GCSE English Literature A* / 9 An Inspector Calls notes - Mrs Birling.
Booklet of notes for Mr Birling, Mrs Birling, Sheila, Eric & Gerald available.
For each character, there is an overview followed by every quote in order related to that character, with a detailed analysis beneath the quote...
She is an unsympathetic, hypocritical, stubborn woman, the only one of
all the Birlings to almost resist the Inspector's attempts to make her realise her
responsibilities, “building up a wall that’s sure to be knocked flat.” She has a
lack of understanding of how other people live and thinks that all classes
behave in a certain way, this is shown in her snobbish comment "a girl of
that sort" and in her unwillingness to believe that a lower-class girl would
refuse to take stolen money or marry a foolish young man responsible for her
pregnancy.
Mrs Birling is a very naive character. She does not think there is any
problem in her family at all, only seeing what she wants to see, and is quick to
blame others. It is only when Mrs Birling realties that her son, Eric, was the
father of Eva Smith's child and her actions have resulted in the death of her
own grandchild that she begins to show any signs of remorse. Yet, the speed at
which she recovers after the inspector leaves reflects her coldness and lack
of conscience.
Priestley's Message (Intended effect on the audience)
• She represents the wealthier, privileged classes and their selfish
attitudes.
• She sees the lower class as morally inferior - Priestley hated this kind of
attitude and believed that people with these attitudes had to change if society
was going to work.
• She makes us see just how awful life was for the lower classes at this time
(1912) - the class divide was huge.
Mrs Birling's Character
Development/changes
She does not change at the end of the play - perhaps this is why 'An Inspector
Calls' again, to try and make her change.
, Key Quotations:
Act One
Pg 1: “Arthur Birling at one end, his wife at the other”
Grown apart, their physical separation immediately creating unease.
The tension between husband and wife is implied by the social gap which
Priestley indicates with this stage direction, as well as 'her husband's
social superior'.
Pg 1: “about fifty, a rather cold woman and her husband’s social superior.”
Priestley’s adjectival choice here is hugely ironic given Mrs Birling’s
position as “a prominent member of the Brumley Women’s Charity
Organisation,” “an organisation to which women in distress can appeal
for help.”
This characterisation remains valid throughout the play- metaphor for her
emotional life/ poor parenting
Pg 2: 'Arthur you're not supposed to say such things'
First dialogue; Similarly, Mrs Birling's language indicates the weaknesses
in her character. She speaks 'reproachfully' to her husband as he makes
the social faux pas of congratulating the cook for doing her job. It would
seem that she is alert to the faults in others, (Hypocritical, intolerable of
the mistakes of others – “It’s disgusting to me.”) but lacks the self-
awareness to realise that such reproaches, carried out amid such eminent
company as Gerald Croft, serve only to create tension and
embarrassment.
Furthermore, the incident articulates the subtext (hidden story) that was
alluded to in her initial description; the social gap that exists between
husband and wife has become a cause of unspoken dissatisfaction.
Pg 3: 'Sheila! What an expression! Really, the things you girls pick up these days!'
Surprised at language, doesn’t know children, certainly sees life as “pink
and intimate”
Pg 2: “Now stop it, you two.”
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