Discuss the function of the Inspector in An Inspector Calls
John Boynton Priestly in 1945 wrote the play ‘An Inspector Calls’ but
set it in 1912. This time difference creates a sense of dramatic irony
as the play was written after it was set. The audience would be aware
of the events which had taken place between 1912 and 1945, including
world war one and two which they would no doubt have experience first
hand.
‘An Inspector Calls’ was first performed in Russia, Moscow. This is
significant because of the Russian Revolution, which was a system of
collective social responsibility where the sate owned everything and
used the wealth to look after its citizens. As England was left
destroyed due to the world war, therefore there would have been very
few playhouses, so Russia had to be alternative for performing the
play.
The play is set in three scenes. The entire play is set in the dining
room of Mr Birling’s house. In contrast this creates claustrophobia
and tension as the characters in the play feel as if they are trapped,
nowhere to go until the truth is revealed. Although the play is about
the death of a young girl called Eva Smith who has committed suicide.
Due to this mysterious death, the Birling family has a nasty surprise
waiting. The Birling’s are meant to have a high status in their
community and they all have done bad things, which has forced a young
woman to kill herself. In the play, it reveals what each of them did
which leads to Eva Smiths death. As the play concludes we find out
that, the inspector has been questioning the Birling family for moral
values and their sense of social responsibilities.
The inspector is not only a character in the play; he is a dramatic
device who has seve...
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...w yet,
Are you sure you don't know”. J.B Priestly purposely does not use a
question mark in this quote to show that the Inspector already knows
the answer. This affects the characters as they are firstly surprised
on how much knowledge the inspector has and the Birlings cannot give a
straight answer. The Inspector knows so much about Eva smith due to
finding her diary and some letters. “I had an idea from something the
girl herself wrote".
At the start of the play, we are introduced to the Birlings who are no
other than an upper class family. The whole family all seem to be
living peacefully. Until the moment where it all begins, “It can’t be
any worse for me than it has been. And it might be better” Sheila
says. Gerald replies, “I see”. At this stage the relationship shatters
and then from there on the worst is spoken by the inspector to the
Birlings.
There would be more of an effect on the audience at the time, as it
Wells, both of whom references are made to in the opening pages of the play. A lot of the tension in the play is between Birling and the Inspector, both of who are powerful figures in the household and are both vying for dominance, creating a lot of tension. This is symbolic of the global struggle between capitalism and socialism, the Inspector represents Priestley's socialist views, and Birling, the antithesis of the Inspector represents capitalist views, which is made clear through his speech "the interests of Capital steadily increasing prosperity." When the Inspector is there, Birling is very fast to drop the blame on someone else, insisting "I can't accept any responsibility" which is a complete contrast of what the Inspector says, telling the family to "share the blame among yourselves when I have left" This constant conflict, which is often at the heart of the dramatic genre itself, makes sure there is tension whenever the two characters are talking to each other. This conflict is not the only one within the play.
Structure – The work is formatted to be a play. It has three acts, each beginning with stage directions.
talks with. He is a man who has come to the Birling's house to do his
The Role of the Inspector in J.B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls When the inspector is first introduced, it is as a Police Inspector. This leads both the other characters and the reader to assume that his role will be to ask questions and collect evidence, which he can use to solve the crime. However, as the play progresses, it becomes clear that there is more to the inspector that meets the eye, as he seems to know everything that has happened to Eva Smith, before the Birlings tell him so.
The history of the time the play was written helps us to understand the views and the feelings expressed by Priestley in the play. The inspector transfers Priestley’s views and he shows the difference in social classes at the time. A gap which he wants to diminish. He illustrates the reason for this in the play, via the inspector, where he outlines the ways each of the Birlings have influenced someone from a completely different background and social class. This is the way Priestley viewed pre-war England.
Consider the role of the Inspector in “An Inspector Calls”? And what we learn about Priestley’s view on society through the character and his effect on others.
Act 3, scene 5 is a vital scene in the play, as it shows how the
Birlings, as they find out that they have all played a part in a young
tells us that the play is set in Verona, and that a couple take their
In this section at the end of Act Two we find out that Mrs Birling
Birling is presented as a self-centred capitalist very early on in the play. His pleasure in the marriage of his daughter is purely for his own profit. "Now you've brought us together and perhaps we may look forward to a time when Crofts and Birling are no longer competing but are worki...
are meant to present a show at the fete. The play uses comedy as its
Overall act 3, scene 1 is the pivot point of the play. Before it, the
Firstly I would set this play in the 21st century so that a modern audience could relate to it. Algernon, one of the main characters in the play, would live in a luxury apartment in the centre of London, over looking the River Thames. His apartment would have a minimalist theme to it and would be influenced by aesthetic; for example he would have a piece of abstract art on the wall for no reason other than that he thinks it looks nice.