An inspector calls

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Major conflict Eva Smith/Daisy Renton’s death implicates the entire Birling family, who sort out their culpability in her downfall. Carl: Indeed, by the end of the play, Sheila has matured and has realised that her actions can and did have grave consequences. She knows that the story of Eva Smith has changed the way that she sees the world. The Titanic itself, like the society represented in An Inspector Calls, was a microcosm of early 20th-century class divisions. On the Titanic, passengers were segregated into different classes: first, second, and third, each with different levels of comfort, luxury, and safety precautions. First-class passengers enjoyed opulent accommodations and had the highest survival rate during the sinking, while third-class passengers had far less comfortable conditions and a significantly lower survival rate. This structure mirrors the class system of the Edwardian era, where upper-class individuals, like the Birlings in the play, enjoyed privileged lives at the expense of the working class, represented by Eva Smith. Jean: We'll find out more about him, his sister Sheila and his soon-to-be-brother in law, Gerald in the next episode. Jean: Like working in factories, mechanics, business and manual labour. Women did a good job which changed the perspective of what a woman's role in society is. Some people realised that women could be more than mothers, wives and homemakers. So with that new-found freedom, women were able to make their own money and look after themselves.

Jean: But despite being the person who refused to help Eva Smith when she needed the charity’s help more than ever, like her husband, Mrs Birling doesn't accept any responsibility for her part in Eva Smith's death.

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Jean: And don't forget that whilst you're in the BBC Sounds app, there's loads of other things you can use to help you with your revision. Full versions of some of the text you might be studying, revision playlists, and other Bitesize podcast series to help with different subjects. We also think it's really important to let you know that in this podcast, there will be discussions of suicide and sexual abuse. Carl: The inspector also delivers a pretty ominous message before he leaves just before the end of the play, too. Carl: Alright, it's time to get on my best shoes and polish the cutlery because tonight we're going for dinner with the Birlings. As the play begins, Mr and Mrs Birling are having a dinner party with their son Eric and their daughter Sheila. Sheila’s fiance Gerald is also there. The family is celebrating Sheila and Gerald’s engagement.

Carl: Be sure to listen to the next episode of this podcast. We're going to talk about the form, the structure and the language of An Inspector Calls. We'll be getting into all the parts of play that you want to highlight and underline.Inspector: No hushing up, eh? Make an example of the young man, eh? Public confession of responsibility – um? Throughout Inspector Goole's inquiry, it becomes clear that each member of the family is implicated in the woman's demise, demonstrating the important roles each character has in the play. Carl: Eric still did some pretty terrible things. But at the end the play, even though she and Eric understand they can't undo the damage they've done, you finish with a sense of hope that both Sheila and Eric will leave the dinner party and try to become better people. Because the things the inspector has said have changed both of them. Jean: Social responsibility is the idea that we all have a role to play when it comes to looking after each other, especially the most vulnerable and at-risk people in society. An Inspector Calls was first performed in the UK just after the end of World War Two. Life after the war was really difficult. Morley, Sheridan (25 September 1992). "Stop messing about". The Spectator. p.53. Archived from the original on 5 October 2015 . Retrieved 4 October 2015.

Gale, Maggie (2004). "Theatre and drama between the wars". In Nicholls, Peter; Marcus, Laura (eds.). The Cambridge history of twentieth-century English literature. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. p.328. ISBN 0-521-82077-4. the middle class family was at the centre of much of Priestley's work ... most clearly perhaps in 'An Inspector Calls'. a b Gardner, Lyn (13 November 2016). "An Inspector Calls review – Stephen Daldry helps make the case for justice". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 February 2018 . Retrieved 7 February 2018. Mrs Birling: (rather cowed) she said that the father was only a youngster – silly and wild and drinking too much. There couldn't be any question of marrying him – it would be wrong for them both. He had given her money but she didn't want to take any more money from him.Arthur Birling, a self-made businessman, had fired Eva from his factory because she led a strike for higher wages. Eric: Whoever that chap was, the fact remains that I did what I did. And mother did what she did. And the rest of you did what you did to her… Jean: We'll talk about this more in episode four and seven, but the inspector is a mouthpiece for JB Priestley's own views on this too.

It is clear here that Mr Birling is driven by money, he is a capitalist. The fact that he sees his daughter's engagement as a chance to push for 'lower costs and higher prices' shows just how greedy he is. He does not consider the impact 'higher prices' might have on anyone else, he just wants more money. Carl: The inspector reveals that Mrs Birling used her influence to stop Eva from getting the help that she needed. This is all because Eva didn't act in a way that Mrs Birling expected from a lower class woman who needed help. Carl: One thing you notice reading the play is the clear differences in attitudes and values between the Birling parents and the Birling children. An Inspector Calls at Theatr Clwyd and others 1987". www.abouttheartists.com . Retrieved 20 January 2023.

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Mrs Birling: I'm sorry she should have come to such a horrible end. But I accept no blame for it at all. Carl: When the inspector leaves, Sheila starts crying. Mrs Birling collapses into a chair. Eric is caught in deep thought and Mr Birling pours himself a drink.