mr birling quotes

‘Well, it’s my duty to keep labour costs down’

• Avoiding responsibility for Eva’s death, and instead directs his motives to money and his capitalistic avarice

• Said to inspector, who represents socialism

• Trying to assert dominance over inspector, arrogance of Birling

How does the Inspector’s quote ‘Quite so.’ represents Birling’s failure to intimidate the Inspector?

Previous tension due to disagreement over Eva’s unemployment due to Birling, yet does not intimidate.

• Being conservative and saying less

  • Saying what only must be said to avoid speculative comments - having power over the other person

‘Absolutely unsinkable’, ‘nobody wants war’, ‘a few German officers talking nonsense’

Set in 1912, published in 1945 - dramatic irony.

• Unknowingly contradicting himself, creates a sort of humour within the audience

• Makes the audience take him less seriously, pity him

• Foreshadowing the need for change after WW2, classic upper-class man shown to be stupid, and not always right

Desire for Crofts and Birlings to work together ‘for lower costs and higher prices’

Sees his daughter’s arrangement as an opportunity to make money - capitalist perspective

• Audience would find this quite weird (especially the modern audience) as it should be more of a happy occasion over a business arrangement

How does Mr Birling describe himself?

A wealthy capitalist, social status and money comes before anything else

‘a hard-headed, practical man of business’

→ Stereotypical of a man at the time, to not be sensitive and to be more practical than be led by emotions

Referring to clothes as ‘not just something to wear’ to a woman

• Sounds patronising, highlighting sexist attitudes during 1945 - patronising tone encourages audience to question these gender roles.