The Purpose of the Inspector in the Play An Inspector Calls

The Purpose of the Inspector in the Play An Inspector Calls

An Inspector Calls by J.B Priestly was first performed in 1945. The

play was set in 1912 before the war; it centres around the wealthy

Birling family. A visit from the mysterious Inspector Goole proves to

be a horrifying experience for the Birling's as they learn that they

have all played a part in the suicide of a young girl called Eva

Smith.

The 'moral' of the play is was to encourage people to take

responsibility for their actions, not to shift the blame on to others.

Priestly attempts to convey his attitudes and ideas through the

characters in the play.

The Inspector represents the voice of Priestley. He believes in

community and if we don't work together then disaster is inevitable.

Priestley's main aim in the play was to show what would happen if we

didn't work together as a community. The play is there to highlight

the problems of class divide; he wanted his audiences to learn

something from his plays.

The main character of the play is 'Inspector Goole', an enigmatic

character who reveals very little of himself, but instead spends his

time digging up the secrets of the Birling family and exposing them

amongst themselves. He does this because he is aware that the Birlings

are largely responsible for the suicide of 'Eva Smith' a young girl

who committed suicide whilst pregnant with Eric Birlings child, and

wants the family to know what they have done, suffer for it and

hopefully change their ways to a more socialist way of thinking.

It is not clear in the play whether the inspector is a real person, or

whether he is some form of spirit, hallucination or the

personification of the guilt of Eva Smiths death. It doesn't actually

matter, as the message and effect of the inspector is the same

regardless. Whatever the actual nature of his existence is, he acts as

the conscience of the Birling family. He makes them aware of the

wrongs they have done to Eva Smith, and to make them suffer for it by