Theme Of The Inspector In An Inspector Calls By J. B. Priestley

J.B. Priestley's Use of Dramatic Devices to Convey His Concerns and Ideas in An Inspector Calls

Birlings' house. He is said to "need not be a big man but he creates

see that this is true by looking at his speech and at the manner in

Priestley’s Main Aim in An Inspector Calls JB Priestly wrote ‘An Inspector Calls’ to enhance the message that ‘we don’t live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other’. This is something Priestly felt strongly about and he succeeded in representing his views through the character of the Inspector in the play itself.

The play "An Inspector Calls" was written by J.B Priestley in 1945, when the British people were recovering from over six years of constant warfare and danger. As a result of two world wars, class distinctions were greatly reduced and women had achieved a much higher place in society. It was due to this and a great desire for social change that Labour's Clement Attlee won a landslide victory over the conservative Winston Churchill. He nationalized the gas steel and electrical industries, established the NHS and introduced the Welfare State. The play was set in Brumley, a fictional industrial city, in 1912.The playwright believed passionately in the left wing perspective and his message is overtly political. He uses techniques such as

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.

command at the end of Act I and the start of Act 2, and the end of Act

Throughout the study of JB Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’, it is easy to identify that there are many points in which this text both conforms and subverts to the conventions of the mystery genre. The author explores the archetypal mystery genre through firstly, the dead body and murder of Eva Smith, as well as the clues and motives that are revealed throughout the investigation. This is further followed by the series of intertwining characters, and the inquiry of their involvement in the death. However, this typical mystery text can be contradicted by the fact that this death was not a murder, but a suicide case, changing the expectations to instead of who killed her, but what were the lead up in events to result in Eva killing herself.

In Act One of 'An Inspector Calls' how does J.B. Priestley use dramatic devices to convey his concerns and ideas to the members of the audience, as well as interest and involve them in his play?

A number of other issues that were around at the time the play was set

This is more of a genuine remark of liking to Gerald than it is a

This was written in 1945 but was set in 1912. The play is written about a girl called Eva Smith who dies of a suicide consequently, The Birling family are questioned about her death. Mr Birling is shown as a capitalist because he only cares about himself and his business rather than his workers and his community around him. 'An Inspector Calls' is a play about morality which teaches the character and the people who are watching or reading the play, not only to care about themselves and how to treat others around them. J.B Priestley uses An Inspector Calls play to show how in 1912 the class system was very strict and always associated with the higher classes.

Priestley explores responsibility through the behaviour of the Birlings and Gerald towards Eva Smith. Strongly believing that 'a man has to mind his own business' in addition to dismissing community as 'nonsense', Birling explicitly states he 'can't accept any responsibility' for Eva's death. Through these words, Priestley conveys how selfish Mr Birling is due to his capitalist ideologies, which is shown when his philosophy of 'lower wages higher prices' leads to workers striking and Eva being fired; this triggers the 'chain of events' to her ultimate death. The chain of events is a metaphor to show that everybody within society is responsible for each other. His clear statement shows how is an obstinate believer in his

For instance, it is as if he is waiting for everyone to confess to his

this is his role in the events of the play. This, and the fact that