The Inspector Role Is One of a Moral Messenger
The following sample essay is about the role of the inspector in the play. To read the introduction, body, and conclusion of the essay, scroll down.
The Inspectors whole approach to the investigation is totally unorthodox; he investigates each character one at a time and more or less in chronological order of what happened to the girl, whereas a normal investigation would work backwards from the events that took place immediately before the girl’s suicide. The way he treats the other characters is interesting as well, he isn’t afraid to contradict or be rude to them even though they are his social superiors.
He asks blunt and directly to the point questions and doesn’t hesitate to interrupt or challenge what the Birlings and Gerald are saying,
Gerald: ‘I don’t see why-‘ Inspector: (cutting in massively) ‘You herd what I said before, Mr Croft. One line of inquiry at a time. Otherwise we’ll all be talking at once and wont know where we are.
If you’ve anything to tell me, you’ll have the opportunity of doing it soon.’ Even though the Inspector says that he is new to Brumley, he appears to know a lot about the other characters and the area and a lot more than he could simply have gained from Eva Smiths’ diary.
The Inspector creates a lot of suspense by keeping certain characters waiting and not explaining to them that he intends to interview each of them separately, i.e. Gerald and Eric who are excluded from seeing the photograph, and suggesting that there might be reasons why they should not see the photograph and stopping Eric from going to bed as Inspector: ‘It might be less trouble.
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If you turn in, you might have to turn out again soon’ He then doesn’t go on to explain why he might want to talk to Eric later but carries on with his investigation creating tension and curiosity. Later in the beginning of Act 2. though Mr Birling becomes angry that the Inspector would not let Eric go to bed and asks him to bring Eric’s interview forward and the Inspector tells him that Eric must wait his turn. Any normal investigation might have brought Eric’s interview forward to save time in the long run and to let the child go to bed, but not the Inspector.
The Inspector even requests that Gerald stay as he is marrying Sheila yet does not explain why, this increases tension and makes the audience think that Sheila has done something that Gerald should know about. Inspector: ‘I see. Mr Croft is going to marry Miss Sheila Birling?’ Gerald: (smiling) ‘I hope so.’ Inspector: (gravely) ‘Then I’d prefer you to stay’ Gerald: (surprised) ‘oh- all right.’ In the beginning when the Inspector first arrives he confirms that Mr Birling is not the only person he has come to interview prompts the other characters to become worried and anxious.
Birling: ‘You didn’t just come here to see me, then?’ Inspector: ‘No.’ ‘The other four exchange bewildered and perturbed glances.’ At the end of Act 2. Eric leaves the house with out the Inspectors permission and the inspector insists that Eric is needed and if he’s not back soon he’ll ‘have to go and find him’ the stage directions tell us that at this, ‘Birling and Mrs Birling exchange bewildered and rather frightened glances’. By not explaining why Eric is so badly needed there he increases the tension and creates and worried atmosphere between the other characters.
The Inspectors role in this play is one of a moral messenger. He is Priestley’s mouth piece to speak to the audience and convince them to change for the better and not revert to the old ways. Although Eric is the only character to commit an actually criminal offence it is the other characters, who it could be said have committed the 7 deadly sins (Mrs Birling, pride, Mr Birling, greed, Sheila, envy) who the Inspector is more interested in.
He focuses on moral wrongs rather than legally wrong crimes and refers to responsibility and guilt sharing rather than law-breaking and prosecution. He doesn’t even take notes or make an arrangement to see Eric again, who has committed a crime. However each character is punished in an appropriate way. Birling fears for his family’s reputation at the inquest; Sheila feels shame for her selfishness; Gerald has his affair revealed in front of Sheila; Mrs Birling has her illusions about her children and the respectability of her family shattered by Eric and Eric is revealed before his short sighted parents as a spoilt and inadequate young man. In each case the punishment is a consequence of their own behaviour it is not the Inspector himself that brigs about their punishment. The Inspectors main concern is to hear them confess and except at least some of the responsibility for the girl’s death.
Inspector: (taking charge, masterfully) ‘Stop! And be quiet for a moment and listen to me. I don’t need to know anymore. Neither do you. This girl killed herself- and died a horrible death. But each of you helped to kill her. Remember that. Never forget it. (he looks from one to the other of them carefully). But then I don’t think you ever will. Remember what you did, Mrs Birling. You turned her away when she most needed your help. You refused her even the pitiable little bit of organized charity you had in your power to grant her.
Inspector: ‘Just used for the end of a stupid drunken evening, as if she was an animal, a thing, not a person. No, you won’t forget. (He looks at Sheila) ‘You helped-but didn’t start it. (Rather savagely to Birling)You started it. She wanted twenty-five shillings a week instead of twenty-two and sixpence. You made her pay a heavy price for that. And she’ll make you pay an even heavier price still.’ ‘No, I don’t think any of you will forget.
Nor that young man Croft, though he at least had some affection for her and made her happy for a time. Well Eva Smiths gone. You cant do her anymore harm. And you can’t do her any good now either. You cant even say ‘I’m sorry Eva Smith’. ‘But just remember this. One Eva Smiths has gone- but there are millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John Smiths still left with us, with their lives, their hopes and fears, their suffering and chance of happiness, all intertwined with our lives, and what we think and say and do.’
After delivering his moral message and trying to get the characters to change , the Inspector leaves, with no mention of returning or of bringing any criminal charges against Eric who has broken the law. But in fact if it is the Inspectors job to make the characters reframe from their selfish and morally wrong views then he has failed in this job as maybe only two of the characters, Sheila and Eric, who begin to change their attitudes, were as Mr & Mrs Birling and Gerald quickly lapse back into their old attitudes and ways. The Inspector abrupt departure, like his sudden arrival leaves the characters feeling shocked and stunned at what has just happened and in a n almost dream like state, wondering if it was real. This is probably why some (not all) of the characters are so quick to jump at the idea that it was all a trick and the Inspector was not an inspector.
Through-out the play the Inspector adds to the tension and atmosphere. His arrival just as Mr Birling has made his (morally wrong) opinions known; this right from the start of the play supplies the audience with a dramatic irony that focuses their interests on the play and the characters. Even the atmosphere changes when the Inspector arrives, the light-hearted, happy diner party atmosphere disappears and is replaced with a harsh, truthful atmosphere. His looks and manner towards the other characters, creates tension as he isn’t afraid to contradict or be rude to them even though they are his social superiors.
He is or need not be a small man but however creates an impression of massiveness and of purposefulness; this comes across in the whole atmosphere he creates. He uses many tactics such as the photograph and graphically detailed descriptions to shock both the audiences and the characters. By shocking the audience he can best get across his moral warning and by shocking the other characters he can best get them to open up to him and admit their wrongs. The Inspectors overall approach to the investigation is totally irregular, which creates dramatic interest and in some points emotional conflicts which create tension and keep the audiences attention. But even after he has left, he is still creating interest and tension as the characters try to decide whether or not he was a real inspector and in fact whether or not he was actually real.
A further way in which Priestley helps us to understand the Inspector’s role in the play is through the Inspector’s own speech. When he first arrives at the Birlings house and throughout the rest of the play, Inspector Goole keeps referring to and describing Eva Smith’s death in a distasteful manner, “swallowed a lot of strong disinfectant,” “she was in great agony” “her position now is that she lies with a burnt-out inside on a slab.” I think this is to create an atmosphere of guilt for the Birlings in the hope that they might seriously consider what part they could have played in this tragedy. rately steps over the normal boundaries that would appear in a criminal inquiry.
The Inspector has the ingenious ability to act as a catalyst in the play extracting information from people by only saying a few words. “Not as Eva Smith?” “As what then?” ” She talked about herself?” “Did she drink much?” ” What happened?” The Inspector judges them but he offers neither punishment nor forgiveness to them. The implication is they must judge themselves. “He’s giving us the rope – so that we’ll hang ourselves.” Sheila says. The Inspector shows the Birlings for whom they really are, he reveals them to each other. ” “Eric? Oh I’m afraid he may have had rather too much to drink tonight. We have a little celebration here -” “Isn’t he used too drinking?” “No off course not. He’s only a boy.”
“We really must stop these silly pretences. This isn’t the time to pretend that Eric isn’t used to the drink.” The Birlings are deeply affected by the Inspector’s investigation yet the younger generation are more affected than the older. ” You seemed to have made a great impression on the child Inspector.” Sheila and Eric realize where they have gone wrong and will be better people because of him. ” I know I’m to blame -and I’m desperately sorry” Yet Mr and Mrs Birling seem to think that the girl,s death had nothing to do with them. ”
There’s every excuse for what both your mother and I did-it turned out unfortunately, that’s all” As Sheila and Eric become more mature and face their responsibilities they begin to turn against their parents “That’s just what I feel, Eric and it’s what they (Mr and Mrs Birling) don’t seem to understand.” In the beginning of the play Sheila referred to Mrs Birling as “mummy” and towards the end, her language becomes more formal and she calls her “Mother” Mirroring the fact that she has matured as she accepts her responsibilities in the death of Eva Smith.
The Inspector is an eerie and supernatural character. He seems to be omniscient (all knowing.) He knows all about Eva Smith’s past life and about what the Birlings have done and never seems surprised by what he hears. “He knows of course he knows and I hate to think how much he knows that we don’t know yet.” Are you sure you don’t know” Priestly purposely does not use a question mark in this quote to show that the Inspector already knows the answer. The Inspector tries to account for his knowledge through items found in Eva Smiths room a diary and some letters. ” I had an idea it might be – from something the girl herself wrote” ” She kept a rough sort of diary. And she said there that she had to go away…She felt there’d never be anything as good again for her.”
The inspector’s method of speech is so contradictory to the hyperbole spoken so confidently by Mr. Birling that he feels threatened by the inspectors ability to undermine his authority, “Could I have a drink first,” “No,” “Yes,” “Alright go then.” J.B Priestley was well known for his ability to incorporate time in his plays. An Inspector Calls creates a real and believable sense of safety for the audience and collapses that gradually as the inspector develops. Throughout his life Priestley was interested in the theories of Jung and Ouspensky; this would tell us that he believed a policeman in our dreams usually signifies our conscience. The inspector has an aura of mystery that allows him to have a sharp penetrating quality gained by his inner knowledge. As the play develops the audience begin to feel that it is a slight coincidence the whole family being caught up in one girl.
At the end they find out that the inspector was a fake but what it showed was that their individual actions were wrong and their actions and attitudes hurt people. In the end, like at the start of the play priestly highlights the Birlings attitudes. He moves the play into a new direction because we now know that the whole play was about showing the Birlings that their actions hurt people and their attitudes are also wrong. Also the ending showed the audience what would happen if your actions were selfish and were just about yourself. I was a warning that if you acted like the birlings bad things would happen to other people. The inspector is a dramatic device The inspector interests the audience by being mysterious; he carries an air of authority about him.
The Inspector Role Is One of a Moral Messenger. (2017, Nov 08). Retrieved from https://paperap.com/paper-on-8296-birlings-attitudes/
