Power Shift From Birling to the Inspector in the Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley

Power Shift From Birling to the Inspector in the Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley

Introduction

In this essay, I am going to write about how the audience of this play

is made aware of the power shifting from Mr Birling to the Inspector.

This play is set in 1912, but it was written in 1945, after the

Titanic had sunk, and the Depression and both World Wars had happened.

In 1912, people were quite pleased with themselves. A lot of them had

made a lot of money through industry and they thought that everything

would turn out all right. The Birlings are such a family. However,

there were many poor people and some people, such as the Inspector,

took the opposite extreme view.

Dramatic Devices

At the beginning of this play, Mr Birling has the power. You can see

this before he even talks as he is heavy and important looking and has

"solid and suburban" furniture, which shows he is successful. When he

does talk, he is the first person to speak. It is also obvious from

the way he dominates the conversation, and does not allow anyone to

interrupt him. He gives instructions, has very strong views, and

obviously has the respect of his family and Gerald. However, he has an

accent, which shows that he has not always been this rich, and makes

him seem slightly less powerful.

The inspector also starts taking the power before he talks as he

interrupts Birling, which no one has been allowed to do yet. The point

at which he interrupts Birling is also important, because he has just

said to Eric and Gerald that "a man must mind his own business and

look after himself and his own - and- ". He does not get to finish his

sentence.

When t...

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...age. Both children have a very

superficial view of the world. The inspector breaks down this view and

brings reality into their lives by showing them the consequences of

their selfish actions. After the Inspector leaves, and they find out

that he was not a real policeman at all, Birling is ready to forget

about everything and go back to how he was before, but Sheila and Eric

do not want to go back. They have taken notice of what the Inspector

says and respect him more than Birling. You can tell that they have

lost their respect for their father when Eric says, "I'm ashamed of

you" and when Sheila says "if you want to know, its you two who are

being childish". Although this play is a bit dated, I enjoyed it

because I thought that it was exciting and I agree with its message

that everyone should care about everyone else.