Comparison of The Attitudes Of Arthur Birling And Sheila Birling From An Inspector Calls by J.B. Priestley

"I behaved badly too. I know I did. I'm ashamed of it. But now you're

rest of the family had known about it, or heard about it in some way

How does JB Priestley present the older and younger generations differently throughout the play ‘An Inspector Calls’ (45 mins)

In the play “The inspector calls” written by Presley, the story is set in 1912, and describes a family in the middle class. Eric, the son of Mr. Birling is one of the key characters in the play

The Inspector is not afraid to question Mr Birling, despite being in his house and knowing he is a contender for a knighthood, about the way in which he runs his business. This isn’t normal police protocol and Priestley makes him do so to contradict Mr Birling’s earlier speeches. The Inspector also interrupts people with force, “you heard what I said before Mr Croft” is an example in which the Inspector stamps his authority on Gerald, using intimidation that one wouldn’t expect from a police officer. There is a dramatic example of this interruption which is the Inspector ringing the doorbell and making a noise which cuts Mr Birling off mid-speech.

What is Priestley's main aim in `An inspector calls`? How successfully does he achieve it.

In the play 'An Inspector Calls', many contrasts and paradox's are present and at the centre of them all is the character known as Inspector Goole. However, the inspector is not any ordinary inspector. I believe that the inspector is used as a device by Priestley to explore the wider themes of the play and to depict other characters true personalities. This essay will explore some of the techniques Priestley presents the inspector in An Inspector Calls.

J B Priestley's Main Ideas in An Inspector Calls In the play "The Inspector Calls" by J B Priestley many views are put forward for the audience to contemplate. Priestly uses the characters to portray the views and changes that were happening and going to in the time when the play was set 1912. Mr Birling & Mrs Birling are a classic example of the typical upper-class citizens.

“But take my word for it, you youngsters - and I've learnt in the good hard school of experience - that a man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his own - and - We hear the sharp ring of a front door bell.”This shows the power of Mr.Birlings and how he is a capitalist he always thinks that he is correct no matter what but when the moment when the inspector arrives it's now accidentally it arrives at that time to cut Mr.Birling's speech so he could stop with his capitalism, the inspector, the contrary of Mr.Birling decides to arrive at the perfect time to make tension in the family.

In the play An Inspector Calls, J.B. Priestley introduces Sheila as “a pretty girl in her early twenties, very pleased with life and rather excited.” The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Birling, this seemingly naÏve young woman quickly develops to take a whole new political stance to her family’s conservatism. Her contributions to conversations were minimal at the start of the play, and her behaviour came across as juvenile instantly. We see her attitude change throughout the play though, as when faced with a serious issue, she becomes much more clear-headed and mature. Admittedly, Sheila does run off - demonstrating her childlike responses - upon first hearing of Eva Smith’s suicide, however, when she returns she has the most righteous morals of

for each other. And I tell you that a time will soon come when if men

'An Inspector Calls' is a morality play - a form of play developed in the late middle ages in which a Christian moral lesson was brought out through the struggle between the forces of good and evil - set in 1912, and revolves around the questioning of a family by Inspector Goole about the suicide of a young woman (Eva Smith) that the family knew.The author, J.B. Priestley is trying to show us what some people's arrogance and selfishness can cause without them even noticing. Priestley was a socialist, therefore

However, Mr Birling's 'foil', the Inspector - who adopts the socialist ideology - firmly sets Mr Birling in place when Mr Birling tries to intimidate him with his status because 'public men ... have responsibilities as well as privileges'. Here, Priestley accuses Mr Birling of not only acting wrongfully but also failing to see his public position entails a duty of responsibility to the rest of society. Using the stage direction 'massively' to describe the Inspector interrupting

the end of the Second World War. The play is set in 1912, just before

Mr Birling in J.B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls Works Cited Missing Written in 1946,by J.B.Priestley, "An Inspector Calls" leads us into