An Inspector Calls - Complete Study Guide and Analysis
Background and Narrative Overview
Author and Context: Written by J.B. Priestley in . Although written at the end of World War II, the play is set in to critique the attitudes of the pre-war era.
Setting: The play takes place over the course of evening in the dining room of a suburban house in Brumley, an English manufacturing town.
Structure: The play is comprised of acts and is performed in real time, meaning there is no lapse in time or change in location between the acts.
Central Premise: The upper-middle-class Birling family is celebrating an engagement when they are visited by a mysterious figure, Inspector Goole. The Inspector investigates the suicide of a young woman named Eva Smith (also known as Daisy Renton), systematically revealing that every person in the room played a part in her downfall.
Character Profiles and Symbolic Representations
Arthur Birling:
Head of Birling and Company and patriarch of the family.
Symbolism: Represents the Capitalist businessman and the self-interested upper-middle class.
Sybil Birling:
Arthur’s wife and his social superior.
Symbolism: Represents the socially prominent, cold, and traditional upper-class wife.
Sheila Birling:
The Birlings’ daughter.
Symbolism: Represents the impressionable younger generation, the potential for social awareness, and the burgeoning feminist movement.
Eric Birling:
The Birlings’ son.
Symbolism: Represents the consequences of toxic masculine culture and the capacity of the younger generation to learn social responsibility.
Gerald Croft:
Son of Sir and Lady Croft of Crofts Limited; he is socially superior to the Birlings.
Symbolism: Represents inherited privilege, the dominance of the upper classes, and the patriarchy.
Inspector Goole:
A police inspector (authenticity later questioned).
Symbolism: Represents the ideals of Socialism, the absolute necessity of social responsibility, and a perfect, all-knowing justice system.
Eva Smith / Daisy Renton:
A young lower-class girl who never appears on stage.
Symbolism: Represents the exploited, neglected, and dehumanized lower classes.
Sequential Plot Summary: Acts 1 to 3
Act 1:
The Birlings and Gerald Croft hold a dinner to celebrate Sheila and Gerald’s engagement. Mr. Birling leads the family in toasts regarding progress and stability.
Inspector Goole arrives. He reports that a young woman, Eva Smith, died at the Infirmary after drinking disinfectant.
Mr. Birling admits to firing Eva years ago after she led a strike at his factory for higher wages.
Sheila admits that Eva later found a job at Milward’s (an upmarket store) but was fired because Sheila, motivated by jealousy, complained about her.
The Inspector reveals Eva changed her name to Daisy Renton. Gerald’s reaction gives away his familiarity with the name.
When the Inspector leaves the room, Sheila confronts Gerald about having an affair; he initially denies it but then confesses privately.
Act 2:
Gerald admits to the affair publicly. He had rescued Daisy from a bar and housed her in rooms for several months, eventually ending the relationship. Sheila returns their engagement ring.
The Inspector questions Mrs. Birling about her role at the Brumley Women’s Charity Organisation. She used her influence to deny help to a pregnant woman who had identified herself as ‘Mrs. Birling.’
The woman told the committee the father was a ‘youngster’ and a heavy drinker. Mrs. Birling insists the father is entirely responsible and should be made an example of.
The family realizes the father in question is Eric.
Act 3:
Eric returns and confesses to getting Eva pregnant after acting aggressively toward her while drunk. He stole money from his father’s company to support her; she refused the money once she learned it was stolen.
The Inspector delivers a final warning: society is ‘one body’ and if people do not learn responsibility, they will be taught in ‘fire and blood and anguish.’ He leaves.
The family discovers the Inspector might not have been a real officer and no girl died at the Infirmary that night. The elders (Arthur and Sybil) and Gerald feel relieved and dismiss their guilt.
The phone rings: a girl has just died from drinking disinfectant, and a police inspector is on his way for questioning.
Thematic Analysis: Act 1 - Class, Capitalist Ideology, and Dramatic Irony
Setting and Stage Directions:
Initial lighting is ‘pink and intimate,’ indicating the family sees the world through rose-tinted glasses, sheltered from the harsh realities of the poor.
Luxuries described include ‘good solid furniture,’ ‘champagne glasses,’ ‘port,’ and ‘evening dress.’ These items establish the Birlings as prosperous and potentially arrogant.
Mr. Birling’s Speeches and Dramatic Irony:
On War: He dismisses war scares as ‘silly,’ while the audience knows World War I began in and World War II had just ended.
On the Titanic: He calls it ‘unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable,’ citing its weight of tons. The audience knows it sank on its maiden voyage.
On Progress: He predicts by , the world will have forgotten ‘Capital versus Labour agitations.’
Symbolism of the Titanic: Priestley uses the ship to represent the Capitalist system—strong and luxurious, yet doomed to sink.
Capitalist vs. Socialist Philosophy:
Mr. Birling’s lecture: ‘A man has to make his own way - has to look after himself - and his family, too.’
He mocks Socialist thinkers like Bernard Shaw and H.G. Wells as ‘cranks.’
He uses the simile ‘like bees in a hive’ to describe community, intending it to be an insult suggesting Socialism is primitive and demeaning.
Thematic Analysis: Act 1 - The Arrival of Inspector Goole and Social Responsibility
The Entrance:
The Inspector is signaled by a ‘sharp ring of a front door bell.’
Lighting changes to be ‘brighter and harder,’ suggesting a shift to an interrogation atmosphere where the truth will be exposed.
Physical appearance: He creates an impression of ‘massiveness, solidity and purposefulness.’
The Struggle for Power:
Mr. Birling attempts to intimidate Goole by citing his social standing: ‘I was an alderman for years - and Lord Mayor two years ago - and I’m still on the Bench.’
The Inspector ignores these status markers, focusing instead on the ‘chain of events’ that led to suicide.
Graphic Descriptions vs. Upper-Class Euphemisms:
The Inspector describes Eva’s death bluntly: ‘Burnt her inside out, of course.’
This contrasts with the Birlings’ use of ‘horrid business’ or ‘go on the streets,’ which Priestley uses to show how the rich distance themselves from the suffering they cause.
The Chain of Events:
The Inspector explains: ‘Because what happened to her then may have determined what happened to her afterwards… A chain of events.’
Priestley argues that social responsibility is an inescapable duty of living in a society.
Thematic Analysis: Act 2 - Gender Relations, Guilt, and the Corruption of Charity
The Concept of Hysteria:
Gerald tries to dismiss Sheila’s presence by implying she is getting ‘hysterical.’ Historically, this term was used by men to minimize female voices.
Sheila exposes this, translating Gerald’s euphemisms into blunt language to challenge his control.
Sharing Guilt:
The Inspector notes: ‘If there’s nothing else, we’ll have to share our guilt.’ This mirrors Priestley’s Socialist message that just as goods and wealth should be shared, so should the burden of social consequences.
Sybil Birling’s Entrance:
She enters ‘briskly and self-confidently, quite out of key with the little scene.’ This symbolizes the deep class divide; she remains oblivious to the suffering discussed until she is personally implicated.
The Wall Metaphor:
Sheila warns her mother: ‘You mustn’t try to build up a kind of wall between us and that girl.’ The ‘wall’ represents the rigid class hierarchy that prevents the wealthy from seeing the poor as human.
Corruption of Institutional Help:
Mrs. Birling admits she used her ‘influence’ to have the request for aid refused.
Priestley critiques the welfare systems of the early th century, suggesting they were corrupt because they allowed prejudiced individuals to decide who was ‘deserving’ of help.
Thematic Analysis: Act 2 - Gerald Croft and the Exploitation of the Vulnerable
Deceit of the Upper Class:
Gerald is the first to deliberately lie about knowing Daisy Renton, whereas the Birlings initially didn’t recognize her because they viewed her as insignificant.
The Objectification of Eva:
Gerald describes her using adjectives like ‘young and fresh and charming.’
‘Fresh’ likely alludes to her virginity, suggesting Gerald viewed her as a conquest.
He contrasts her with ‘hard-eyed dough-faced women,’ revealing a misogynistic and judgmental view of the lower-class women at the Palace music hall bar.
The Power Dynamics of Charity:
Gerald says it was ‘inevitable’ they became lovers. This portrays his male sex drive as uncontrollable and characterizes his help as predatory.
He enjoyed her being ‘intensely grateful’ because it made him the ‘most important person in her life.’
Priestley shows that even Gerald’s ‘kindness’ was an exploitation of her economic insecurity.
Thematic Analysis: Act 3 - Eric’s Confession and the Inspector’s Final Warning
Toxic Masculinity and Alcoholism:
Eric uses ‘squiffy’ as a euphemism for his severe intoxication.
He justifies his aggression by saying he was ‘in that state when a chap easily turns nasty.’
Like Gerald, he views Eva as a sexual object, describing her as ‘a good sport.’
Class Hypocrisy:
Eric notes his father’s ‘respectable friends’ frequent prostitutes (‘fat old tarts’), exposing the double standards of the Brumley elite.
The Inspector’s Final Monologue:
The Biological Metaphor: ‘We are members of one body.’
The Persuasive Trio: The Inspector uses two rules of three. The first outlines duties: ‘We don’t live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other.’
The Apocalyptic Warning: The second tricolon, ‘fire and blood and anguish,’ refers both to the World Wars and the physical pain of Eva’s death. It suggests a godly, inevitable judgment for a selfish society.
Thematic Analysis: Act 3 - Aftermath, the Generational Divide, and the Final Twist
Reputation vs. Morality:
Mr. Birling is only angry about the ‘theft’ of money because it is a legal crime that can cause a ‘public scandal.’
The elders are relieved once they think they can’t be prosecuted: ‘The whole story’s just a lot of moonshine. Nothing but an elaborate sell!’
The Generational Divide:
Older Generation (Arthur, Sybil, Gerald): They focus on protecting their status. Gerald tries to bridge the gap by proving the Inspector was a ‘fake.’
Younger Generation (Sheila, Eric): They accept the moral truth regardless of the Inspector’s legal credentials. Eric states: ‘The money’s not the important thing. It’s what happened to the girl.’
The Final Twist:
Just as Mr. Birling mocks the ‘famous younger generation who know it all,’ the telephone rings. The arrival of a ‘real’ police inspector suggests that the previous visit was a ghostly warning that the Birlings failed to heed.
The play concludes with everyone looking ‘guilty and dumbfounded,’ suggesting that while the first Inspector was a ‘hoax,’ the moral and social consequences are now very real.