Mr (Arthur) Birling

Key: Stage directions Quotes

• Full of himself / arrogant - ‘rather portentous’

• Has an accent —> not born upper class - ‘provincial in speech’

• Capitalist and right wing - ‘It’s my duty to keep labour costs down’ , ‘community and all that nonsense’ , ‘self made man’ , ‘lower costs, higher prices’

• Patriarchal — undermines women

• Patronising to Sheila (she’s in her early twenties) - ‘run along’

• Sees a business opportunity of Sheila’s engagement - ‘hard headed businessman’

• Refuses to take responsibility - pay for strikes (‘I refused of course’), for Eva’s death

• Wrongly optimistic about future - dramatic irony - ‘unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable’ , ‘The Germans don’t want war’

• Starts the chain events

• Threatens the inspector, and tries to intimidate him (no affect) - ‘I must warn you’

• About to get knighted -’on the bench’

• Doesn’t learn from mistakes