not address anyone else in the family shows Birling is his first target "I'd like some information, if you don't mind, Mr Birling". When the Inspector is explaining the circumstances of Eva Smith's death Eric seems genuinely upset but Birling just coveys a tone of annoyance that his dinner party has been interrupted and doesn't show any remorsefulness towards the dead girl. Again conveying the idea of Birlings selfishness. When the Inspector reveals the photograph of Eva Smith the fact that he blocks Gerald's and Eric's view makes the audience become suspicious then it makes them think twice and obviously there must be a reason for this and to this the audience will pay more attention, when Gerald makes the comment "Any particular reason why I shouldn't see the girls photograph, Inspector?" and the Inspector replies with a cold reply "there might be" it leads the audience into again thinking what could these characters have done? As Birling reveals how he knows Eva Smith he says it in a casual tone with no worry and his reasons seem justified for sacking her, he cannot see he has any responsibility of what happened to the girl afterwards "Obviously it has nothing whatever to do with the wretched girls suicide. Eh Inspector?" The Inspector then tells Birling he cannot agree with him and Birling seems shocked at this "Still I can't accept any responsibility". Then Eric makes a point of what his father was discussing before "And as you were saying, Dad, a man has to look after himself" Birling replies "Yes well we needn't go in to that" from this the audience can tell that the Inspector has got to Birling, even though this comment has really nothing to do with the inquiry he doesn't want the Inspector to get in to his head anymore!
Birling afterwards then seems to get annoyed as the Inspector asks personal questions about the way in which he runs his business. At the top of page 16 Birling then seems to get suspicious of what the Inspector is up to and asks him to repeat his name again as if he checking that he is "Real". This conveys to the audience the theme of mistaken identity and is the Inspector really who he says he is? Mr Birling's annoyed tone then stays throughout the duration of his interview "I don't see we need to tell the Inspector anything more. In fact there's nothing that I can tell him" Sheila then enters the room and Birling tries to usher her away "Nothing to do with you Sheila. Run along." Again the theme of women aren't as good as men crops up again, Birling is implying she is not to be around it's "manly" talk and the fact he uses the phrase run along implies that he still treats her like a child telling her what to do all the audience witness this. However the Inspector stops her and explains the circumstances of the enquiry and begins to tell her in graphic detail as if trying to make her feel guilty- which first makes the audience think if Sheila has something to do with the inquiry and this is when we can start realising everyone seems to have an involvement which involves the audience in the play because they are trying to suss the Birlings out just as much as the Inspector. Birlings story is then told to Sheila and she seems genuinely shocked and appalled at what has happened. Sheila begins to ask many questions about her and soon the characters find out the Inspector doesn't just want information from Birling. "You didn't come here just to see me then? No".
On page 19 the Inspector begins to carry out the inquiry however we don't found out who yet he wants to talk to, although we do get the notion that it probably is Sheila as they begin to talk as the Inspector explains what happened after she had been sacked from the factory. "She had what seemed to her a wonderful stroke of luck. She was taken on in a shop - and a good shop too - Milwards." Sheila replies "Milwards! We go there - in fact I was there this afternoon" This is the first connection we see between Sheila and Eva Smith, the Inspector goes on to explain that Eva lost her job when a customer complained about her work Sheila then enquires " What - what did this girl look like?" the Inspector then produces a photograph and shows it to Sheila being careful not to show anyone else which again sparks suspicion against the Inspector. At looking at the photograph "She looks at it closely, recognizes it with a little cry, gives a half stifled sob and then runs out" at this Eric and Birling look surprised but the Inspector remains calm Birling says "Why the devil do you want to go upsetting the child like that?" the Inspector replies "I didn't do it. She's upsetting herself". Again we can see that the Inspector cannot be blamed if they get upset although really he is the one who caused all the havoc. This draws the audience in again as now we know for definite Sheila has done something wrong and the audience wants to find out.
Sheila then re-enters on page 22 with "You knew it was me all the time didn't you?" as if to say why did you have to cause all this couldn't you just have told me? Sheila then goes on to explain her story and whilst she is the Inspector asks many questions they could almost be called degrading and make Sheila feel even more worse e.g. "And why did you do that?" "And was it the girls fault?" after Sheila explains her story the inspector says "and so you used the power you had as a daughter of a good customer and also of a man well known in town, to punish the girl just because she made you feel like that?" then Sheila begins to try and explain herself the Inspector however cuts in "Yes. But you can't. It's too late She's dead." The Inspector is almost trying to teach Sheila a lesson and it seems she does learn from the experience as the last words really of Sheila's interrogation are "I'll never, never do it again to anybody" Sheila learnt her lesson, unlike Mr Birling. It seems that the inspector is not just out to solve a crime but to teach a lesson to the Birlings about the theme of reliance on each other and how we are responsible for everybody else.
In act one Gerald is not actually questioned but Gerald is set up as the next interview subject and the Inspector does this in a very clever way. After Sheila has been questioned the Inspector explains that Eva Smith had changed her name to Daisy Renton and Gerald "(startled) What?" again the Inspector repeats her other name. At this Gerald requests another drink and the audience suspects another situation has occurred, as Gerald seems flustered and even under pressure. The Inspector then leaves the room to leave way for Gerald and Sheila to talk and Sheila says "Well, Gerald?" Gerald tries to shrug this off but Sheila says, "How did you come to know this girl - Eva Smith?" again Gerald denies he knows a Eva Smith or a Daisy Renton But Sheila persists "You gave yourself away as soon as he mentioned her other name" finally Gerald admits "All right I knew her. Let's leave it at that". But Sheila doesn't give up and Gerald has no choice but to tell her that last summer he had an affair with her and tries to tell Sheila to keep it under wraps but Sheila is not stupid and tells him that the Inspector already knows! At this point the Inspector re-enters the room with "Well?" this is the end of Act one, this comment adds lots of suspense and tension to the scene as it is leading into Act two. From looking at the way the Inspector carries out his enquiries I can see that he "breaks" the suspect down until they confess he doesn't literally make them do I but in the end they feel they have to tell him and when they do tell him he asks them so many questions and as the Inspector is portrayed as a socialist like Priestly it's like he wants to teach them a lesson he wants them all to learn from their mistakes. It draws the audience into the play they are just as eager to find out what really is going on in the Birling family just as much as the Inspector wants to.
Mistaken Identity is a very central theme in An Inspector Calls and a feature of a well-made play; a well-made play thrives on the notion of mistaken identity and draws the reader in. The most obvious form of mistaken identity is that of Eva Smith changing her name to Daisy Renton. This involves the readers in the play as they want the true girl to be revealed and the fact she hides her identity adds suspense to the play, we want to find out who the real Eva Smith is and what she is really about. The Inspector also has a mistaken identity, as we find out at the end of the play he is not actually an Inspector but merely just a normal man. Although this is not revealed until the end of the play there are clues that show us he is not a real inspector, he is abrupt and rude to the Birling family "Look here inspector. I consider this uncalled for and officious. I've half a mind to report you" Also the way he carries out his investigation is unusual, showing the photograph to only one person at a time, it is very extraordinary and peculiar and conveys to the audience that something is wrong and maybe there is more to the Inspector then we can see. One other not so obvious use of mistaken identity is Gerald, at the beginning in the exposition we see Gerald as a very well respected husband to be, who is involved in business and has been very successful in his life. He is the "blue-eyed boy" however as act one goes on and explains about Eva Smith's other name this startles Gerald and this is when the audience is shown Gerald is also not all he seems. We see at the very end of Act One Gerald has been up to "tricks" and cheated on Sheila all last summer, Sheila is also expected to forgive him and this idea is conveyed in other parts of the play, however through this Priestley conveys the message that women are seen as the "under-dog" and are supposed to tolerate whatever there Priestley conveys this concern through this.
In order to heighten suspense and tension entrances and exits are strategically placed in a well-made play. The first exit is from Edna the maid on page 2 she leaves just as the Birlings begin to talk about the engagement and its like they are "initiating" him in to their family. The significance of Edna leaving shows it is an intimate family occasion and not to be disturbed. Sheila, Eric and Mrs Birling then leave the room on page 7 leaving just Birling and Gerald in the room, they begin to talk about business and Birling seems to be bragging, he talks about his knighthood, they talk about "manly" things and don't really seem to talk about anything very important and conveys to the audience that maybe they don't really feel at ease with each other or trust each other that much. After Birling and Gerald's conversation Eric re-enters just as they are laughing together Eric says, "What's the joke? Started telling stories?" This comment implies wariness from Eric he may have entered the room again to see what was going on he doesn't want anybody talking about. Later on in the play we find out all about his past goings on and he seems to be quite edgy and he has been drinking port, Priestley conveys this idea and makes the audience aware of Eric's insecurities.
Edna then re-enters the room she is the maid and this interrupts the whole mood of the room as they did not call for Edna so this makes the Birling family wary that something is up, also the significance that she enters just after Birlings speech it makes the speech stop abruptly and cancels out the happy tone and mood. She announces that an Inspector has called and Birling instructs for her to bring him in and she leaves again. The Inspector then re-enters with Edna on page 11 the book describes him as "creating an impression of massiveness, solidity and purposefulness" by having the Inspector enter at this time Preistley conveys that all is not well and the fact that all this happens on such a special occasion it would have to be something very big.
Sheila then enters on page 16 and is unaware of what has been going on she has missed out on a great deal and the fact that both women have missed out on all this helps Priestley convey the theme of the play about gender issues in society. Sheila enters "(gaily) What's this about streets?" Sheila is still in a happy mood but her happiness is soon cut short and she enters at this time because she is the next "victim" on the Inspectors list. Sheila then exits on page 21 crying and sobbing after finding out her involvement in Eva Smith's death, this conveys to the audience that Sheila is genuinely sorry and one of them is to just get the Birlings to be remorseful about what they have done and Preistley wants to convey that Sheila is sorry and we can see this by her dramatic exit. Birling then also exits the room saying he needs to talk to his wife and comfort his daughter, this is the perfect opportunity for the Inspector as he is left with the next 2 suspects but they don't know it yet, although the audience may have an inkling as by now they would have figured that the Birling family has a lot of involvement in Eva Smith's death. In this time it is revealed that both Eric and Gerald may have involvement as the Inspector insists they must stay creating suspicion amongst the audience.
Sheila then enters the room again on page 22 and again is not aware if what has been going on with the two men, she begins to try and explain herself but the Inspector still can make her feel guilty "But you're partly to blame". Just before the next exit from the Inspector and Eric Smith's other identity is revealed as Daisy Renton, Gerald seems extremely startled by this "What?" this sets up Gerald for the next enquiry as he has just given away that he knows something, the Inspector and Eric then make their excuses and leave. They exit at this time because the Inspector knows that Sheila will make him tell her what he knows and it makes it all to easy for the Inspector as Gerald will have already confessed. In the time between the Inspector leaving and then re-entering again Sheila makes Gerald confess what he has done, Gerald tries to "sweet-talk" her but Sheila isn't having any of it, the Inspector then re-enters the scene with "well?" this is the end of act one and heightens the tension to the extreme and it informs the audience that Gerald is the next suspect in the enquiry.
The climatic curtain, is again another major feature of a well-made play, it is when the end of an act ends on a highly dramatic moment. The end of Act One is an extremely important part of the act it shows the audience that the Inspector is cleverer then he first lets on. Just before the climatic curtain the Inspector has set Gerald up he leaves him and Sheila in the room knowing that Sheila will question Gerald about Daisy Renton. The Inspector then enters again with the line "Well?" Gerald and Sheila are already running high on tension and the Inspectors line just adds to the impact of this. From the stage directions we can also see that the Inspector makes slow movements "the door slowly opens and the Inspector appears, looking steadily and searchingly at them" this dramatic technique draws the audience in and it makes them really think about what is going on, it is a shock that Gerald is involved in the whole murder because he was at first conveyed at such an innocent person and it conveys to the audience that maybe Gerald and not all the characters are as they seem.
In conclusion to this play, through Act one we learn a lot about some of the characters our opinions are changed drastically from the beginning to end. With Mr Birling: he first seems like a very strong willed man who seems to be quite clever, however Preistley uses things like dramatic irony to make Birling seem very stupid and we can see as Birlings interview goes on he gets very aggravated with the Inspector and the audience can see that Birling has been "broken down". Sheila seems to be at first a very sweet and innocent character. She is engaged and seems to be very content with life however until the Inspector shows that she isn't as sweet as she seems as she got Eva Smith sacked from her job, however she seems very remorseful and sorry for her actions. Gerald also seems to be a very well established businessman, but his true identity is also revealed, the theme of mistaken identity is used which interests and intrigues the audience. His secret is revealed about his affair and it seems to bring a lot of shame on him.
Audiences in 1945 would have seen this play as intriguing and interesting as it wasn't a common thing for families' secrets to be revealed everything was kept inside the family and not revealed. They probably would have seen it as a "scandal"! In 2005 we see things like this as normal everyday thing worse things happen e.g. September 11th and terrorists. In today's modern day world a lot of things are very corrupt and including the police force!
So to conclude this play helps Priestley convey many thoughts and messages to the audience using many different dramatic techniques, he manages to change opinions instantly by the clever use of these techniques. The audience is drawn in and Preistley sustains interest, An Inspector Calls fits the criteria for a well-made play by effectively creating mood and tension and in my opinion is an excellent example of a very well made play!
