Arthur Birling

Character Appearance

 He is described as a “heavy-looking, rather portentous man in his middle fifties”. “Portentous” suggests
that he is pompous and pretentious, where “heavy-looking” implies that he is well fed which supports the
idea that the upper-middle class is greedy and indulgent.

Before the Inspector’s Arrival

 Birling is trying hard to impress Gerald, “I gather there’s a good chance of a knighthood.” He does not tell
the rest of the family this so there’s a good chance he’s lying! He is also upset that Gerald’s parents, Lord and
Lady Croft, did not attend the engagement.
 Birling sees the engagement as a business opportunity rather than as an important moment in his
daughter’s life, “Gerald... your engagement to Sheila means a tremendous lot to me.”
 Priestley uses dramatic irony to expose the ignorance and arrogance of capitalists like Birling. Birling makes
several naive remarks that would have offended an audience in 1945 such as, “fiddlesticks, the German’s
don’t want war,” and “the Titanic.... every luxury and unsinkable.”
 Birling is selfish and puts himself first, even before his own family, “a man has to look after himself- and his
family too of course”. He mentions his family almost as a second thought.
 Arthur is a capitalist which means he believes in making money and will do anything to make more of it,
even if it means exploiting the working class, “it’s my duty to keep labour costs down.”

The Inspector’s Arrival

 The inspector arrives when Birling is in the middle of a speech about “community and all that nonsense.” It
is significant that the doorbell rings at this moment as it suggests that the inspector will challenge Birling’s
views about community.
 The inspector challenges Birling’s authority. Before the inspector’s arrival, Birling was the most powerful
person on stage but the inspector soon changes this and is described as “cutting in massively” and
interrupting Birling mid-way through his sentences.
 Arthur Birling refuses to accept responsibility for firing Eva and starting the chain of events that led to her
death, “I can’t accept any responsibility.”
 He does not respect the working class, “If you don’t come down sharply on these people they’ll soon be
asking for the earth.” The phrase “these people” shows his lack of concern for others.

After the inspector leaves

 He is more concerned with his reputation at the end than what happened to Eva Smith, “you don’t realise
what you’ve done. Most of this is bound to come out. There’ll be a public scandal.”
 He does not have a very close relationship with his children. Eric blames him for being unsupportive,
“you’re not the kind of father a chap can go to when he’s in trouble.” At the end of the play he laughs at his
children for believing in the inspector, “Look at the pair of them.. The famous younger generation who know
it all. And they can’t even take a joke.” At the end of the play, however, the joke is on him when another
inspector arrives.
 He has not learnt his lesson at the end, “(triumphantly) There you are! Positive proof. The whole story’s just
a lot of moonshine. Nothing but an elaborate sell! (he produces a huge sigh of relief).” Birling is relieved to
discover that Inspector Goole was not a real inspector, as it means that there will not be public scandal. He
has not listened to the inspector’s warning of “fire, blood and anguish” that will follow if we do not look after
the community.
 The Inspector

Appearance

 The inspector is described as follows: “he need not be a big man but creates at once an impression of
massiveness, solidity and purposefulness.” Through his appearance the audience should be able to tell that
he is an important and trustworthy character.
 His appearance is supposed to intimidate the other characters, which he does by the way he talks to them,
“he has a disconcerting habit of looking hard at the person he addresses before actually speaking to them.”
This adds to his sense of importance as the characters on stage realise that he means business.

The inspector as stage director

 The inspector’s entrance is perfectly timed. He arrives just as Birling is saying “a man has to mind his own
business and look after himself” This is the first time in the play that anything has succeeded in interrupting
Birling- even his own family have been unable to get a word in edgeways! The inspector’s entrance therefore
suggests that he will be more powerful than Birling and that he’ll challenge Birling’s views about community.
 The inspector controls the action of the play by showing the photograph to only one person at a time, “one
person and one line of enquiry at a time, otherwise there’s a muddle.” This means that he controls the order
of character confessions, beginning with Birling who knew Eva first and ending with Eric, who knew her last.
Thus the inspector is able to control the build-up of tension throughout the play.
 The inspector is omniscient (all knowing). Like any good stage director, the inspector knows more about the
characters than they know about themselves. He is able to predict their actions and knows what they will say
before they confess, “the inspector looks from Sheila to Gerald, then goes out with Eric.” Just by looking at
the characters he is able to compel them to confess.
 He makes a dramatic exit, “if they will not learn their lesson they will be taught in fire and blood and
anguish.” The audience in 1945 will immediately recognise this as a reference to war which they have
witnessed and will therefore trust and respect him and agree with what he is saying.

The inspector as socialist/ Priestley’s mouthpiece

 He uses emotive language when describing Eva Smith in order to get the audience and the characters on
stage to sympathise with her, “with no work, no money coming in, and living in lodgings, with no relatives to
help her, few friends, lonely, half starved, she was feeling desperate.”
 He believes that the upper classes have duties and responsibilities too, “public men have responsibilities as
well as privileges Mr Birling.” The inspector tries to put across the idea that manufacturers like Birling have a
duty to look after the people who work for them by paying them a fair and decent wage.
 The inspector is aware of the magnitude of the problem of class divide that does not begin and end with
Eva Smith, but which reflects thousands of working class people all over Britain, “one Eva Smith has gone,
but there are millions and millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths still left with us. ”
 The inspector believes in the importance of community, “We do not live alone. We are members of one
body. We are responsible for each other.” The metaphor of “the body” suggests that, for society to function
successfully, all parts of it should be looked after and treated equally.
 The inspector believes in equality for women for example, when Gerald insists that Sheila should not be
present to hear his confession the inspector says, “and you think women ought to be protected against
unpleasant and disturbing things?” This comment exposes Gerald’s hypocritical treatment of Eva Smith and
shows that the inspector believes that women have a right to know what their husbands get up to.
 The inspector supports the younger generation. When Mrs Birling remarks that the inspector has “made a
great impression” on Sheila, the inspector replies, “we often do on the young ones. They’re more
impressionable.” This reflects Priestley’s view that hope for the future lies with the younger generation who
hopefully will not make the same mistakes as their parents.
 Sheila
Appearance

 Sheila is a “pretty girl in her early twenties rather pleased with life and rather excited.” Her appearance
suggests that she is a typical middle class girl who doesn’t have a care in the world and is naively excited
about her engagement.

Before the Inspector’s Arrival

 Eric suggests that she has “a nasty temper” which prepares the audience for her reaction to Eva Smith.
 She has naive ideas about men, “expect for all last summer when you didn’t come near me and I wondered
what had happened to you.” She does not suspect that he could have been having an affair.
 She naively believes that she has control over her husband, “(with mock aggressiveness) Go on Gerald, just
you object!”
 Sheila is materialistic, “I think it’s beautiful. Now I really feel engaged.” She needs a ring in order to feel
engaged which suggests that she measures events in her life according to possessions.
 Sheila is unable to make her own decisions and must look to a man in order to tell her what to do, “I can’t
drink to this can I. When do I drink?” She asks Gerald when she should drink which suggests that she
conforms to the position of women in society at the time who allow men to take charge.

During the inspector’s visit

 Sheila becomes more socialist with the inspector’s arrival. She challenges her father’s approach to
management saying, “but these girls aren’t cheap labour, they’re people,” which suggests that she sees
people as individuals rather than clogs in a machine as her father does.
 Sheila is genuinely upset to learn of her involvement in Eva’s suicide, “she looks at it closely, recognises it
with a little cry, gives a half stifled sob and runs out of the room.” Her reaction to Eva’s photograph is far
more dramatic and emotional than Birling’s and shows that she is clearly affected by it.
 Sheila is immediately remorseful and regrets what she did, “I’ll never, never do it again to anybody”.
Through Sheila, Priestley shows that it is possible to accept and acknowledge your past mistakes as long as
you promise not to repeat the same mistake again.
 Sheila becomes more mature during the inspector’s visit and seems to lose her childish ways for example,
when Gerald confesses to having an affair, rather than throw a “furious temper” as she would have done in
the past, Sheila deals with it in a very adult way, “I don’t dislike you as I did half an hour ago Gerald. In fact I
rather respect you.”
 Sheila is able to make her own decisions and actually hands Gerald back his ring, which shows that she is no
longer materialistic and has learnt that there is more to a marriage than a nice piece of jewellery, “I think
you better take this with you. (she hands him back the ring)

When the Inspector Leaves

 Unlike the rest of her family, Sheila does not change her attitude once the inspector leaves, but continues to
feel remorse and regret for her actions, “I remember what he said, the way he looked and how he made me
feel. Fire and blood and anguish”. She has clearly learnt her lesson and regrets her mistakes.
 She is disgusted and appalled by her family’s reaction when they discover that the inspector was not real,
“it frightens me the way you talk.”
 It is ironic at the end that the younger generation are more mature than their parents, “I’m not being
childish, it’s you two who are being childish trying not to face facts.”
 She does not take the ring back at the end, “No not yet. It’s too soon.” This suggests that she needs time to
think whether she wants to be married to Gerald or not which shows her maturity.
 ERIC
Appearance

 Eric is “in his early twenties, not quite at ease, half shy and half assertive.” Eric is clearly presented as being a
character who is uncomfortable in his own skin and with his surroundings. He does not seem to be very
confident.

Before the Inspector’s Arrival

 Sheila describes Eric as being “squiffy” which implies that he is drunk. This is important as we later realise
that Eric has been suffering from a drinking problem.
 He is unafraid to challenge his father’s views, “What about war?” which also demonstrates a more socialist
attitude as he believes that war is possible whereas Birling as a capitalist does not.
 Eric provides dramatic tension as he behaves in a suspicious way which will leave the audience wanting to
know what he’s hiding, “Sounds a bit fishy to me” (Gerald).
 The rest of the family aren’t particularly nice to Eric; his father constantly belittles him and puts him down,
both Birling and Gerald laugh about him behind his back, and his mother constantly refers to him as a “boy.”
It seems that no one really cares about him and he is treated as a child rather than a young man.

During the Inspector’s Visit

 Eric expresses socialist ideas when he challenges his father’s treatment of Eva, “Why shouldn’t they try for
higher wages? We try for the highest possible prices... He could have kept her on instead of throwing her
out.”
 He makes several dramatic entrances and exits, for example he leaves mysteriously half way through Act 2,
“we hear the front door slam again” and returns at the end of Act 2, leaving the act to end on a cliff-hanger,
“Eric enters, looking pale and distressed.”
 It becomes clear that he has a serious drinking problem, “his whole manner of handling the decanter and
the drink shows his familiarity with heavy drinking.” As it is clear to us that he has a problem, it is therefore a
shock to the audience that Eric’s own parents were unaware of his drinking problem and did nothing to help
him.
 He is presented as being childish and naive for example, he does not understand why “some woman”
wanted Eva Smith to go to the palace bar (this woman was clearly her pimp) and even Eva recognises his
naivety, “she treated me as if I were a kid. Though I was nearly as old as she was.”
 He blames his parents for being unsupportive, “you’re not the kind of father a chap could go to when he’s
in trouble” and blames his father friends for making prostitution appear to be an acceptable pastime, “I hate
these fat old tarts round the town- the ones I see some of your respectable friends with.”
 His reaction when he hears that she is dead is very emotional, “Then- you killed her... and the child she’d
have had too- my child- your grandchild- damn you, damn you.” His emotional reaction, rather like Sheila’s,
shows his genuine concern and feeling for Eva Smith,
 He is immediately remorseful and full of regret, “I’m not likely to forget”

After the Inspector leaves

 Eric has learnt his lesson and, unlike his parents and Gerald, does not care whether the inspector was real or
not, “the girl’s dead and we all helped kill her- and that’s what matters.”
 He refuses to let himself off the hook, “You lot may be letting yourselves out nicely, but I can’t.”
 Eric has become more socialist: he does not care about material things like money anymore, “the money’s
not the important thing. It’s what happened to the girl and what we did to her that matters.”
 GERALD
Appearance

 Gerald is described as a typical upper class man, “the easy well-bred young man about town” which implies
that the life of the rich is “easy” and free of worries or hassle. “Well-bred” implies that he is upper class.

Before the Inspector’s Arrival

 Gerald appears to be very much in love with Sheila at the beginning of the play “I hope I can make you as
happy as you deserve to be.” The fact that he is so romantic at the start of the play makes it all the more
shocking when we discover his affair. It shows how good he is at deceiving those around him.
 He agrees with Birling which shows that he shares capitalist ideologies, for example, when Birling predicts
“peace and prosperity” for the future, Gerald says, “I believe you’re right sir.”
 Gerald is not offended by Birling’s comments about his engagement being a good business venture,
“perhaps we may look forward to a time when Crofts and Birlings are working together for lower costs and
higher prices” (Birling) to which Gerald replies, “Hear hear! I think my father would agree to that!” Only the
women are offended by Birling’s discussion of business at dinner, Gerald finds it perfectly acceptable which
suggests that, like Birling, he too sees the engagement as a business opportunity.
 He is a hypocrite. When he hears an inspector has arrived he says, “unless Eric’s been up to something...
that would be very awkward wouldn’t it?” This is ironic as Gerald too has been “up to something” but he
prefers to mock and belittle Eric, which suggests he isn’t a very nice guy.

During the Inspector’s Visit

 He judges Sheila for what she did to Eva Smith, “It was my own fault. (Suddenly, to Gerald) All right Gerald,
you needn’t look at me like that. At least I’m trying to tell the truth. I expect you’ve done things you’re
ashamed of too.” Even though he doesn’t say anything, the stage directions suggest that he is looking at his
fiancé with disgust, which is ironic given his own contribution towards Eva’s suicide.
 Gerald is clearly affected by the mention of “Daisy Renton” however we can assume that he is affected
because he doesn’t want to get caught and not because he feels anything for Eva. He immediately asks for a
drink, “Do you mind if I give myself a drink?” The fact that he turns to alcohol suggest that he feels guilty
about something.
 He tries to convince Sheila not to tell the inspector that he knew Daisy which again contributes to the
image of Gerald as being sly and dishonest, “for God’s sake don’t say anything to the inspector.” He is more
concerned about his reputation than with what happened to the girl
 He doesn’t want Sheila there to witness his confession and he is incredibly patronising towards her, “I
think Miss Birling ought to be excused... She’s had a long, exciting and tiring day.” He believes women are
weak and cannot handle dramatic events, which, as the inspector points out is hypocritical since Gerald did
nothing to protect Eva Smith, “so you think women should be protected against unpleasant and disturbing
things?” (inspector)
 He clearly does not know Sheila’s true personality and believes that she stayed only to watch him suffer,
“you’ve been through it- now you want to see somebody else put through it.” He assumes that she is like
him- selfish and malicious, but she is not: “if you really loved me, you couldn’t have said that.” Like Sheila,
the audience too begin to realise that perhaps Gerald never really loved Sheila.

After the Inspector leaves:

 Gerald has not remorse or regret about what happened to Eva. He in fact goes out to enquire whether the
inspector was real or not, and is triumphant to be able to tell the Birlings that there is no inspector Goole,
“he looks around triumphantly at them.” He even calls up the infirmary to find out whether there had been
any suicides. In the end, he has not learnt his lesson so Sheila does not take back the ring.
 Mrs Birling
Appearance

 “His wife is about fifty, a rather cold woman and her husband’s social superior.” This means that she is
from a high class background than Arthur. The fact that she is “cold” suggests that she is unfeeling even
towards her own family.

Before the Inspector Arrives

 Mrs Birling is obsessed with rules of behaviour and social etiquette- these are rules or customs that define
the upper classes, a way of behaving that separates them from the rest of society, for example, the ladies
taking coffee in the drawing room while the men chat, or having port after dinner etc. She is obsessed with
these outward displays of propriety but it is only for appearance; below the surface she is less than perfect.
 Mrs Birling perpetuates/ supports the laws of patriarchal society: she believes women are lower than men
and enjoys that position. For example, when Sheila questions Gerald about his whereabouts last summer,
Mrs Birling says, “Now Sheila, when you’re married you will realise that men with a lot of important work to
do sometimes have to spend all their time on their business. You will have to get used to that. We can
assume that she has been in Sheila’s position in the past, but never questioned Arthur about it. She accepts
the double standards that existed for men and women in 1912 and did not challenge them.
 She is materialistic. As Sheila admires the ring, Mrs Birling says, “Don’t let it out of your sight.” She is
worried that Sheila won’t look after such an expensive object, when really her advise should be, “don’t let
your husband out of your sight!”

During the Inspector’s Visit

 She is naive about her own children. Mrs Birling clearly does not know her children very well, or
deliberately chooses to ignore the truth. When Sheila reveals in Act 2 that Eric has a drinking problem, Mrs
Birling’s response is, “It isn’t true.” She simply assumes that all men drink so there’s nothing to worry about.
 She is naive about members of her own class. When Gerald reveals that Alderman Meggarty, a respected
member of the upper class, is a womaniser who regularly solicits prostitutes, she is shocked, “Alderman
Meggarty! Well we are learning something tonight.”
 She is prejudiced against the lower classes. She refused to help Eva who came to her while pregnant,
because she assumed that Eva was lying, “as if a girl of that sort would refuse money!” She assumes all
working class women would place money above morals, which is ironically what the upper class do.
 She is patronising towards her own children. She calls Sheila “girl” and Eric “boy” constantly throughout the
play, “don’t be childish Sheila”.
 She refuses to accept responsibility for her actions. Even though her position as “prominent member” of
the Brumley Women’s Committee means that she should help vulnerable women, she refuses to accept that
she did anything wrong by refusing to help Eva, “I am sorry she came to such a horrible end. But I accept no
blame at all,” and “I did nothing I’m ashamed of.”
 The inspector traps her in the end when she says, “I blame the young man who was the father of the child
she was going to have” who turns out to be her own son, Eric.

After the Inspector Leaves

 It is clear that Mrs Birling has not learnt her lesson in the end. She is proud that she was “the only one who
did not give in to him” and shows no feelings of remorse or regret for allowing Eva to commit suicide.
 She still believes men should hold the power and make the decisions even at the end and even having seen
that all three men are unreliable and untrustworthy.
 She does not listen to her children, “Now just be quiet and so that your father can decide what we ought to
do. (Looks expectantly at Birling).”