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A* revision notes "An Inspector Calls" GCSE English Literature
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My A* revision notes on "An Inspector Calls"
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GCSEENGLISH LITERATURE
AN INSPECTOR CALLS – J.B. PRIESTLEY
revision notes
An Inspector Calls is scathing in its criticism of middle-class hypocrisy. The play gives
voice to Priestley's strong socialist principles, and carries a clear moral message, stressing the
importance of social responsibility: 'We don't live alone. We are members of one body. We are
responsible for each other'.
what are Birling’s attitudes to his role as ‘the boss’, and how does he treat his workers? Find evidence
from the play to support any points you make. Possible answers could include:
• his views on keeping labour costs down (Mr. Birling is the embodiment of Capitalism)
• his belief that any request for higher wages should be ‘sharply’ dealt with (a determination to
maximise his profits)
• that if they don’t like the wage he pays then they can go elsewhere
• he is interested in ‘lower costs and higher prices’
• he prides himself on being a ‘hard-headed man of business’
look at Gerald, Eric and the Inspector. Are their views different from Arthur’s or are they the same?
Find evidence to support your points. Possible answers may look at:
• Gerald’s support for Arthur during the Inspector’s interrogation
• Eric openly contradicting his father and exposing him in front of the Inspector – he asks whether
Arthur’s dismissal of Eva led to her suicide
• the Inspector’s calm but firm rebuttals to Arthur’s protestations.
Look at extract where Birling refers to only having to care about oneself and one’s own family:
,why do you think Priestley is putting these words into the mouths of his characters? Why has Priestley
introduced these ideas into this play? The students could concentrate on:
• the two opposing views on display here, capitalism and socialism; they could try to establish the main
tenets of each via the views espoused by Arthur and the Inspector respectively.
A Capitalistic stance leads to selfishness and a lack of care for others. Arthur Birling symbolises
Capitalism. He sees no need to have regard for the welfare of others and he driven by the goal of
maximising his wealth. He is avaricious and his world revolves around his drive to accumulate wealth.
Compare how clashes between different generations are presented in An Inspector Calls.
You should consider:
• the situations and experiences faced by the characters
• how the characters react to these situations and experiences
• how language and dramatic features create effects.
EXTRACT FROM AN EXAMINERS REPORT:” The distinction between very good and less successful
answers was the degree to which candidates were able to go beyond merely identifying moments in the
extract where tension and division exist. Successful answers understood the generational divide in
relation to the reality of the Inspector, Eric’s “cutting in” and Sheila’s “flaring up”, and the bitter and
sarcastic tones of Sheila and Eric, indicating their frustration with their elders. (Arthur and Sybil are static
characters who do not learn anything; contrast them with Eric and Sheila). Weaker responses simply
asserted that the older Birlings refused to accept responsibility “for what they did”, while the younger
Birlings accepted responsibility “for what they did”, without providing any indication of what “it”
actually is, or the underlying issues (such an answer is too superficial). Some candidates made good use
of Shelia’s recapitulation of their “crimes” and incorporated this into their own evaluation of character
and tensions. A significant number of responses however, focused exclusively on Priestley’s literary
techniques and devices, without any reference to the moral issues at stake. The consequence of this was
that these responses were not showing a candidate’s deeper awareness of ideas and attitudes.”
SHEILA
Sheila comes from a wealthy background and is representative of her social class. Her engagement to
Gerald opens the play and introduces us to the main characters
she demonstrates concern over the news of Eva Smith’s suicide, and she is the first among the Birlings
to express remorse for her involvement in it: ‘it was my fault’
, throughout the play, she warns her mother against presumptuously putting up ‘walls’ between
themselves and the less fortunate
she is the first to realise Eric's and Gerald’s part in the events (she matures; becomes more
perceptive; she gains a deeper understanding). Significantly, she is the first to wonder who the Inspector
really is, saying to him, 'wonderingly', ‘I don't understand about you.’ She warns the others: ‘he's giving
us the rope - so that we'll hang ourselves’ and, near the end, is the first to consider whether the
Inspector may not be real
she becomes angry and frustrated with her parents for trying to pretend that nothing much has
happened: ‘it frightens me the way you talk,’ she cannot understand how they have not learnt from the
evening in the same way that she has
at the end of the play, Sheila is much wiser. She can now judge her parents and Gerald from a new
perspective, but the greatest change has been in her. She is poignantly aware of their wrongdoings and
does not take any solace from the phone call to the infirmary that resulted in them being told that no
such death had occurred.
Relationship between text and context :
it was a time of growing social awareness. Sheila represents the younger generation who were open
to social change; she echoes Priestley’s message about the consequences of failing to recognise social
responsibility
Sheila’s treatment of Eva, having her fired, is shallow and spiteful simply because Eva is from a lower
social order. Sheila abuses her social position
being young, Sheila is capable of learning from her and her family’s mistakes: her understanding of the
plight of Eva Smith, and those like her, holds hope for the future.
THE THEME OF SELFISHNESS IN AN INSPECTOR CALLS
Priestley’s morality play “An Inspector Calls” challenges audiences to reflect on their treatment of
others. His mouthpiece, Inspector Goole, instructs the affluent but selfish Birling family to reconsider
their capitalist attitudes and to care more about the most vulnerable people in society, shown through
the character of Eva Smith. Mr Birling’s selfishness is criticised when Priestley invites his audience,
through the use of dramatic irony, to mock Mr Birling’s foolishness. Mr Birling’s conceited and
pretentious comments that “the Germans don’t want war” and that the Titanic is “unsinkable –
absolutely unsinkable” allow us to appreciate how misguided he is, despite the assertiveness of his
tone. The intensifying adverb “absolutely” underlines his arrogance, allowing the contemporary
audience to appreciate how ignorant he is and giving them no faith in his claims later in the play.
Birling’s selfishness shows itself specifically in his exploitation of Eva Smith: the symbolic representative
of the proletariat. Her involvement in the strike at Birling and Co is all the justification he needs to fire
her: “she’d had a lot to say – far too much – so she had to go”. Mr. Birling immediately deprives her of
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