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An Inspector Calls

An Inspector Calls is a 1945 play by J.B. Priestley about a mysterious Inspector who investigates the apparent suicide of a young woman named Eva Smith and reveals that members of the wealthy Birling family each contributed to her downward spiral through their selfish actions, highlighting themes of social responsibility, class differences, and the changing role of women in early 20th century Britain. The play is set in 1912 at the Birling family home during a dinner to celebrate an engagement.

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Fahad A. Malik
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1K views9 pages

An Inspector Calls

An Inspector Calls is a 1945 play by J.B. Priestley about a mysterious Inspector who investigates the apparent suicide of a young woman named Eva Smith and reveals that members of the wealthy Birling family each contributed to her downward spiral through their selfish actions, highlighting themes of social responsibility, class differences, and the changing role of women in early 20th century Britain. The play is set in 1912 at the Birling family home during a dinner to celebrate an engagement.

Uploaded by

Fahad A. Malik
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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An Inspector

Calls

By John B. Priestley
What is the play about
“An Inspector Calls by J B Priestley, is a play that revolves around the apparent
suicide of a young woman called Eva Smith.

In the play, the unsuspecting Birling family are visited by the mysterious Inspector
Goole. He arrives just as they are celebrating the engagement of Sheila Birling to
Gerald Croft. The Inspector reveals that a girl called Eva Smith, has taken her own
life by drinking disinfectant. The family are horrified but initially confused as to why
the Inspector has called to see them. What follows is a tense and uncomfortable
investigation by an all-knowing Inspector through which the family discover that
they are all in fact caught up in this poor girl's death.

Priestley uses dramatic irony to great effect in the play.”


Morality plays
Morality plays were allegories that were popular in Europe during the 15th and 16th
century, mainly used to teach the masses (who often were illiterate) about the basics
of Christianity.

Characters would often stand in for qualities or vices (such as the seven deadly sins)
and would face daily complex moral dilemmas that an average person would find
easily understandable.

Example: Robin Hood


John B. Priestley and the social context
J.B. Priestley was born at the end of the 19th century, in northern England. Although he was a
very bright student (who later graduated from Cambridge University), he left school at the age
of 16 to work as a junior clerk with a local wool firm.

He served in the first World War (1914-1918) and was injured. What really appalled him was
the fact that during his war service, he noticed that there were several women working near
the trenches but at the end of the war, they were given no recognition for their labour. Then,
during the second World War (1939-1945), women were even more active but were once
again given no credibility. (read more about women’s role in WW1 here:
https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/12-things-you-didnt-know-about-women-in-the-first-world-war)

Priestley was a socialist. He believed that people have a collective responsibility towards each
other (watch the following video on capitalism vs. socialism:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3u4EFTwprM)
The BLP, rise of the trade unions, and the NHS
Britain was a highly prosperous and technologically advanced nation by 1912. However, it was the
class of industrialists and merchants that had accumulated most of the wealth while the working class
toiled long hours for very little pay.

The first trade union in Britain was legalized in 1871. These unions, made up by factory workers,
sought to fight for the right of the working men in British industries. These trade unions allowed
social conditions to improve marginally for working class. A particularly active wing of the Trade
Union Movement became the precursor to the British Labour Party, which had heavily socialist
leanings. The NHS, established in 1948, was one of the major legacies of the BLP.

WWI (1914-1918) and labour: the working class had also served in the war. Class barriers were
broken down as upper and middle class endured heavy financial losses during war.

Post WWII (1945-): the BLP won the election and introduced the welfare state so the views
expressed in the play are very much in line with public sentiment at the time
Some important themes
An Inspector Calls was first performed in 1945 at a time of great change - both World
Wars were fresh in the minds of the people, women had become more prominent in the
workplace, and it was possible to be class mobile. Here is a list of some of the key themes
that Priestley explores in his play:

1. Responsibility, both individual and collective, for actions and their consequences
(guilt)
2. Hypocrisy of the middle class
3. Progress: the old vs. the new
4. Knowing and unknowing
5. Oppression and control (gender and treatment of women)
6. Seven deadly sins (anger, greed, sloth, gluttony, pride, lust, envy)
The play: Characters
Arthur Birling: the pompous head of the family who loves the sound of his own voice. Owns a factory and
desires to be upper class

Sybil Birling: matriarch of the family; a cold woman who is of a higher social standing than her husband

Sheila Birling: their daughter who is getting married to a man of good social standing and is consequently
very pleased with life

Eric Birling: their son, who has an apparent drinking problem that he tries to hide from the rest of the family

Gerald Croft: a metrosexual, well-behaved man with aristocratic manners.

Eva Smith/ Daisy: the young woman who has apparently committed suicide and whose death is investigated
through the play.

Inspector Goole: a supposed police officer who comes to investigate the suicide of Eva Smith/ Daisy. He is
J.B. Priestley’s mouthpiece.
The play: Setting
Time: 1912, in England, pre-war era. The Birlings and Gerald Croft are celebrating in
a very self-satisfied manner. In the opening exchanges, the audience would be given
an underlying sense of unease by the ironic references to the impossibility of war
and to the progress that mankind is making, as represented by the Titanic.

Place: the Birlings’ dining room is constant throughout; the action and dialogue all
contribute to the themes of the play, with nothing extraneous to distract the
audience’s attention.
Stage directions

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