When Mr Birling’s son hears this he immediately asks “Is that why she committed suicide?” Mr Birling however shows no sympathy for Eva Smith. He seems much more concerned with his works and the financial side of it, rather than the welfare of his employees. Eva Smith was sacked because she was one of the ringleaders in a group of workers wanting a pay rise. “I refused, of course” is what Mr Birling said to the Inspector. This shows the reader and audience just how arrogant Mr Birling is because he wasn’t even prepared to discuss it with his employees. The Inspector highlights that now Eva Smith was unemployed, she no longer had and income to provide for herself; this was a bad position for a young woman to be in at that time.
When Sheila Birling finds out about a women’s horrible death she is much more upset than her father saying “Oh – How horrible.” When she finds out she knows the women and could be partly involved she is distraught and runs out of the room. This shows how different Sheila is to her father. She feels distressed and guilty for Eva’s death whereas her father does not seem to show any emotions or any sign of guilt or responsibility.
After being sacked by Mr Birling, Eva Smith had managed to find work at department store called Milwards. A shop that Sheila and her mother regularly visit. The Inspector then explains that Eva Smith was soon fired from her job due to a customer complaining about her. This makes Sheila agitated and she asks the Inspector “when was this?” The Inspector tells her and Sheila then asks “what did this girl look like?” It is after she is shown a picture of the girl that she runs out of the room sobbing.
Sheila soon returns and speaks with the inspector. She obviously feels guilty as she asks him miserably “So I’m entirely responsible?” The Inspector says no but tells her that she is “Partly to blame.” Although it was here bad temper and jealously that caused Eva Smith to lose her job at Milwards, Sheila seems genuinely sorry for her actions. Eva Smith is presented as the victim here because she has been forced out of a job through no major fault of her own.
The Inspector soon goes on to mention that Eva Smith then changed her name to Daisy Renton. The mentioning of this name clearly hit Gerald as he gave a sharp reaction upon hearing it. The Inspector later questions Gerald about his relationship with Daisy Renton. First he attempts to deny this but he had already given himself away by his reaction when he heard the name. He eventually tells the inspector that he had an affair with Daisy Renton and then later abandoned her.
Gerald had met her at the theatre and they then “went along to the Country Hotel” where they “had a drink or two and talked”. He soon realised she was in need of help so he found accommodation for her at an apartment Gerald was looking after for his friend. Although he helped her and felt sorry for her Gerald admits that he didn’t love her and he said that he “didn’t feel the same way about her as she felt about me” Eventually Gerald broke it off with Daisy and she had to move out of the room. She had saved a little money and Gerald gave her some to keep her going till the end of the year. After speaking to the Inspector, Gerald goes outside for a walk.
It appears that the Inspector has got Gerald thinking about his part in Eva Smith’s life it shows that like Sheila, he also appears to have morals and feelings. So far, Gerald is the only person who has attempted to help the girl even, even if a part of it was for personal gain.
Mr Birling’s wife, Mrs Birling is described as a “rather cold woman and her husband’s social superior.” She makes very snobbish comments and her coldness and lack of conscience make her very unsympathetic. She appears to be out of touch with the reality of life. She is extremely full of herself and seems the type of person who only cares about herself.
Mrs Birling is “a prominent member…of the Brumley Women’s Charity Organisation.” She says, with dignity, “Yes. We’ve done a great deal of useful work in helping deserving cases.” This statement again shows us Mrs Birling’s distinct lack of conscience as she only helps people she feels deserve to be helped.
Eva Smith appealed to Mrs Birling’s organisation for help. She gave her name as ‘Mrs Birling’ which Mrs Birling was disgusted at. It was “one of the things that prejudiced me against her case” said Mrs Birling. Sheila points out how she died a horrible death. Mrs Birling’s cold heartedness shows through even clearer now as she says “she had only herself to blame.” Mrs Birling obviously feels that she had nothing to do with her death; she is taking on her husband’s views that she should not be responsible for anyone else in society. Mrs Birling feels no regret for what she did as she felt Eva Smith was not one of the “deserving cases.” The Inspector tells her that she did something “terribly wrong” and that she will spend the rest of her life regretting it. The writer here is using the inspector to have a powerful effect upon Mrs Birling.
Throughout the Inspector’s interviewing of Mrs Birling, she shows no conscience of sympathy for Eva smith. She feels that she has done nothing wrong and has no part to play in Eva’s death. Sheila is obviously distressed and showing sympathy as she constantly cries out for them to stop talking when they mention the death of the girl.
Eric Birling is the last person to be interviewed by the Inspector. He admits that he met the girl at the Palace theatre bar; the same place where Gerald met her. He met her two months after Gerald’s affair with her had ended.
It is later revealed that the girl was pregnant and that Eric was the father. We are also told that Eric stole money from his father’s office to support the pregnant woman. From then on, the family begin turning against each other. When Eric hears of his mother’s part, refusing to help the girl, he accuses her of killing her own grandchild. Mr Birling is shocked about his son stealing and immediately begins thinking of how to prevent this news being revealed to the public. Once again Mr Birling is thinking of his family’s social status. It appears that Eric used Eva Smith for sex and to flatter his egos. Once again, Eva is presented as the victim.
The Inspector makes final speech upon departing. It is a moving and thought provoking speech. I think that the Inspector represents the voice of Priestly as he was a strong socialist.
“One Eva Smith has gone – but there are millions and millions of Eva Smiths…with their lives…intertwined with our lives…We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other.”
The inspector leaves and the family immediately start arguing. Mr Birling does not seem affected at all by the night’s event. All her is worried about is the fact that he might not get his knighthood. Mrs Birling acts very similar all she can say is how ashamed she is of Eric and does not show any sympathy for Eva Smith.
Mr Birling and his wife both remain confident that there actions were justified and that they played no part in the death of Eva Smith. Sheila on the other hand, is disgusted at her parents and she appears extremely guilty and upset about what she has done. “I’ve behaved badly…I’m ashamed of it.” She tells her father that he doesn’t “seem to have learnt anything.”
After making some phone calls and finding out that everything could be a hoax, Mr Birling begins acting as if nothing has happened. He hasn’t learnt a lesson and neither has his wife. It appears though that the younger generation, Eric and Sheila have learnt a lesson and appear generally sorry and guilty for their actions. Mr and Mrs Birling have obviously grown up with these morals and class division and are not intending to change their ways now.
The play ends in a twist with a phone call from the police saying that a girl has just died and an Inspector is coming around to question them.
In An Inspector Calls, throughout the duration of the Inspector’s visit, Eva Smith is presented, by the Inspector, as the victim of the play. The Inspectors explains how each of the character has mistreated and victimised her, ultimately resulting in her suicide.
The Inspector uses her diary to explain how she thought and felt after the main characters have acted on her. She is presented as an innocent person throughout the play and the audience are made to believe that she has done nothing wrong.
The Inspector is used to make individuals such as the Birlings aware of their responsibilities to people such as Eva Smith. In the case of Mr and Mrs Birling, I don’t feel he has succeed as they are very proud and arrogant people who feel that it is not their duty to look after other people in society.
The effect the Inspector has had on Sheila and Eric Birling is much more apparent. Sheila feels guilty for her actions throughout the play and is disgusted when she hears her parents say that they are not and played not part in her death. Eric, though not showing it as much as his sister, also feels guilty for his actions.
The moral of `An Inspector Calls' is that no matter what class we are we are all equal and that we must work together. It is the Inspectors role in this play to portray this message.