An Inspector Calls
Essay
There are many aspects that Priestley uses to make ‘An Inspector
Calls’ successful on stage i.e. the use of dramatic irony, time zones,
twists, cliff hangers and the 7 deadly sins. He also represents the
inspector as omniscient and enigmatic and his surname is a homophone
which is used symbolically. E.g. Goole to Ghoul. This makes him seem
like ghostly spirit. J.B Priestley wrote this play as a message/moral
to show the world that everyone is equal through terms of money and
power. He saw more clearly the effects of both wars that some
higher/upper class had no problems with rebuilding businesses, housing
and even their lives as they had the money to do so.
An element used to make ’An Inspector Calls’ successful on stage would
be the ‘whodunnit’ genre. This differs from a detective genre as in a
detective story there s a suspect that committed the crime but in ‘An
Inspector Calls’ all of the characters in the same way helped to make
Eva Smith/Daisy Renton commit suicide. Each member of the family had
something to do with her whether it was physical contact or not; here
is how each member was involved with her suicidal attack. Gerald and
Eric both had sexual intercourse with Eva and Eric had left her
pregnant, Sheila and Birling had no physical contact but both got her
sacked from her job as a factory worker and working in a shop where
Shelia shopped regularly, and last of all Mrs Birling pushed Eva to
the limits when she would offer no help to Eva and her unborn foetus
when she asked for help at the charity. Mrs Birling was the person who
pushed Eva to the limit of committing suicide.
The use of dramatic irony in ‘An Inspector Calls’ is used by most
characters especially Mrs Birling who says to the inspector “I accept
no blame for it at all…. Take some steps to find this young man and
then make sure that he’s compelled to confess in public his
responsibility”. The irony comes into this as she does not know that
the father of the baby is Eric’s!
Priestley presents all of the characters symbolising as the seven
deadly sins. He presents the inspector as a mysterious, omniscient and
enigmatic character : his name ‘Goole’, is a homophone for ‘Ghoul’
which we know is linked to the meaning ‘Ghost’; this makes you feel as
if he is a kind of ghostly spirit; knowing some things before they
happen.
Priestley made Birling have mistaken predictions such as when Birling
quoted, “‘the Titanic-she sails next week-absolutely unsinkable”,
which makes the audience laugh with sarcasm as we all know that the
This coursework focuses on how each character contributes to the suicide of a poor girl Eva Smith/Daisy Renton.
An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley In the introduction of Act One, we are given a few brief details about
eager and keen to find out who is at the door and what they want. The
to say for herself she gets the sack. And this is what the author is
one – and so long as he does that he won’t come to much harm. But the
or two, or a few German officers have too much to drink and begin to
talks with. He is a man who has come to the Birling's house to do his
The play is the tale of a rich family, that are accosted by a man
An Inspector Calls is a play with lots of political messages as well as social messages. J. B. Priestley believed in socialism and he used large amounts of his plays to try and convince people to his way of thinking. It was written in a time when Britain was ruled by a Labour government and socialist policies were seen to be a good way to go. It was a common way of thinking at that time so Priestley's aim for the play was to influence the unconvinced in society.
An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley "An Inspector calls," by J. B. Priestley was written in 1946 and set in 1912. Priestley was a politician and a socialist who believed in equality and equilibrium for all, sex, race and class. Priestley had a long but arduous life, 1894-1984. He lived through both world wars, the unsinkable Titanic sank in 1912, the general strike in 1926, labour government resigning in 1931, and the two destructive atom bombs dropped on Japan in 1945. Priestley deliberately set the play in 1912 because the audience watching the play had to have lived through all of this and would have empathised with him.
in jeopardy than how he may have driven a young girl down a spiral to
and say and do. We don't live alone. We are members of a body. We are
the suicide of Eva Smiths death. The aim of the story is to, try to
In the play “An inspector calls” by J.B priestly, Mr Birling and Shelia Birling have contrasting attitudes to social issues. The author uses this to difference to highlight the diversity between generations and their reaction to situations faced. Arthur Birling is the father to Shelia Birling and is presented as the old fashion generation whereas Shelia is the young generation, who is more aware of the responsibility she has towards other people.The play begins with Mr birling and his family celebrating the engagement of Shelia and Gerald. The atmosphere is happy and light-hearted. Before the inspector arrives, Mr Birling is happy with life and himself “It’s one of the happiest nights of my life.” This shows that Mr Birling is quire selfish because he only thinks that it is one of the happiest nights of his life and not of Shelia and Gerald.
make him a better writer, and he felt that he 'must spend at least the