Eric Birling Corruption

Eric Birling is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Birling who is ‘in his mid-twenties, not quite at ease, half shy, half assertive’; it is as if he has something to hide. He works in his father's firm. His odd behavior is used by Priestley to hint that his secrets will later disrupt and threaten the Birling's way of life.

At the beginning of the play, Eric acts suspicious and lacks confidence showing that he could be hiding something and suggests that he is isolated from the family. Eric's laugh interrupts the polite conversation earlier in the play("Suddenly I felt I just had to laugh"), just like how his behavior disrupts the illusion of respectability. Sheila accuses her brother of being somewhat drunk 'squiffy'. This forewarns us about his parent's

But Eric drunkenly gets Eva pregnant, steals money for her it is likely that he has brought a scandal to his family. This also reflects the state where Birling's respectable friends like the Alderman Meggarty. They behave badly but no one says anything because of the higher class superiority. Eric is not the only one, but due to his lack of self-control, he is the one to be found out. His parents do not want a scandal so they do not care about him as much as they care about what people will think. Eric is unloved and he shouts at his mother "you don't understand anything. You never did. You never even tried-" it might even be the angriest moment in the play. He feels isolated from the family and 'no one understands him.' The distant relationship between him and his mother is clarified when she says in act 1"your not the type, you don't get drunk" clearly stating her vague knowledge of her very own

At the end of the play, he becomes a determined and reliable character as he understands what he has done and now has someone who understands him(Sheila). His concern about Eva, even after the inspector turned out to be a 'fake', "This girl's still dead, isn't she? Nobody's brought her to life, have they?","I still feel the same about it, and that's why I don't feel like sitting down and have a nice cozy talk" proves his sincerity for he will never forget what he has done. He admits his faults and is remorseful of his behavior. He has grown up considerably by the end of the play and the evening’s events can be seen as his path to adulthood and responsibility. His acknowledgment of guilt and acceptance of social responsibility leads to the audience sympathizing with him and Sheila stating ‘Eric’s absolutely right. And it’s the best thing any one of us has said tonight and it makes me feel a bit less ashamed of us.’ However, Priestley clearly wants the readers to understand that Eric is not a complete villain and that he is apparently an outcome of his upbringing and