An Inspector Calls

Question 1

Mr Birling

“Unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable” - Age

Answer 1

• dramatic irony = unguided confidence, cuts authority with audience - foolish and unreliable
• repetition of adjective ‘unsinkable’ + imperative ‘absolutely’ = opinions are made into facts - unwillingness to explore other ideas, later exposed
• the metaphor of ‘Titanic’ = worshipped his ideology above all, but ultimately sank

Question 2

Mr Birling

“It’s my duty to keep labour costs down’ - Responsibility

Answer 2

• hypocrisy = prioritizing business over employees - sole contributors of success - capitalists deep obsession with monetary value - out of touch with societal norm
• phrase = neglecting being a parental figure - Eric expresses Mr Birling to not be ‘a father a chap could go to when he’s in trouble.’
• noun ‘duty’ - justify exploitation of workers - hide selfish pursuits - never challenged by anyone other than Priestley
• passion of the author = urging society to change their ways unless they want to live in ‘fire, blood and anguish’

Question 3

Mrs Birling

“As if a girl of that sort would ever refuse money” - Class + Responsibility

Answer 3

• phrase = condescending + dismissive tone - reduces Eva to a stereotype for the working class
• word ‘girl’ = child like figure - Mrs Birling fully asserts her power - Eva is a victim of severe oppression
• phrase ‘that sort’ = disparity between the two even though Eva possess more class and integrity - society shaped around social hierarchy
• humans not viewed through lens of morals and values

Question 4

Mrs Birling

“You seem to have made a great impression on this child, Inspector” - Age

Answer 4

• phrase = patronizing and condescending tone undermines Sheila’s maturity - irresponsible when feeling emotion towards Eva Smith
• older generation correlated age to wisdom = younger cannot overleap them - clear disparity between the two
• phrase ‘this child’ = unwillingness to reference her daughter’s name - diminishing Sheila as an inferior - lack of respect for younger generation despite them being the future

Question 5

Inspector Goole

“We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other.” - Social Responsibility

Answer 5

• metaphor ‘members of one body’ = society must function as a unit - everyone has a role to play, regardless of class or gender - similar to how a human relies on each part of their ‘body’ to survive
• collective pronouns ‘we’ + ‘each other’ = reinforces the belief of working together - audience warned that neglecting this order leads to a collapse in society
• foreshadowed when he mentions ‘fire, blood and anguish’

Question 6

Inspector Goole

“There are millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths”

Answer 6

• repetition of adjective ‘millions’ = amplifies the Inspector’s message - addressing the wider public, not just the Birling’s on his political views
• Eva’s story is not isolated = exploitation of poor is ever present
• generic names like ‘Eva’ and ‘John’ = normalise the situation - critiquing audience for neglecting events that occur around them on a day-to-day basis
• alternatively common names = suffering was brutal for men and woman - capitalist regulations entrapped all into a rigid and unforgiving system, attacks all regardless of gender or morals

Question 7

Sheila

“But these girls are cheap labour - they’re people” - Gender + Social Responsibility

Answer 7

• uses her emotions as a source of wisdom rather than the entrenched beliefs which are forced onto her by her parents
• phrase = humanizing the lower-class from a source of money to an equal - rejecting her father’s view
• coordinating conjunction ‘but’ = grown out of shell, willing to express herself even if it goes against her parents beliefs
• Eva + Sheila together is a metaphor for the dual oppression faced by women, being dismissed for economic frailty (represented by Eva), and their lack of power as a female (emphasised through Sheila), trapping women into a cycle of self-dependence and vulnerability
• Sheila’s transcends individual character development = symbol of hope and change = dismantle outdated ideologies, offering an alternative of a more realistic but compassionate future

Question 8

Sheila

“I’m not a child, don’t forget. I have the right to know.” - Age

Answer 8

• assertion of maturity = shift in character - challenges her parent’s entrenched beliefs - confronting harsh realities of life with an agenda to help victims of oppression
• ‘the right to know’ = eagerness to gain respect - capable of understanding complex issues - willing to do what it takes to seek vengeance for Eva
• increase in line length = grown into a force able to battle her parents - spearhead for the future, propelling a fragmented society into a community

Question 9

Eric

“Why shouldn’t they try for higher wages? We try for the highest possible prices.”

Answer 9

• question = emphasise with the working class - realising the clear disparity in the hierarchy
• audience surprised given limited speech before = turning point for redemption - questioned an elder - imprinting negative stance on parents ideology - quest to retaliate against it
• abrupt statement = capitalist’s hypocrisy as trying to seek profits whilst neglecting the sole contributors to said profit - thinking irrationally focusing on material objects

Question 10

Eric

“You’re not the kind of father a chap could go to when he’s in trouble - that’s why.”

Answer 10

• phrase ‘not that kind of father’ - fails to fulfil parental role, not trustworthy, strictly businessman prioritising wealth and status, familial bonds disregarded in Edwardian era
• informal noun ‘chap’ - outburst is universal message - highlight societal struggle of developing a connection
• mirrors authors experience - father upheld duty and discipline as a schoolmaster
• audience question if political diatribe is fuelled by past or needs of present - confusion to whether passion is derived from greed or heart

Question 11

Gerald

“I didn’t feel about her as she felt about me.”

Answer 11

• phrase = blunt and lacklustre demeanour - expressed in the verb ‘feel’, vagueness - unable to pinpoint an emotion he truly ‘felt’
• definitive ‘didn’t’ = confirming emotional detachment - unwilling to address sentiment towards her - societal shame
• dual denotation of verb ‘felt’ = Eva had emotions, but once again left to interpretation - downplay depth of Eva’s emotion - easier to justify his wrongdoings
• euphemistic tone = distance himself from the harm he caused - making it seem like an unfortunate but inevitable situation rather than an act of emotional exploitation

Question 12

Gerald

“I insist upon being one of the family now”

Answer 12

• verb ‘insist’ = force + determination - has a right to belong in the family - reflect upper class privilege as he assumes he is in the Birling inner circle - no question or hesitation
• connection of love overridden by passion to complete a business deal = using a time of emotion and family to capitalise on an opportunity to expand his business
• adverb ‘now’ = eagerness to join the family and comply with ideology - prove worth to Mr Birling who also sees this marriage as a profitable alliance
• ties into societal norm = marriage was often about social mobility and business alliances rather than love, controlled by a male figure
• stereotype is subverted by Sheila = has the power to call the engagement off Gerald is not untouchable as he believes