Some more of Priestley's thoughts are conveyed in that speech, as he adds a clear warning on what could happen if some members, as well as us ignore our responsibility. In the speech, the inspector says “if men will not learn that lesson, then they will be taught in fire, blood, fire and anguish”. The significance of this was that though Priestly is probably thinking of the World War they have just lived through, he was probably also thinking about the Russian Revolution, in which poor workers and peasants revolted and took over the state and exacted a bloody revenge against the aristocrats who had treated them so badly. This speech was a message to the upper class in society, and that if though they could treat one lower class person badly, they would join forces, and overthrow them.
Furthermore, in his final speech, he says that humanity will learn its lesson in “fire and blood and anguish” (referring to the First World War, two years after the setting of the play 1912) and even because of his name, which plays on the word “ghoul” (meaning “ghost”). It is suggested in the final scene that Goole’s interrogation of the family will foreshadow a further interrogation to follow by the “real” police force, and that Goole’s purpose has been to warn the family in advance and encourage them to accept responsibility and repent for their bad behaviour.
The inspector acts like a perfectly believable police inspector until he gives his final speech, and begins to almost preach a prophet like speech. He says “just remember this. One Eva smith has gone, but there are millions and millions of other Eva Smiths and John Smiths…” This suggests that the Inspector was not really an inspector, but a socialist, speaking on behalf of the working class people, and conveying a message, that though they do not have as much money as the Birling’s, they are still equal to them, and should be treated like that.
In conclusion, the Inspector, in his final speech, tries to show how both the First World War, and the Second, which had just ended when Priestley wrote the play, were the result of attitudes and behaviour such as those of powerful and wealthy families like the Birlings. This may explain why all the worst features of such families seem to be present in the Birlings: they represent the worst qualities of their class.
