An Inspector Calls Themes

The characters represented different classes

• Working class - Eva/Daisy, tough jobs and little money.
• Middle class - The Birling family, wealthy own a buisness and live comfortably.
• Upper class - Gerald, owned land and had hvery wealthy parents of a higher status.

In the play

• It has a large indirect affect on Eva's death and the play.
• Allows contrast in the play - between the Birlings and Eva.

Birling thinks it's everything

• He is very happy about Sheila marrying up - in a hope of boostig his social class, e.g. "Son- in - law I've always wanted".
• His biggest fear about Eva's death is that it will ruinin the family's reputation if it comes out and becomes a "public scandal" - showing how unsensitive he is also.
• He thinks his positions such as having been Lord Mayor and a "public man", make him more important, which is ironic because he passes judgement but is so immoral.  

Sybil sees the lower class as faceless

• She's part of the 'Womens Charity Organisation' to improve her status not help people e.g. she didn't help Eva because she used her name which she thought was "gross and impertinence" making her "prejudiced against her case".
• Refers to Eva as "girls of that class" - never her name. 
• Says lower class can't have "fine feelings and scrumples".