J.B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls as Detective Fiction

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J.B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls as Detective Fiction

The play “An Inspector Calls” starts of in the genre of detective

fiction. But, as the play goes on, the reader realises that the genre

does also fit into politics and mystery. The play has many conventions

of detective fiction that misleads the reader, not through out but

near the end of the play. When the reader finds out that there is no

revelation scene, one suspects that this play is not detective

fiction, but another genre disguised as detective fiction. This shows

that the true genre of the play is detective pastiche.

The play “An Inspector Calls” is about an upper-middle class family

being the centre of attention of an investigation into the suicide of

a young woman, who was first named Eva Smith. As the play fits itself

together, the audience find out that every member of the family has

contributed In a way, which lead to the suicide of Eva Smith. The

Inspector is surprisingly omniscient of everything. The family did not

need to answer any questions; they just had to admit to their actions.

J.B Priestly, is using this play to convey the message that everyone

should look after everybody else regardless of status.

The first person that the Inspector turns to is Mr. Birling, a middle

class man who has been married Sybil Birling, an upper-middle class

woman. Mr. Birling is the subject of an inquiry because he sacked Eva

Smith from his company, as she was a ring-leader in a strike to ask

for higher pay after Mr. Birling had turned down their requests for

the rates to be raised from, twenty-two and six pence to twenty five

shillings a week.

“Well, we let them all ...

... middle of paper ...

...ould not be the

criminals, because they have not committed any crimes, and even though

Eric stole money from his dad, that would not put him in jail. The

criminal would be Eva, for committing suicide. However, morally,

Priestly is trying to make the audience believe that the Birlings and

Gerald are the criminals, because they drove Eva to suicide and apart

from Gerald, didn’t help her. The only reason J.B Priestly portrayed

“An Inspector Calls” as detective fiction was because more people like

detective fiction and would watch it. J.B Priestly would have a wider

audience and teach all of them the message:

“We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other. And I

tell you that the time will soon come when, if men will not learn that

lesson, then they will be taught it in fire and blood and anguish”.

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