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An Inspector Calls -
Character Analysis -
Mr Birling
- Arthur Birling is a man with some
reputation in the town. He is the owner
of Birling and Co., a factory business
which employs several girls to work on
(presumably sewing) machines. He
believes that his worker's pay is
reasonable and states that he pays the
normal wage for his industry, oblivious to
the fact that his actions will have
consequences.
- Birling is a Magistrate and he was Lord Mayor
of Brumley two years ago. Arthur is the
husband of Sybil Birling (Mrs Birling) and father
of Sheila and Eric Birling. J. B. Priestley
describes him as a "heavy-looking man" in his
mid-fifties, with easy manners but "rather
provincial in his speech."He describes himself as
a "hard-headed practical man of business," and
he is firmly capitalist, and right-wing in his
political views.
- Birling is a Magistrate and he was Lord Mayor of
Brumley two years ago. Arthur is the husband of
Sybil Birling (Mrs Birling) and father of Sheila and Eric
Birling. J. B. Priestley describes him as a
"heavy-looking man" in his mid-fifties, with easy
manners but "rather provincial in his speech."He
describes himself as a "hard-headed practical man
of business," and he is firmly capitalist, and right-wing
in his political views.
- Birling is a Magistrate and he was Lord Mayor of
Brumley two years ago. Arthur is the husband of
Sybil Birling (Mrs Birling) and father of Sheila and Eric
Birling. J. B. Priestley describes him as a
"heavy-looking man" in his mid-fifties, with easy
manners but "rather provincial in his speech."He
describes himself as a "hard-headed practical man
of business," and he is firmly capitalist, and right-wing
in his political views.
- Birling is a Magistrate and he was Lord Mayor
of Brumley two years ago. Arthur is the
husband of Sybil Birling (Mrs Birling) and father
of Sheila and Eric Birling. J. B. Priestley
describes him as a "heavy-looking man" in his
mid-fifties, with easy manners but "rather
provincial in his speech."He describes himself as
a "hard-headed practical man of business," and
he is firmly capitalist, and right-wing in his
political views.
- Priestley's message
(Intended effect on the
audience)
- Being co-founder of a
Socialist Party, Priestley felt
strongly about his political
views in favour of socialism
and these views are
displayed prominently
throughout An Inspector Calls.
- Priestly used the character
of Mr Birling to represent how
the upper class frowned upon
people below them in society.
- Priestley was concerned about the consequences of social inequality in Britain, and
the disparity caused by wealth and class divide. He believed that what resulted from
this were the very characteristics shown in Mr Birling (selfishness, inability to admit
responsibility for his part in Eva's death, exploitative tendencies, power lust etc.)
Priestley wanted to encourage his audience to dislike Mr Birling and to see him as a
fool – by rejecting the attitudes held by Mr Birling, Priestley’s audience could lead a
better life.
- Throughout the play, Priestley makes it clear
that there is a consequence for every action.
Through Mr Birling's thoughtless actions of firing
Eva Smith, his inability to admit his partial
responsibility in Eva’s death, and Birling wanting
to cover up for Eric stealing money, Priestley
portrayed the evil side of money and
capitalism, as well as his dislike for capitalism
due to the lack of care in society for the poor.
- Being co-founder of a
Socialist Party, Priestley felt
strongly about his political
views in favour of socialism
and these views are
displayed prominently
throughout An Inspector Calls.
- Mr Birling's Character
Development/Changes
- Mr Birling has not changed by the
end of the play – he refuses to
learn/take on board the Inspector’s
lesson. As a result, the play ends
with another phone call and the
announcement of a second visit –
perhaps from a ‘real’ Inspector.
Priestley may be warning his
audience of the dangers of not
learning the lesson (of social
responsibility) themselves.
- Mr Birling has not changed by the
end of the play – he refuses to
learn/take on board the Inspector’s
lesson. As a result, the play ends
with another phone call and the
announcement of a second visit –
perhaps from a ‘real’ Inspector.
Priestley may be warning his
audience of the dangers of not
learning the lesson (of social
responsibility) themselves.
- Mr Birling's Key Quotes Bank
- Act 1
- ‘Arthur Birling is a heavy looking, rather portentous man’
- Showing off to Gerald Croft ‘Giving us the port Edna?’
- Showing off to Gerald Croft 'You ought to like this
port, Gerald. As a matter of fact, Finchley told me
it's the same port your father gets from him.'
- Capitalism, Selfish ‘Now you have
brought us together, and perhaps we
may look forward to a time when
Crofts and Birlings are no longer
competing but are working together –
for lower costs and higher prices. ’
- 'Sheila's a lucky girl - and I
think you're a pretty
fortunate young man too,
Gerald'
- 'Are you listening, Sheila? This
concerns you too. And after
all I don’t often make
speeches at you-'
- Naive, Capitalism
‘Fiddlesticks! The
Germans don’t
want war.
Nobody wants
war.’
- Dismissive 'I'm
talking as a
hard-headed,
practical man of
business. And I
say there isn't a
chance of war.'
- Dramatic Irony ‘The titanic-
she sails next
week’-‘Unsinkable, absolutely
unsinkable’
- ‘Let’s say, in 1940- you might be having a little
party like this - your sons and daughters might
be getting engaged.’
- Stubborn, Capitalism 'man
has to mind his own
business and look after
himself.'
- Arrogance, Showing off
'There's a fair chance that I
might find my way into the
next Honours List.' Just a
knighthood, of course'-'But it’s
a bit too early for that. So
don’t say anything.'
- ‘So as long as we
behave ourselves
don’t get into the
police court or
start a scandal
-eh?’
- ‘Clothes mean something quite
different to a woman. Not just
something to wear and not only
something to make 'em look prettier,
but a sort of sign or token of their
self respect.’
- Intimidation 'I was an
alderman for years – and
Lord Mayor two years ago
– and I’m still on the Bench
– so I know the Brumley
officers pretty well'
- Power Imbalance
'She was one of my
employees and then
I discharged her.'
- Remorseless ‘It has
nothing whatever to do
with this wretched girls
suicide. Eh, Inspector?’
- ‘I can't accept any
responsibility. If we
were all responsible
for everything that
happened to
everybody we’d had
anything to do with,
it would be very
awkward'
- Looks
down on
the
Inspector
'I don't
like your
tone'
- Conflict ‘[to Eric] Look – you just keep
out of this. You hadn't even started in
the works when this happened.’
- 'We were paying the usual
rates and if they didn't like
those rates, they could go
and work somewhere else.
It's a free country, I told
them.'
- Capitalist View 'Well, it’s my
duty to keep labour costs
down, and if I’d agreed to
this demand for a new rate
we’d have added about
twelve per cent to our
labour costs.'
- Capitalist View
“If you don’t
come down hard
on these people
they’d soon be
asking for the
earth.”
- (Context)
'I didn’t
suppose
you did.'
- Patronising ‘Nothing to do with you,
Sheila. Run along’
- *Capitalist view refers to
authorial intention. Priestly
wished to portray it as evil.*
- Act 2
- Patronising '(to Mrs
Birling) What's the
matter with that
child?'
- 'And I do not
propose to give
you much more
rope’
- ‘A
young
unmarried
girl
is
being
dragged
into
this-'
- '(angrily, to
Inspector)
Look here,
I’m not
going to
have this,
Inspector.
You’ll
apologise
at once.'
- ‘I’m a public man’
- ‘Is there any reason
why my wife should
answer questions
from you. Inspector?’
- Patronising '(to Mrs
Birling) What's the
matter with that
child?'
- Act 1
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