After the dinner Mrs B, Eric and Sheila go to the drawing room. Nevertheless when Sheila comes back she is very inquisitive but after what hearing what happens she becomes quite sympathetic she said, ‘oh-how horrible! Was it an accident.’
Although when she sees the picture of Eva she gets disturbed and the staging in the book shows this; STAGING; She looks at it closely, recognises it with a little cry, gives a half stifled sob, and then runs out. She then returns saying (miserably) ‘So I’m really responsible.’ Sheila feels responsible that she made something terrible happened to Eva, but nothing could prepare her to what was coming next.
The inspector mentioned that Eva had changed her name and that she had changed her name to Daisy Renton and Gerald’s body language gave away that he knew her. When the inspector went out of the room with Eric to the Drawing room, Sheila had very strong words with Gerald because the summer last year Gerald had not spent much time with her and she had expected something was going on and now she knew what it was. Gerald reacted as if he nothing of Eva, but Sheila replied harshly with this phrase ‘Oh don’t be stupid. We haven’t much time. You gave yourself away as soon as he mentioned her other name.’ Gerald denies this and thinks that he could get away with the affair from the inspector and Sheila answers back again with ‘Why- you fool- he knows. Of course he knows. And I hate to think how much he knows that we don’t know yet. You’ll see. You’ll see.’
After knowing this Sheila is very angry but if you look into the quote above you can see that Sheila now understands that the inspector knows more than he is letting on.
The inspector then returns and questions Gerald, and Sheila being in the mood she is in, becomes quite interested in what Gerald has to say. Sheila says something to provoke Gerald and he answers back with something that makes Sheila upset, the inspector tries to calm down the tension and succeeds when Sheila says this Gerald –‘Yes, that’s it. And I know I’m to blame – and I’m desperately sorry- but I can’t believe- I won’t believe- it’s simply my fault that in the end –she commited suicide. that would be too horrible.’
The rest of the family now come in apart from Eric. The inspector then starts interviewing Mrs. Birling and not understanding the way the inspector works builds up tension about the situation saying that she did not know the girl, but Sheila now understanding the situation argues with her mother with these statements; ‘ You see, I feel you’re beginning all wrong. And I’m afraid you’ll say something that you’ll be sorry for afterwards.’ Or even ‘ You mustn’t try to build up a kind of wall between us and that girl. If you do, then the inspector will just break it down. And it’ll be all the worse when he does.’ After the inspector leaves Sheila still feels responsible along with Eric whereas the rest of the family have forgotten it already as if nothing has happened. The family had no sense, to think that they were actually part of this girl’s death. Whether it was true or not. When they found out it wasn’t true Sheila was astonished on the way they reacted of course they were quietened when a phone call came from the police saying that a young girl had died and was on her way to they infirmary.
