Explore the ways Priestley uses different characters to dramatise social

attitudes in an inspector calls

An Inspector Calls is a play of which creates an image of attitudes toward social
responsibility at the time and the different social class. On one hand you have
the socialist views of the Inspector and those who are sympathetic of it, Sheila
and Eric; however on the other hand you have the views of a capitalist society by
Mr Birling, Mrs Birling and Gerald.
An Inspector calls is a well known play by many; it is set in 1912 but was
written in 1945, Priestley deliberately set his play in 1912 because the date
represented an era when all was very different from the time he was writing. In
1912, rigid class and gender boundaries seemed to ensure that nothing would
change. Yet by 1945, most of those class and gender divisions had been
breached. Priestley wanted to make the most of these changes. Through this
play, he encourages people to seize the opportunity the end of the war had given
them to build a better, more caring society.
In 1912, at this period of time there were strong distinctions between the upper
and lower classes however in 1945 class distinctions had been greatly reduced
as a result of two world wars. In 1912 women were subservient to men. All a well
off women could do was to get married; a poor woman was seen as cheap labour
however this also changed in 1945 as a result of the wars, women had earned a
more valued place in society.
Mr Birling is displayed as quite an arrogant character to the reader; He has
worked his way up in the world and is proud of his achievements. He boasts
about having been Mayor and tries (and fails) to impress the Inspector with his
local standing and his influential friends. He also comes across as a selfish
character; He wants to protect himself and his family. He believes that socialist
ideas that stress the importance of the community is "nonsense" and that "a
man has to make his own way." Youd think everybody has to look after
everybody else, as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive. This
quotation shows how Mr Birling does not agree with community and helping out
people in need, it shows how he is not someone who thinks that the rich should
help the poor. We can also see how he has the motto of every man to himself;
this shows how he thinks that to become rich you have to work hard however
this may not be the case as some people are born less well off than others.
Through Mr Birling, Priestley displays the attitude of those being from an upper
class to a lower class, towards each other and their way of life. Mr Birling
being from an upper class shows the audience just how much responsibility
one from an upper class holds-a lack of responsibility towards anything which
does not include them or relate to them.
Furthermore, through the play we also see how he has no respect for people of a
lower social standing and does not feel that he is responsible for anything but
himself. I cant accept any responsibility. If we were all responsible for
everything that happened to everybody wed had anything to do with, it would

be very awkward Mr Birlings attitude is expressed as being extremely poor, and

as a social climber. The way of which he seems to not care what his actions do to
other peoples lives and what affect he has on them implies an attitude that a
man can do what he wants to get rich. We are shown throughout the play how
the conflicting attitude of the Inspector attempts to teach the Birlings a lesson.
Mr Birling does not look at the negative effects of his action but rather looks at
the way he can earn more with his doings. Mr Birling can go to any extent to
make money.

Mrs Birling, being Mr Birlings wife has also followed her husbands footsteps:
being an even bigger snob than Mr Birling. She is narrow-minded and judgmental
about the lower classes without really understanding how other people live.
Although she chairs the committee of a charitable organisation she is smug and
self-satisfied and only serves on the committee out of a sense of duty rather than
a genuine desire to help those less fortunate than herself. Because she only
hears what she wants to, she is easily offended. Mrs Birling comes across
someone who is image conscious and cares very much about her reputation.
Priestley conveys Mrs Birling as someone who only cares for herself and
someone who has no true emotions for anyone else except for herself. When it
comes to social attitudes hers also comes across as a very poor one.
Throughout Act 1, Mrs Birling is forever correcting her husbands language and
behaviour. This suggests that Mr Birling has worked for his money and hasnt got
the whole idea of being image conscious as he wasnt bought up the same way
Mrs Birling has. Arthur youre not supposed to say such things. This is said
after Mr Birling compliments and names the cook in front of their special guest.
This could imply that although she is concerned over her reputation she still
doesnt want to be seen as boastful as their guest. To Mrs Birling her image is all
that matters to her, she is scared that if even the slightest of a wrong word
comes out of her familys mouth whether its her husband or her daughter or her
son it could ruin her image for her within seconds. Similarly she thinks that if
she was to reach her hand out to someone from the lower class at the time of
distress it would add a little dirt to her name.
Mrs Birlings role in Eva Smiths death does not seem like a wakeup call for Mrs.
Birling, even though the inspector questions her about someones death Mrs
Birling is still far more worried about her image so therefore goes against all
words of the inspector and puts on an act of innocence. Unlike the other three,
I did nothing Im ashamed of or that wont bear investigation. The girl asked for
assistance. We were asked to look carefully into the claims made upon us. I
wasnt satisfied with the girls claim-she seemed to me to be not a good caseand so I used my influence to have it refused. When Eva asked Mrs Birling for
help, Mrs Birling refused to help her at any cost for one reason: that she was
from the lower class. Priestley once again presents the social attitudes of the

elderly through Mrs Birling this time; one name was all it took for Mrs Birling to
not help a person at the time of distress, Priestleys presenting how in 1912 this
is how the situation was, if you were from the upper class the person would
come running to you if you needed help but if you were from the lower class no
one cared about you, its like you didnt even exist. Being from the lower class
with problems were the least of someones worries.
Further on Mrs Birling is a very no-nonsense person. She can be very stubborn, and is

certainly one to stand up for herself. She refuses the fact that she has done something morally
wrong, and blames in on Poor Eva. She refuses to look past her own nose and see that these
people do need help. Just because of where she works, does not show that she really cares.
She knows that shes higher than everyone else, and knows she can put them down if she
feels like it, she believes she has the authority to decide whether people deserve a good life or
not.

Sheila Birling, the daughter of Mr and Mrs Birling doesnt quite follow the
footsteps of her parents. Sheila is presented as rather pleased with herself but
also rather shallow. She makes inconsequential remarks and speaks in a rather
childish way: she calls her mother mummy and uses words like squiffy and
jolly well. However, she is the only one to immediately accept responsibility for
her role in Eva Smiths death and she is, therefore, probably the most
sympathetic character in the play. She is genuinely remorseful for her actions
and is very affected by details of the girls terrible death. As Sheila becomes
aware of Eva Smiths death she says "(rather distressed) Sorry! It's just that I
can't help thinking about this girl destroying herself so horribly - and I've been so
happy tonight. Oh I wish you hadn't of told me When Sheila mention Ive been
so happy tonight shows she is unhappy and distressed that she has become
involved with the story of Eva Smith's death; she says how happy she was
tonight, as though her fun had been spoilt by the horrible news, she wishes that
no one had told her. Her morals are displayed as unjustly, she is very selfish and
doesn't seem to think of others. However we can also appreciate that she is
showing some concern and compassion for Eva, when she asks the last two
questions.
However this attitude soon changes drastically when she gets to know of Evas
death and her fathers contribution. Sheila didnt show any respect for the
working class but when she finds out about her fathers role in Eva Smiths death
it doesnt take long for Sheila to change her character and to be concerned.
When Sheila says "but these girls aren't cheap labour-they're people."
Immediately as a ready I am able to say that she is someone who feels as if she

should be responsible for the people who she would employ. Sheila is a character
who learns the quickest from the Inspector because she has the most
understanding of social responsibility. The older generations attitude towards
responsibility and social attitude is the opposite of the younger generation.
Sheila feels a remorse amount of guilt after hearing about Evas death.