An Inspector Calls : Mrs Birling Quotes

“ Sheila! What an expression !Really , the things you girls pick up on these days!”

She cares more about speech and equitty rather than morality.

The exclamation could show her desperation to oppose any changes to convention that puts her class under threat

The noun girl aims to belittle Sheila to dismiss her behaviour as foolish. She reinforces the seperation between the older and younger generations through the adverd ‘picking; as it were a disease.

“When you’re married you’ll realise “

This emphasises how her worldview is largely based on her role as a wife and she is pushing this onto Sheila.

She is a tool for Priestley to capture marriage within the Edwardian era as a rite of passage through which men exert control over their wives.

“husbands social superior”

Priestly satirises a society that allows humans to be defined by their role or purpose within the class system

She is the only character not named rather referred to as “wife” which suggests her social role dehumanises her and detaches her from individuality.

“I think Sheila and I better go to the drawing room and leave you men”

She expresses no desire to break free from her gender role and works to uphold the patriarchy.

“He’s only a boy”

This shows dramatic irony as the audience learn he is far more than an innocent boy exposing Mrs Birlings oblivion and ignorance of her own children.

“Well really ! We really are learning something tonight”

Sje is encapsulated within the artificial bubble she has created herself and isignorant to the common knowledge within her social circle.

“gross impertance”

She is very hyperbolic over Eva using her name which shows how highly Mrs Birling regards herself and views it as an insult to her status

Prejudice and egotism of her character is revealed to audience

“I consider I did my duty”

Arrogant and also ironic as she juxtaposed doing anything that someone in a philanthropic (charitable) position would do.

The noun duty is a tool which explores the disparity between capitalist and socialist perspectives - as a capitalist Mrs Birlings duty may have been to uphold the class gap by refusing Eva help.

“ I wont believe it "

She makes a deliberate choice extending selective belief and is almost proud of her desicion despite its negative reprecusiions as is shows how she is incapable of adressing her own wrongdoing.

[enters briskly , self confidently, quite out of key]

She is performative in her expression of her class and lives in a different narattuev to that of oher charcters in the play.

It shows her lack of genuine social awareness ad she cant detect the tense atmeosphere she has just entered.

“I’m talking to the inspector now, if you dont mind”

This exemplifies her vbelief of her in her inhert superiority and how defensive she is when her reputablity is threatened.

[triumphantly]

She blantantly disregards the loss of an inncentb life and is only enthused that her prestine reputation wont be comprmised

“No Eric- please-I didnt know- I didnt understand”

The staccato and fragmented speech indicated by the use of hyphens depicts her inability to communicate.

The disrtrupted speech could also signify how she is trying to pause and be calculated in her response to still maintain her pristine reputation.

“I was the only one who did’nt give in to him”

This portrays her distored perception of pride as she boasts about a lack of moral sensitivity.

This also links to the cardinal sin of pride extended through out the play signifying her stagnant character development.

“ I don’t suppose for a moment that we can understand why the girl commited suicide. Girls of that class-”

The term ‘girl’ conveys notations of innocence and vulnerably, shedding light on Mrs Birlings understanding of the innocence inherit in individuals like Eva, while simultaneously showcasing her willingness to exploit them and rationalise it for her capitalist advancement. The repetition of this term showcases how this exploitative and prejudicial treatment of the lower social classes individuals repeatedly commences within society, with figures such as Mrs Birling shielded from the consequences by their elevated status.

The demonstrative adjective ‘that’ is a way she groups together the lower classes to dismiss them as an aggregate, inferior homogeneous group that all behave in the same way. This emphasises the distinctions in their social classes and how Mrs Birling is governed by the arrogance of her social class- she cant even bring herself to specify Eva’s social class considering it so beneath her.