Inspector Calls

Question 1

Sheila: “Oh - how horrible”

Answer 1

Sheila is the only character expresses genuine emotion towards the death of Eva Smith.

Question 2

Sheila: “You don’t seem to have learnt anything”

Answer 2

Sheila acknowledges the fact that the inspectors arrival was all a moral teaching to teach the Birling family to learn how to truly treat and care for people. Priestly does this to portray the older generation as stubborn and opposed to changing their opinion on taking responsibility.

Question 3

Sheila: “Pretty?”

Answer 3

Sheila asking this question shows that her grief was greater due to Eva being pretty which emphasises the warped view that she had on life prior to the inspector arriving and impacting her views. She had the view that someone’s beauty defined the value of their life - this view of course changes after she embraces more socialist views that all should have an equal value of their life. It also shows that prior to the inspectors arrival, all she cared about was beauty which is proved when she says “now I really feel engaged” showing she only cares about the materialistic side of life rather than appreciating the people around her.

Question 4

Sheila: “But these girls aren’t cheap labour - they’re people”

Answer 4

Sheila is standing up for those will not be heard by the Birling family due to them thinking they’re superior to the working class. Sheila is also an upper class girl sticking up for lower class girls which wouldn’t be expected and normal in the Edwardian society - this is due to the fact the younger generation is changing and supporting others which goes against what the older generation thinks, this could be becuase of socialism being on the rise.

Question 5

Inspector: “We often do make an impact on the young”

Answer 5

This refers to Sheila and how she has been impacted by the inspector unlike her parents - this is due to the generation gap and how close minded the older generation are compared to the older generation.

Question 6

Sheila: “Yes, go on mummy” & “Mother, I couldn’t possibly go”

Answer 6

Shows and evidences that Sheila has changed and matured since the arrival of the inspector, this is because he has taught her the socialist views and opened her up to more than just naive and capitalist views.

Question 7

Sheila: “I felt rotten about it at the time”

Answer 7

“Rotten” is informal - lack of maturity in her vocabulary
Shows immediate remorse for how she treated Eva, accepts responsibility that was she did was wrong
Showing that formal vocabulary doesn’t make you able to accept responsibility but rather your maturity and acceptance of wrongdoing

Question 8

Sheila: “childish - trying not to face the facts”

Answer 8

Said to her parents - she’s standing up for herself and the death of Eva
She sees what they did was wrong
Irony - refers to her parents as childish where Mrs Birling treats her like a child throughout the play

Question 9

Sheila: “Now I really feel engaged”

Answer 9

Sheila is obsessed with materialistic goods and requires a ring or something physical to confirm the engagement
Love doesn’t mean expressions of love but physical gifts
Ring could symbolise a visual marker of ownership from Gerald - submitting herself to societal expectations on women at the beginning

Question 10

The Inspector: “We are members of one body”

Answer 10

We should all work together as body parts do - socialism
Could represent that the Inspector is speaking on Gods behalf as these words are used in the Holy communion - God sides with socialism and working together

Question 11

The Inspector: “Yes, but you can’t. It’s too late. She’s dead.”

Answer 11

Short sentences
Terse triplet of expressions
Conveys an impactful message of the need for immediate change that should be done now
It’s also very blunt and abrupt - reflecting the way they Birlingd treated Eva very bluntly and arrogantly

Question 12

The Inspector: “There are millions and millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths still left with us […] intertwined with us.”

Answer 12

Using a very basic, working class surname to exaggerate and truly represent how many people there are like Eva smith
There are so many people like this who have such a hard life that it makes the Birlings problems (like Sheila being insecure that Eva was laughing at her) look so minuscule
Ridicules the Birlings
“Intertwined” - we are all one, we are one community which is something the Birlings don’t understand

Question 13

The Inspector: “Their chance of happiness all intertwined with our lives”

Answer 13

As much as the Birlings want to pretend that they’re superior to the working class, we all live in the same world and live among each other
“Intertwined” is unitive and represents a community - shows the need for socialism and social responsibility

Question 14

The Inspector: “She lies with a burnt out inside on a slab.”

Answer 14

Harsh imagery and language
Even after her death and having her insides burnt out, she’s on a slab - her life was never comfortable and nice from begging to the end of her life

Question 15

Mr Birling: “Unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable”

Answer 15

Dramatic irony - the audience knows the titanic sank
Birlings predictions are incorrect - to undermine our faith in opinions on society

Question 16

Birling: “some of these cranks […] you’d think everybody has to look after everybody else.”

Answer 16

Critiquing the idea that we should look after eachother
“Cranks” - thinks those who believe this are weird
Shows Birlings attitudes - judgmental against socialism
Laughing at these ideas - ironic as audience will be believing this

Question 17

Birling: “if you don’t come down sharply on these people, they’d soon be asking for the earth.”

Answer 17

“These people” - doesn’t want to say his worker feels superior to them
Groups all of his workers together
Says this after he dismissed her - lack of morality and empathy

Question 18

Mrs Birling: “I don’t suppose we can understand why the girl committed suicide. Girls of that class-“

Answer 18

Shows Mrs Birling is prejudice
She concludes - without knowing Eva - that her suicide is due to her class
Doesn’t understand the concept of taking responsibility and seeing that at the end of the day, we all share the same blood and should be equal
She’s making it seem as though it’s expected that Eva killed herself because of her class - hoping she would do the same (she can’t possibly not be upper class or it would feel like the world has ended)
“That class” - very judgy and harsh

Question 19

Gerald: “I hate those hard eyed, dough faced women. But then I noticed a girl […] she was very pretty.”

Answer 19

Shows the exploitation of women
He went to a place with prostitutes
Saves Eva from being harassed by another upper class person - shows that the upper class are hypocritical and judge girls but then exploit them
Gerald later on exploits Eva and uses her playing with her emotions - just like in this he is hateful and then compliments Eva almost showing that his moods change quick, further emphasising the quick change between denouncing the lower class then using them when it’s suitable

Question 20

Gerald: “I didn’t install her so that I could make love to her.” & “Daisy knew it was coming to an end”

Answer 20

Lying as she becomes his mistress and he keeps this a secret
Putting words into daisies mouth - lower class don’t have a voice and are controlled by upper class
Justifies his actions - he knows he used daisy for sex but denies it as she’s lower class (hypocritical)
“Install” is like an object - objectifies the lower class as if they’re not human

Question 21

Mrs Birling: “Simply a piece of gross impertinence” & “prejudiced me against her case”

Answer 21

Mrs Birling refused as Eva introduced herself as Mrs Birling
She thought Eva wasn’t showing respect to Mrs Birling - being impertinent
Could show that Mrs Birling is ashamed to possibly share the same surname as Eva as she’s lower class
She also accepts the fact and responsibility that she was prejudice BUT can’t accept the responsibility of her actions leading to Eva’s death
She’s very judgy depending on class

Question 22

Mrs Birling: “He should be made an example of. If the girls death is due to anybody, it’s due to him.”

Answer 22

Mrs Birling is blaming and putting responsibility on the father of the child as she assumes that he is from the working class
Once again not accepting responsibility
Ironic as her son is the father - she wouldn’t put him on show as an example - shows her prejudice and how hypocritical the upper class are - they can get away with anything

Question 23

Mr Birling: “there’s every excuse for what both your mother and I did”

Answer 23

Don’t accept responsibility
He is accepting they did something wrong BUT still doesn’t see how that has lead to the death of Eva and many like her
Shows the upper class is ignorant and stupid

Question 24

Gerald: “there’s no proof it was really the same girl.”

Answer 24

Making up stupid excuses just so that he doesn’t accept responsibility
He’s one of the young people in the play who doesn’t turn somewhat capitalist - shows that because he is upper class this has played a part on his view as Sheila is more middle class so is less ignorant

Question 25

Mr Birling: “Clothes mean something quite different to a woman […] a sort of sign or token of their self respect.”

Answer 25

Shows what the expectation of women is upheld by men
A women’s beauty on the inside doesn’t show their self respect but what they wear does - what’s on the outside
He thinks clothes should be used to show what type of woman a woman is

Question 26

Gerald: “She was young and pretty and kindhearted.”

Answer 26

Kindhearted comes after young and pretty - shows what’s more important for men
“Pretty” is a nonchalant, careless compliment and really isn’t an appreciation of beauty (not beautiful)
“Young” being first - naivety, willingness - easy to exploit and use as she’s unknowing of the world