Inspector Calls

Created by: gujjipower
Created on: 03-03-17 12:57

Chapter 1 - The Birling family are holding a dinner party to celebrate the engagement of Sheila to Gerald Croft, the son and heir of Mr Birling's rival in business., Mr Birling has a 'man to man' chat with Gerald and Eric, advising them that a man ne

The presence of a maid and of good quality port reinforces the image of the Birlings as a well-off family. They are all dressed for a special occasion. Mr. and Mrs. Birling are described in terms of their status markers—their speech, their social pos

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The scene and situation remains the same as at the end of Act 1, except that the main table is slightly more upstage. The Inspector remains at the door, and then enters the room and looks expectantly to Gerald. Gerald suggests that Sheila should be

The Inspector points out the hypocrisy in Gerald’s wanting to protect Sheila from unpleasant things, in light of his previous activities with Daisy Renton. It is clear that Gerald only wants Sheila to leave so that she won’t hear more about his infid

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The scene is the same as at the end of Act 2. Eric is standing near the entrance of the room and asks if they know. The Inspector confirms that they do, and Sheila reveals that their mother placed blame on whichever young man got the girl into troubl

Eric’s relationship with Eva Smith was very similar to Gerald’s, but was different enough to render his actions punishable: like Gerald, he met her at a bar and then continued to see and sleep with her; unlike Gerald, however, he incidentally got her

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he Birlings are a family of wealth and power, who take pride in their high social position. Mr. Birling is a successful businessman, and the family inhabits a nice home with a maid (and likely other servants). The play begins with the family celebrat

The question asked throughout the play is: who is responsible for the suicide of Eva Smith? Who is to blame? The arc of the play follows the gradual spreading of responsibility, from Mr. Birling, to Mr. Birling and Sheila, to Mr. Birling and Sheila a

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The Inspector, and the play at large, challenges the “privacy” of the private sphere, by revealing that actions that the family may have conceived of as private and personal really have an effect beyond themselves and their family. For example, Sheil

The play demonstrates the corruption implicit within a capitalist economy in which wealth and influence are concentrated in a small portion of the population. The few wealthy people at the top maintain the social hierarchy in order to retain their hi

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