Done as a practice essay prior to the 2022 GCSE English Literature Exam
Discusses the role of Eric Birling, focusing on his societal position in comparison to others in the play
Given a Grade 8-9 by teacher who marks the GCSE English Literature examinations
AN INSPECTOR CALLS
Explore how important is the character of Eric in demonstrating Priestley’s ideas.
Priestley uses the character of Eric Birling to portray the ignorance and unawareness that
accompanies being brought up in an upper middle-class family, where one is confined to a
microcosm and not exposed to the issues faced by those less fortunate, such as the working class.
Eric’s obliviousness to social predicaments is a result of his privileged, comfortable lifestyle, where
he thinks he can mistreat and abuse people with less power than himself. Priestley displays,
through Eric, how a lack of understanding and absence of knowledge of societal problems can have
devastating consequences.
The initial impression the audience gains of Eric is via stage directions, where he is described as
‘half shy, half assertive’. Priestley uses a juxtaposition to immediately reveal Eric’s conflicted and
confused nature. The image ‘shy’ indicates he is apprehensive and reserved, whereas the
contrasting description of ‘assertive’ implies he is confident and assured. The idea that both halves
of his personality have contrasting attributes suggests he has not entirely established his true
character and is not at ease with himself. One could argue this a result of his affluent, yet unloving
upbringing, in which he is starved of parental care and nurturing. This could justify his inability to
distinguish his feelings toward life and cause him to turn to alcohol as a method of overcoming the
disappointment and contempt his mother and father feel towards him. Priestley is portraying how
parental deficit is a significant issue in capitalist families, as material possessions and reputation
are valued over one’s children. The audience recognises that Eric’s substance abuse is an immature
and irresponsible solution to his problems, despite it being the only way he finds appropriate to
drown out his pain and suffering, which is overlooked by his family, who perceive it as naivety.
The idea of Eric being immature is reinforced throughout the play in lines such as ‘treated me as if I
were a kid’. Priestley is exploring the contrast between Eva and Eric, as Eva is significantly more
mature due to her battle with poverty and desperation. Eva is forced into maturity in order to deal
with these societal issues that are a major aspect of her reality, whereas Eric has never witnessed
these problems and therefore remains naive due to his parents concealing these issues. ‘when a
chap easily turns nasty’ illustrates how Eric has become a product of the patriarchal society and
has realised he can exploit his position of wealth and power to intimidate women. ‘chap’ is an
example of informal language to display Eric’s nonchalant attitude towards women, and how he
feels disrespecting and abuse towards them is normalised to an extent that makes it excusable.
The idea of a man becoming threatening and cruel is referred to casually, further enforcing the
idea that the patriarchal society and power imbalance between the genders is admissible.
Priestley also uses Eric in comparison to the other male, upper-class characters to distinguish that
he is slightly different in the sense that he gradually changes and recognises the severity of the
pain the working class undergo. ‘my God’ and ‘yes, yes horrid business’ clearly signify the
contrasting attitudes of Mr Birling and Eric to Eva’s death. The exclamation ‘my God’ indicates Eric’s
pure shock and horror at the brutality of the suicide. On the other hand, ‘yes, yes horrid business’
suggests Birling is speaking with indifference and nonchalance, as if the death of a working-class
woman is insignificant and not worthy of his concern. The image ‘business’ connotes Birling has a
fixed mindset which constantly obsesses over wealth and power; the audience would expect this
from a stereotypical capitalist. Furthermore, here Priestley uses a euphemism to emphasise
Birling’s attempt to conceal or disguise the murder. The absence of graphic imagery mirrors the
idea that Eric was raised around people who did not explicitly discuss these societal issues.
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