inspector calls essay on mr birling

Exemplar Essay: Arthur Birling

How does Priestley present Arthur Birling?

Early in the play, Priestley presents Arthur Birling as selfish. During Birling’s speech about how he runs his factory, Priestley has Birling state ‘a man has to mind his own business, look after himself and his own’. In other words, Birling is saying that he must only use his money to help himself and his own family. Priestley’s use of the words ‘his’ and ‘himself’ reveal how selfish Arthur Birling is. It is clear that he is not interested in taking care of his workers, which is not what you’d expect from someone in Birling’s important position. Priestley uses Birling to criticise selfish upper class businessmen in 1912, who did not do enough to help the working class people who worked for them.

As the play continues, Priestley presents Arthur Birling as irresponsible . When the inspector questions Birling, the audience learns that he ‘refused of course’ when Eva Smith asked for a small pay rise. Priestley’s use of the word ‘refused’ demonstrates that Birling didn’t even carefully consider giving the pay rise, which reveals how irresponsible he is. As a factory owner, he should have been taking responsibility for his workers but, instead, he was only interested in looking after himself. He was too worried that a small pay rise would eat into his profits, so he didn’t allow it. When the inspector tries to make Birling feel guilty that his actions contributed to Eva Smith’s death, Birling says ‘I can’t accept any responsibility’. In other words, Birling is stating that he doesn’t believe his actions led to Eva Smith’s death. It is clear from Birling’s presentation that Priestley wishes to criticise upper class people for not taking enough responsibility for working class people. He wants to convince his 1945 audience to take more responsibility and build a fairer society for everyone.

Later in the play, Priestley presents Arthur Birling as unwilling to learn. Priestley has Arthur Birling say to the inspector ‘I’d give thousands’. It is clear from these words that Birling is trying to pay the inspector to keep quiet about his involvement with Eva Smith because he wants to protect his reputation. Even though Birling has realised that his actions helped kill Eva Smith, he is still only thinking about himself, which indicates that he hasn’t learned at all. Priestley contrasts Arthur with his daughter Sheila, who says ‘I started it’, which demonstrates that she takes full responsibility for her actions. Unlike Arthur, Sheila recognises that her actions helped trigger the chain of events that led to Eva Smith’s death. Priestley does this in order to show the difference between younger and older characters. Whereas the older characters are unwilling to learn, the younger characters learn and mature throughout the play. Perhaps he aimed to show his 1945 audience that it was up to the younger generation to change society because they were more willing to learn from their mistakes.

In ‘An Inspector Calls’ Priestley presents Arthur Birling as selfish and stubborn. Through Arthur Birling’s character, Priestley not only challenges the capitalist viewpoint that dominates society but also criticises the irresponsibility of the wealthy, older generation.

Before the inspector arrives, Priestley portrays Arthur Birling as a selfish and foolish man to challenge his capitalist view. Just before the inspector enters, Priestley has Arthur Birling confidently deliver a speech to Eric and Gerald about his views on society. In this speech, Priestley has Arthur confidently declare that the Titanic is ‘unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable’. Through the repetition of the words ‘unsinkable’, Priestley suggests that Arthur Birling is extremely confident in the new streamliner. By using dramatic irony, Priestley is able to immediately show the audience that Arthur Birling’s views are foolish and arrogant because they would have known that the Titanic did sink. Perhaps Priestley wanted to instantly convey that Birling is foolish and wrong so the audience learns not to trust his views from the beginning. After Birling wrongly states that the Titanic will not sink, he boasts that a ‘man has to mind his own business, look after himself and his own’. As an arrogant businessman, Arthur believes that a man should work hard to be successful in life and has no interest in helping his workers or the wider community. Priestley’s use of the pronouns ‘himself’ and ‘his’ indicates that Birling is only interested in himself and supports the capitalist view that a man should only care about himself. By structuring Birling’s speech in this order, Priestley has already revealed to the audience Birling is wrong so that they do not trust the capitalist views he proudly shares with Gerald and Eric. Additionally, Priestley has the inspector enter at this moment to demonstrate that Arthur’s views are foolish and deserve to be interrupted.

During the inspector’s questioning, Priestley presents Arthur Birling as irresponsible to criticise the behaviour of wealthy businessmen. Upon being questioned by the inspector, Arthur selfishly admits that he ‘refused’ to give his workers higher wages ‘of course’. Rather than choosing to be a responsible employer and giving his workers a rise that he could easily afford, Arthur Birling proudly refuses to give his workers any more money. Priestley uses the words ‘of course’ to demonstrate that Birling believes he was right in refusing his workers any more money and that it was the obvious decision to make. By suggesting that Birling thinks this was obvious, Priestley implies many wealthy businessmen adopted the selfish model of paying their workers a minimum amount of money so that they could benefit from a higher profit. Not only does Birling not fulfill his duty of looking after his workers, he also refuses to admit that he played a role in Eva Smith’s death. As the inspector continues to interrogate Birling, Arthur Birling admits that he ‘cannot take any responsibility’ for Eva’s death. Despite knowing that by firing Eva he could have contributed to her death, he chooses not to acknowledge this. Priestley’s use of the word ‘any’ could be used to imply that Birling is unwilling to take even a small part of responsibility in her death which shows he is unsympathetic of the difficulties faced by the working class. Not only does Priestley use Birling to criticise the wealthy businessmen who did not take responsibility for their workers, he also criticises the way in which the older generation were too stubborn to learn from their mistakes. Perhaps Priestley wanted to encourage his audience to see the consequences of selfish behaviour in order to encourage them to take more responsibility.

As the inspector prepares to leave, Priestley demonstrates that Arthur Birling is unwilling to learn in order to challenge the stubborn nature of the older generation. Just before the inspector leaves, Arthur Birling states that he would give ‘thousands’ in order to make the situation with Eva Smith disappear. Not only does Priestley reveal here that Birling is wealthy enough to pay his workers more money, he also insinuates that Birling only uses his money for selfish means. Rather than feeling guilty about his treatment of Eva Smith, Birling offers the ‘thousands’ in order to protect his own reputation, showing that he has learnt nothing from the inspector. Priestley makes clear to the audience that Birling only wants the situation with Eva Smith to go away so that he can maintain his reputation and still be in the running for a knighthood. A knighthood is awarded for achievements and commitments to your country so by having Arthur Birling in the running for a knighthood, Priestley could be suggesting that Arthur Birling is hypocritical. Birling is willing to accept his knighthood and judge other people based on their moral and responsible behaviour but is unwilling to accept his responsibility in Eva’s death. Priestley might also be criticising society for being hypocritical because selfish, wealthy men like Arthur Birling are celebrated while moral working class people are often ignored and mistreated. As people in England were beginning to notice, and campaign against, the fact that society was unfair, perhaps this would have given Priestley’s audience even more motivation to fight back against the inequality in society.

Overall, through the character of Arthur Birling, Priestley encourages his audience to move away from capitalism and towards socialism. Priestley’s portrayal of Arthur as irresponsible and selfish highlights the foolish and destructive nature of capitalism and puts forward the need for a more equal society where people are responsible for each other.

Mr Birling Character Analysis in An Inspector Calls Essay Example

In the play An Inspector Calls, Mr birling is the father and leader of the contemptuous Birling family. Priestly presents him as a dislikeable individual who is out of touch with society. Throughout the play, we see Arthur Birling being conveyed by the play write as a rather pompous and injudicious character. He shows no remorse or concern for his wrongful actions unless they affect his social status. Birling is also portrayed as a defiant capitalist and is extremely narrow minded.

Mr Birling being the first to meat Eva smith. He had released Eva from her first job at his factory, when she had requested a higher pay.

He only acknowledges faults in others and not in himself, this makes the audience dislike him and therefore all upper-class men. The quote ‘these people’ determine that Mr birling is generalising looking down at them despite being a hypocrite. When someone like Eric criticises him for this he replies ‘rather angrily’, which emphasises how Mr birling cannot accept his mistake. Perhaps he looks down on Eric, thinks he is wiser. As we usually see, the younger generation is more transformative whereas the older is too stubborn for their own good. Once again Mr birling has not changed and is still greedy, as seen earlier in the play. When Eric returns, he asks if he could have a drink before speaking to the inspector, Mr Birling says no however the inspector insists. This is followed by Birling looking interruptingly explosive. Responding to the inspector obviously very angrily, as the adverb ‘explosively’ may suggest. Yet the inspector is calm and serious, therefore birling is presented as not taken seriously, a fool. This humours the audience.

In the play we can see that Mr Birling patronises women, for example when Gerald elaborates on his relationship with Eva Smith, Mr birling expresses his reluctance to have Sheila in the same room. ‘I really must protest’, shows that Birling sees Sheila as someone to be protected from unpleasant topics such as unfaithfulness in a relationship. For context, in a patriarchal society, people feel that these topics are serious and should be managed by men. Perhaps Priestly is implying that birling sees Sheila as weak and therefore assumes she will become hysterical and would not understand.

In the rising action Mr birling is presented as obsessed with money. This is shown by Mr Birling refusing to give his women workers higher wages so that he could keep all his profits. The quote “they’d soon be asking for the earth”, which is a hyperbole that emphasises this hypothetical greed, shows that Mr Birling is trying to justify his actions by suggesting the workers will become greedy and ask for more. Priestly implies that upper class men see themselves as righteous and faultless members of society.

Mr Birling also has a need to be accepted by the upper class throughout the play. For example, he tries to impress Gerald Croft by saying, “There’s a fair chance that I may find myself into the next honours list”. This reveals his insecurity of feeling inadequate due to his lower social status, compared to the Crofts. Therefore, feels the need to compensate with boasts of a potential knighthood.

Furthermore, Birling tends to be overconfident in his opinions. His mistaken view of the “unsinkable Titanic” is an example of dramatic irony. This is ironic as the Titanic actually sank but only the audience is aware of this. Another example of the use of dramatic irony is when Birling says “The Germans don’t want war. “I say there isn’t a chance of war” This is also ironic as two years after this play was set, WWI began, followed by another. Priestly uses this device, in this sense to show how foolish and naive Birling is and therefore the audience will begin to question his other views. 

In conclusion, Mr Birling displays the same arrogance, priestly would expect to see from a capitalist. An Inspector Calls is really a morality play, as you could see Birling representing the deadly sins of greed and pride, both things that Priestly attacked capitalists for.

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An Inspector Calls: A* / L9 Example Intro + Paragraph

Here are some samples of an essay on An Inspector Calls, on the theme of responsibility. I wrote these myself as a teacher to show students an example of the standard required to get a high level at GCSE. I’ve also broken down the structure below so you can see what to put into each paragraph and how to organise all of your ideas – this is the most important thing for getting a high level in an essay !

Thanks for reading! If you’re stuck on An Inspector Calls and need more help, you can access our full course .

How does Priestley explore the theme of responsibility in the play?  

EXAMPLE INTRO: 

Responsibility is a very important theme in An Inspector Calls, as the Inspector reveals one by one that all the Birling family are partly responsible for Eva’s death. Eva represents the lower classes, and Priestley uses the tragic ending of her character to spread his message about social responsibility, a message which is delivered by the Inspector himself, who acts as a mouthpiece for Priestley’s own views on socialism and equality. Overall, the audience realizes that their actions affect other people’s lives, so they are responsible for looking after and caring for everyone in society. 

An Inspector Calls: Character Revision

EXAMPLE MIDDLE PARAGRAPH: 

• Point (one sentence that answers part of the question, your idea)
• Evidence (quotes/references that prove your point) 
• The technique (language features/dramatic features/structure features)
• Explanation (analysis – how/why the evidence proves the point)
• Development (context/alternative interpretations)
• Link (linking back to the argument/thesis in the Intro)

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Are you studying ‘An Inspector Calls’ at school or college? Don’t worry – we have a complete course that will help you get to grips with the text. It includes:

• 2 Hours of Video Lessons
• Extensive Support Material

JB Priestley embedded strong political messages in his play, and you need to understand those well to be able to write a high level essay or exam answer on the text. This course will enable you o revise the major characters and social messages in the play, and go deeper into the themes and context so you can get the most out of each essay

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• 14 August 2020 24 April 2023
• 10 Comments on Mr Birling, a character analysis.

Mr Birling, A Character Analysis

This is the first in our series of character analyses of the main characters in the play, ‘An Inspector Calls’.

It follows on from our series of articles on the themes of the play and the two, the themes and the characters are closely related and cannot be understood without each other. The themes cannot be understood without seeing how the writer Priestley, uses the characters to highlight certain themes and of course vice versa, the themes and issues being explored in the play naturally affect the characters and also play a big part in their way of looking at things.

To read the articles on the themes you can click on each of the links below:

1. An Inspector Calls’, themes, part 1: Class division and social responsibility

2. An Inspector Calls’, themes part 2: Gender

3. An Inspector Calls’, themes part 3: Age

The role/function of the Mr Birling character in the play.

To really understand Mr Birling and his role and function in the play, we need to understand what his ‘creator’ , J.B. Priestley is trying to do and why he ‘created’ Mr Birling.

Mr Birling, it can be argued, exists in the play to represent the wealthy capitalist class of modern Britain and to critique that class. Birling is similar to Ebenezer Scrooge in the Christmas Carol in that he is a wealthy businessman but far from generous. Priestley like his predecessor Dickens is attempting to encourage social responsibility and active assistance of the poor by the wealthier in society and using literature to do so by highlighting the plight of the poor and critiquing the wealthy who at times neglect them.

How successful were they in this? Well millions have heard of them and their works and continue to ready, study and discuss their plays today and Priestley himself was a politician involved in socialism, a political ideology which focuses on a more equal distribution of wealth and heavy government assistance for the poor but often by taxing the wealthy. People such as Priestley helped to create the ‘Welfare State’ in Britain which included free medical treatment for all and government money paid to people without jobs.

Click on the Link to Read About: Mr Birling Key Quotes

Arthur Birling, a brief description.

Priestly described Birling as a ‘heavy-looking man’ which means that he is big or maybe even slightly overweight. He also has a ‘provincial’ accent. What does provincial mean? Well in modern Britain, the ‘correct’ (in many people’s eyes) way of speaking or accent is what is called ‘RP’ which stands for Received Pronunciation. This is the way middle class people from the south-east of England or those educated in elite private schools (ironically in Britain called ‘public schools’ though you have to pay to study there) speak.

Accents different to those are considered by many to be ‘incorrect’ or at least less prestigious. Such regional accents include:

• Cockney, accent originally of working class Londoners but now many throughout the south-east.
• Scouse, accent of Liverpudlians.
• ‘Brummy’, accent of people from the second biggest English city, Birmingham.
• Geordie, accent of people from Newcastle or the north-east.
• Mancunian, accent of people from Manchester.
• Yorkshire, accent of Yorkshire.

In modern Britain, perhaps slightly less than a few decades back, people who want to progress upwards socially have to ‘soften’ their regional accent and make it more ‘neutral’ or more similar to the standard RP accent. In fact speaking with a very ‘thick’ Cockney, Brummy, Scouse accent would make you be considered a bit ‘uneducated’ or less sophisticated even by people who maybe from those areas, who may be fine with the usage of Cockney, Brummy, Scouse in an informal context but not in a more serious or official context. That is purely speaking about the accent and not even various slang words in those dialects.

Birling’s ‘provincial’ accent, the word Priestley himself uses clearly indicates that though he may have money now his roots are more humble and that he maybe what some call ‘nouveau riche’, a French term used in the English language which literally means ‘nouveau’ i.e. new, ‘riche’ i.e. rich or ‘new rich’.

It’s a slightly negative term implying that the person became rich recently but does not have the upbringing or culture to spend his wealth wisely and may use his money in flamboyant and extravagant clothes with inappropriate dress sense which a person from a traditionally rich family wouldn’t.

There is no mention of Birling and his dress sense but Birling occupies an intermediate space between the traditionally rich classes and the working class poor. He may have come from a poor or not so wealthy background and managed to become wealthy. This however is not enough, Birling still wants more.

An inferiority complex?

One of the most interesting questions that can be asked about Mr Birling, is does he have an inferiority complex?

What is an inferiority complex?

An inferiority complex can be understood in different ways, but one way it can be understood is that sometimes someone is missing or lacking something in order to gain social approval. You can also be very conscious that you do not have a particular quality e.g. the correct accent, income and so forth and this makes you feel uncomfortable (a complex) and this can result in exaggerated attempts to gain that ‘correct accent’, status and so on.

Mr Birling it could be argued occupies a sort of ‘no-man’s land’  between the working classes, whom he may have originally been from and whom he does not seem to care about much, and between the traditionally rich who would have a different accent and upbringing to his and also different ancestors and family, some of whom might look down on him as ‘nouveau riche’ or as ‘new money’ and as sort of inferior. We can see a glimpse of this in the quote:

““ I have an idea that your mother – Lady Croft – feels you might have done better for yourself socially ” (Act 1)

This is in relation to his suspicion that Gerald Croft’s family might feel that the Birlings are not as ‘good’ as them socially, a clear reference to the social hierarchy of that time.

Another of Birling’s most interesting quotes is.

‘You! You don’t seem to care about anything. But I care. I was almost certain for a knighthood in the next Honours List’ (Act 3) 

This follows on from earlier in the play where Birling says:

‘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’ (Act 1)

We can see from this that having lots of money, a nice house, a wife (Mrs Birling) from a socially privileged background and children, are not enough. Birling is constantly seeking to get more and more in terms of his status and social standing. First an alderman, then a lord mayor and next to be knighted i.e. to be called ‘Sir Arthur Birling’.

Is this because Mr Birling is a competitive person who relishes challenges and just being more and more successful, or is it because something is eluding him, there is something elusive? Perhaps by getting a certain level of prestige he will not feel uncomfortable around wealthy people from traditionally wealthy families, such as the Crofts. Or is it a combination of both?

What is interesting is that Birling does indeed seem to think status is based not on how moral or virtuous or generous your character is but by how high you are in the social hierarchy.

The problem with this constant pursuit for being higher and higher in the social hierarchy is that it always be a source of pain. Once you become a knight you are still ‘inferior’ to the traditional landed aristocracy, to the barons and earls and counts of England, and even if you became one of those you might be ‘junior’ aristocracy as opposed to ‘higher aristocracy’ who themselves are lower to ‘royalty’, something which Mr Birling could never have become even by marriage in 1912 England (when the play was set) or 1940s Britain when the play was first shown, as in that time society was far more traditional and the royal family could only marry from senior aristocracy/royalty.

The pursuit of position and status does not guarantee happiness and maybe a constantly elusive one forever generating a feeling of inferiority. The opposite of that would be to be happy with who you are and rather than enrich yourself at the expense of others (e.g. the low wages Birling gives to his workers), help others, and through this helping of others you might gain a feeling of happiness and reward by the betterment of those worse off than you.

As we can see ‘An Inspector Calls’ is a very deep and profound play and perhaps Priestley is attempting to show that despite his big physical stature and rough and tough exterior constantly focusing on money and position, Birling is actually a weak individual.

Birling, the capitalist.

Birling however despite seeming to come from a humble background is nevertheless in this play a representative of the capitalist elite. He is a wealthy businessman and as we saw also a type of politician when he used to be lord mayor.

As discussed in a previous article where it is written:

“So Mr Birling is far from a figure of any credibility. What Priestly is doing on a deeper level is showing that wealthy capitalists despite being able to make money are not necessarily intellectually superior to ordinary people, that they are not always right. Therefore they have no automatic claim to intellectual leadership or priority in saying how society should operate.  This is a very important point which many analysis of the play miss or do not mention.” ( click here for original article )

Priestley shows that despite Birling being rich and a wealthy factory owner he is not necessarily that clever or smart. In fact he makes wildly foolish statements such as:

‘Fiddlesticks! The Germans don’t want war. Nobody wants war.’

“And I’m talking as a hard-headed, practical man of business. And I say there isn’t a chance of war. The world’s developing so fast that it’ll make war impossible.”

As we all know and as everyone who watches the play knows, Birling was totally wrong. The Germans did engage in war and so did the British.

17 million people died.

This alongside Birling’s belief that the Titanic would never sink, ‘The titanic- she sails next week’-‘Unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable ’ (Act 1),   any credibility or respect that we might have for Birling, and also on a deeper level Priestley might have been hoping that we would extend that to thinking that just because someone has made a lot of money he is not necessarily that clever or have a right in us listening to him and him playing a key role in deciding how society should be governed. Remember Birling is an influential man and close to powerful people who would decide how society should be.

Birling, as we have seen above, cares about labels and titles, Alderman’, Lord Mayor, knight but also about numbers and statistics.

“…we may look forward to the time when Crofts and Birlings are no longer competing but are working together – for lower costs and higher prices .’ (Act 1)

‘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. ‘ (Act 1)

This is all said during a night which was originally to celebrate the union of two young people, a man and a woman who were in love with each other. A night to focus on love, family happiness, romance but Birling talks about twelve per cent to our labour costs ‘, hardly romantic or emotionally-inspiring language.

Would a daughter really want a father like Birling, or at least a father behaving like that during a special night such as the one in the play to celebrate an engagement?

For Sheila this would be a night to engage in happiness, joyous conversation about her relationship with the man she loves and wants to spend the rest of her life with.

Birling instead speaks about ‘labour costs’

Birling does not talk about having grandchildren and how fun it would be to play with them but on the business aspect of the marriage.

Birling is competitive.

Capitalism is competitive.

Birling is about numbers, profits, labour costs and prioritises that above the human aspect, in this context the emotional connection between his daughter Sheila and Gerald Croft.

Capitalism is about numbers, profits, labour costs. Does it prioritise numbers and money above human beings and their feelings?

Is raw, absolute, unchecked capitalism somewhat inhuman, devoid of emotional feeling and compassion?

Maybe this is what Priestley wants us to either think, ask or explore?

Mr Birling,  social mobility & social responsibility?

Mr Birling, is a capitalist, a wealthy businessman who makes money for himself and for the government as from the money he makes he pays the government taxes. We know that he has a ‘provincial accent’ and is clearly not from an aristocratic or ‘old money’ (a family which has been very wealthy for generations) family. So he has clearly progressed his way upwards. The ability to move from one social class up to a higher one is called ‘social mobility’. In the medieval era this was virtually impossible for most people. If one was born a serf or peasant working growing crops they would die as a serf.

However social mobility was made easier after the industrial revolution as sometimes what mattered was not your bloodline or your family lineage but how clever you were at making money by producing goods and doing business. For example Richard Arkwright the man who invented the water frame had a family who did not have enough money to send him to school but later on in life he became immensely wealthy and opened his own factories. Birling is similar to Richard Arkwright, but by lineage, something his ‘provincial’ accent clearly indicates he is not of ‘noble blood’ but he has worked his way upwards. However does Birling want to make a more equal society and help people from the working class from which he seems to have come from? Far from it. Quotes from Birling include:

‘man has to mind his own business and look after himself.’ (Act 1)

Priestley believes in the exact opposite of this and shows Birling as a foolish, stubborn and selfish man, an example of what is wrong with capitalism.

Birling is an ‘aspirational capitalist’ In his pursuit of money and status Birling has become so engrossed with his relentless struggle for greater and greater profits e.g. the Birlings and Crofts marrying in to each others families and making more profits for their business and becoming a knight, that he cares very little for the working class in society or helping them.

He has also married Sybil Birling whom Priestley calls his ‘ social superior ‘ once again indicating that he  is maybe constantly trying to elevate himself higher and higher on the social ladder, including marrying someone from a higher social background.

What Priestley might be trying to highlight here is that even if people from wealthy backgrounds become financially successful they should not forget the rest of society including the poor and that ‘honour’ in the form of titles and status does not matter as much as the dishonour of contributing to a woman’s suicide.

That profits, titles, money and influence should never take priority over us helping our fellow human beings and being compassionate to them and their suffering.

There are other things that we can say about Mr Birling in addition to the fact that he is:

• competitive
• status conscious
• makes wildly foolish predictions and is arguably not that intelligent.

We can also see he is:

• old-fashioned and somewhat sexist
• lacks compassion, when dealing with the death of Eva Smith.

But Mr Birling in this play is personifying capitalism and the plutocracy. A plutocrat is someone super-rich who is very powerful, and a plutocracy means rule of the rich. The adjective is plutocratic.

Here are some more useful words when speaking about Mr Birling, some mentioned above.

Useful vocabulary for GCSE students in essays and exam questions.

• Dramatic irony – e.g. in the way Priestly shows Birling’s stupidity in saying WW1 would not happen.
•   Capitalist – of capitalism, a system where rich businessmen control society and where society is governed for their interests. A capitalist is also a rich businessman like Mr Birling.
• Status-obsessed – To be very concerned or obsessed with your status in society, your reputation or your image e.g. “Mr Birling is clearly a status-obsessed individual who makes reference to a possible knighthood and being a former lord mayor”
• Status conscious – To be very conscious about your status.
• ‘nouveau riche’ – ‘New rich’, people who have become rich recently and often don’t know how to spend their money or dress ‘properly’ or lack taste or maybe very ostentatious in their very blatant display of money.
• Devoid – Birling at times may not be completely devoid of feelings or emotions but seems to care very little about the death of Eva Smith. When you are ‘devoid’ of feeling, it means you have no feeling or compassion for someone.
• Credibility – Birling has little credibility in the eyes of the audience as he makes very foolish and wrong predictions about there being no war or the Titanic not sinking.
• Competitive – Mr Birling is very competitive
• Inferiority complex – A feeling of not being good as others or not having their approval and working hard to get it. Birling arguably has an inferiority complex.
• Elusive – the adjective of the verb, ‘elude’ which means to miss something or not get it.
• Old-fashioned – Birling is an old-fashioned man stuck in his ways unlike the younger Birlings or Gerald.

Tell us what you think in the comments section below!

(10) Comments

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Thanks, this is a very rich and well-written analysis and explanation of Mr Birling and some of the issues in the play e.g. his possible ‘inferiority complex’. Would you say we could even see Mr Birling as some sort of victim to a degree?

Thank you for your compliment.

The issue of perpetrators of wrong being ‘victims’ can be taken to extreme levels and sometimes is. For example murderers are sometimes said to be victims of their upbringing or society. In this way we can say that Mr Birling is a victim of a system that emphasises status and social exclusivity with the rich and powerful being actively encouraged to keep a distance from the power and being discouraged from mixing with them.

However even at that time and before, many of the rich did engage in some sort of philanthropic activity to try and make society better including for those less well of, something which Mr Birling himself does not appear to be active in, though he is obviously a fictional character but nevertheless based on real life figures similar to him.

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An Inspector Calls

J. b. priestley, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions, arthur birling quotes in an inspector calls.

There’s a good deal of silly talk about these days—but—and I speak as a hard-headed business man, who has to take risks and know what he’s about—I say, you can ignore all this silly pessimistic talk. When you marry, you’ll be marrying at a very good time.

I tell you, by that time you’ll be living in a world that’ll have forgotten all these Capital versus Labor agitations and all these silly little war scares. There’ll be peace and prosperity and rapid progress everywhere.

A man has to make his own way—has to look after himself—and his family, too, of course, when he has one—and so long as he does that he won’t come to much harm. But the way some of these cranks talk and write now, you’d think everybody has to look after everybody else, as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive.

Birling: It’s a free country, I told them. Eric: It isn’t if you can’t go and work somewhere else.

You know, of course, that my husband was Lord Mayor only two years ago and that he’s still a magistrate?

There’ll be plenty of time, when I’ve gone, for you all to adjust your family relationships.

This girl killed herself—and died a horrible death. But each of you helped to kill her. Remember that. Never forget it. But then I don’t think you ever will.

Mr Salles Teaches English

Here's a Free Grade 8/9 Inspector Calls Essay

With too much vocabulary.

How Does Priestley Present Selfishness in An Inspector Calls?

In the morality play, An Inspector Calls, Priestley presents selfishness through the seven deadly sins to expose how the bourgeoisie, or the Birling family, exploit the proletariat, who are victims of their sins. Perhaps Priestley does this to criticise the destructed and unequal society in 1912 to argue for a Socialist reform

Priestley primarily portrays selfishness through the sin of greed in Mr Birling where ‘a man has to make his own way’, during his speech. The use of the pronoun ‘own’ is effective as it connotes individualism and self-gain, thus highlighting Mr Birling’s devotion to benefitting only himself and that he prioritises his individual success. Moreover, his individualist principles reflect and embody ideas of Capitalism, the antithesis of Priestley’s message of Socialism, to reinforce his selfishness through his political beliefs. Mr Birling showcases this throughout the play, even during his daughter’s engagement where Gerald ‘was just the kind of son-in-law I (he) always wanted’. Interestingly, the use of the pronoun ‘I’ becomes almost stylistic for Mr Birling as he measures the importance by constantly referring back to his benefit. In this case, Mr Birling considers his daughter’s benefit as an afterthought, augmenting his selfishness as he portrays it through his societal role as both a father and a member of the bourgeoisie. Therefore, Mr Birling illustrates the pinnacle of greed as he desires success, wealth and reputation over anything where ‘there’s a very good chance of a knight-hood’, suggesting how he’s attempting to convince Gerald of his bourgeoisie status to boost his business, emphasizing his greed. Perhaps Priestley does this to criticise how disingenuous and inconsiderate Capitalist bourgeoisies were, as they embody political morals that focus solely on their own benefit and no one else’s. This may encourage Priestley’s audience in 1945 to share a hatred for Mr Birling’s political ideals of Capitalist greed and ownership to believe in a more Socialist society which Priestley promotes in this play. 

Priestley further portrays selfishness through the sin of lust in Gerald where he describes Eva Smith as ‘young and fresh’. The use of the descriptive adjective ‘fresh’ is effective as it connotes purity and fertility, thus Gerald uses a euphemism to suggest Eva Smith’s virginity at the time, illustrating Gerald’s selfish lust as he uses Eva to satisfy his own sexual needs and hedonistic tendencies. Moreover, the adjective ‘fresh’ suggests a food-like nature, suggesting Gerald’s misogynistic objectification towards Eva and that she is solely used to fulfil his selfish lust, implying that Eva, a female proletariat, is a victim of Gerald’s sinful lust. Therefore, Gerald uses his masculine, aristocratic role to exploit Eva Smith’s lack of agency as something to be used as a possession and to be consumed. Gerald also further demonstrates this, describing Eva Smith as having ‘soft brown hair and big dark eyes’, until he ‘[breaks off]’. The use of the stage direction represents an abrupt break-off in speech, representing that he only had a physical attraction to Eva, thus causing an emotional reaction when ruminating about it. Interestingly, Gerald almost embodies lust as Eva’s value is only determined by the sexual satisfaction that Gerald achieves, reinforcing his selfishness as he prioritises his own desires. Within Priestley’s childhood, he witnessed the ‘pompously religious men’ who were ‘ill-using young women’, and perhaps Priestley reflects this by constructing Gerald’s selfish and sinful lust to criticise how men misuse their social status to exploit inferior women who are vulnerable. Therefore, Priestley encourages the audience to criticise Gerald’s selfishness and ultimately also criticise the unequal society caused by the patriarchy so that he can further promote his Socialist agenda. 

Priestley presents the effects of selfishness directly through the character of Eva Smith, as he constructs Eva to be a symbol of proletariat suffering in 1912. Through Eva being a victim of the sins, she ‘died in misery - hating life’. The use of graphic adjectives of ‘misery’ and ‘agony’ is effective as it depicts Eva’s gruesome and horrific suicide, further augmenting her suffering as a proletariat but also encouraging the reader to visualise her ‘agony’ and sympathise too. Moreover, the contrast between Eva ‘hating life’ and Sheila, the daughter of the Birlings, who is ‘excited [for life]’ illustrates how Eva’s suffering is determined by her proletariat status and her lack of economic independence is ultimately what leads to her demise. Interestingly, the method of Eva’s suicide using ‘disinfectant’ where she ‘burnt her insides’ is effective as it may symbolise Eva attempting to purify herself as disinfectant connotes cleansing. Therefore, Eva Smith believes that she is impure through the sexual exploitation of Gerald and Eric, implying the sin of lust. However, her supposed impurity may suggest that her suffering is a culmination of Birling’s selfishness, also presenting her as a victim of their deadly sins. Perhaps Priestley uses Eva Smith as a universal symbol of proletariat suffering as this may derive from the biblical nomenclature of Eva relating to ‘Eve’, perhaps showing the parallels of Eve representing mankind to Eva Smith representing the proletariat class and their suffering. By demonstrating a brutal death for Eva, Priestley consciously depicts the detrimental effects of the Birling’s selfishness and the destructive nature of the class hierarchy in 1912. Therefore, Priestley argues for a Socialist society which promotes social responsibility, so that as a society, everyone from each class can provide for one another, helping repair the oppressive class hierarchy. 

Overall, Priestley portrays selfishness through the Birlings’ that commit deadly sins towards Eva Smith, ultimately being symbolic of the proletariat's suffering. Priestley uses characters as direct embodiments and vessels of these sins to criticise 1912’s selfish society and promote his Socialist political agenda. 

My Comments

This is 937 words long.

It is almost impossible not to get a grade 9 if you write that much.

It doesn’t always make total sense because the vocabulary is trying too hard. Destructed is wrong. Bourgeoisie, bourgeois and a member of the bourgeoisie are sometimes confused. Upper class would score just as many marks, and you would always use it correctly.

Proletariat is often used instead of proletarian. Working class would do just as well, and you would always use it correctly.

I hate big, fat paragraphs. New paragraph for a new topic or idea. This helps the reader follow the argument, rather than get lost in it. The same is true, I suspect, for the student writing the essay.

Mr Salles Teaches English is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts which help you get top grades, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

ChatGPT Training

Can you correct any errors of vocabulary or grammar in this essay?

Your essay is well-written and articulate, but there are a few suggestions for refinement:

In the morality play, "An Inspector Calls," Priestley presents selfishness through the seven deadly sins to expose how the bourgeoisie, or the Birling family, exploit the proletariat, who are victims of their sins. Perhaps Priestley does this to criticize the destroyed and unequal society in 1912 to argue for Socialist reform.

Priestley primarily portrays selfishness through the sin of greed in Mr. Birling, where 'a man has to make his own way' during his speech. The use of the pronoun ‘own’ is effective as it connotes individualism and self-gain, highlighting Mr. Birling’s devotion to benefiting only himself and prioritizing his individual success.

Mr. Birling showcases this throughout the play, even during his daughter’s engagement where Gerald 'was just the kind of son-in-law I (he) always wanted.' The use of the pronoun ‘I’ becomes almost stylistic for Mr. Birling as he measures the importance by constantly referring back to his benefit.

Therefore, Mr. Birling illustrates the pinnacle of greed as he desires success, wealth, and reputation over anything where 'there’s a very good chance of a knighthood,' suggesting how he’s attempting to convince Gerald of his bourgeoisie status to boost his business, emphasizing his greed. Perhaps Priestley does this to criticize how disingenuous and inconsiderate Capitalist bourgeoisies were, as they embody political morals that focus solely on their benefit and no one else’s.

Priestley further portrays selfishness through the sin of lust in Gerald, where he describes Eva Smith as ‘young and fresh.’ The use of the descriptive adjective ‘fresh’ is effective as it connotes purity and fertility, illustrating Gerald’s selfish lust as he uses Eva to satisfy his own sexual needs and hedonistic tendencies.

Gerald uses his masculine, aristocratic role to exploit Eva Smith’s lack of agency as something to be used as a possession and to be consumed. Gerald also further demonstrates this, describing Eva Smith as having ‘soft brown hair and big dark eyes’ until he ‘[breaks off].’ The use of the stage direction represents an abrupt break-off in speech, showing that he only had a physical attraction to Eva, causing an emotional reaction when ruminating about it.

Therefore, Priestley encourages the audience to criticize Gerald’s selfishness and ultimately also criticize the unequal society caused by the patriarchy so that he can further promote his Socialist agenda.

Priestley presents the effects of selfishness directly through the character of Eva Smith, as he constructs Eva to be a symbol of proletariat suffering in 1912. Through Eva being a victim of the sins, she ‘died in misery - hating life.’ The use of graphic adjectives like ‘misery’ and ‘agony’ is effective as it depicts Eva’s gruesome and horrific suicide, further augmenting her suffering as a proletariat and encouraging the reader to visualize her ‘agony’ and sympathize too.

Moreover, the contrast between Eva ‘hating life’ and Sheila, the daughter of the Birlings, who is ‘excited [for life],’ illustrates how Eva’s suffering is determined by her proletariat status and her lack of economic independence is ultimately what leads to her demise.

By demonstrating a brutal death for Eva, Priestley consciously depicts the detrimental effects of the Birlings’ selfishness and the destructive nature of the class hierarchy in 1912. Therefore, Priestley argues for a Socialist society that promotes social responsibility so that as a society, everyone from each class can provide for one another, helping repair the oppressive class hierarchy.

That’s interesting! ChatGPT immediately decided to make the essay more concise - too many words to say what you mean.

It still isn’t using proletarian.

What is the term for a member of the proletariat?

The term for a member of the proletariat is "proletarian."

Rewrite the sentences which use proletariat incorrectly and replace it with proletarian.

Certainly! Here are the sentences with "proletarian" replacing instances of "proletariat" where needed:

"...exploit the proletarian, who is a victim of their sins."

"...illustrating Gerald’s selfish lust as he uses Eva to satisfy his own sexual needs and hedonistic tendencies, treating her as a proletarian."

"Moreover, the contrast between Eva ‘hating life’ and Sheila, the daughter of the Birlings, who is ‘excited [for life],’ illustrates how Eva’s suffering is determined by her proletarian status..."

"Therefore, Priestley argues for a Socialist society that promotes social responsibility, so that as a society, everyone from each class, including the proletarian, can provide for one another, helping repair the oppressive class hierarchy."

Go back to the essay that began this chat. Apply the following criteria to give it a mark out of 30 and explain why you have awarded that mark. Level 6 Convincing, critical analysis and exploration 26–30 marks Level 5 Thoughtful, developed consideration 21–25 marks Level 4 Clear understanding 16–20 marks

To provide a fair evaluation of the essay, I'll assess it based on the criteria you provided:

Convincing, critical analysis, and exploration (26–30 marks):

The essay demonstrates a high level of critical analysis, exploring the themes of selfishness and the exploitation of the proletariat in "An Inspector Calls" thoroughly. The writer successfully connects specific examples from the play to broader social and political contexts. The analysis is convincing and supported by well-chosen quotations. The exploration of Priestley's intentions and the societal implications of the characters' actions is comprehensive.

Thoughtful, developed consideration (21–25 marks):

The essay shows thoughtful consideration of the characters and their actions, delving into their motivations and the consequences of their behaviors. The connections between the characters' actions and broader societal issues are well-developed. The writer effectively explores the impact of selfishness on the proletariat, using specific examples to support their points. The consideration of Priestley's intentions and the historical context is well thought out.

Clear understanding (16–20 marks):

The essay demonstrates a clear understanding of the play's themes, characters, and Priestley's social commentary. The writer effectively uses quotes and examples to illustrate their points. The arguments are logically presented, and there is a coherent structure to the essay. However, there may be some areas where the analysis could be more nuanced or where connections between examples and broader themes could be further developed.

Considering the above criteria, I would award the essay a score of 25 out of 30. The essay provides a thoughtful and convincing analysis of the themes of selfishness and exploitation in "An Inspector Calls," exploring the characters' motivations and actions in the context of the play's social and political commentary. The analysis is well-developed, but there is room for a bit more nuance and depth in certain areas to reach the highest level of critical analysis.

Ok, that’s interesting. It seems ChatGPT has understood the wording, but not the marks of the mark scheme.

Let’s try again, without the marks.

Which group of words best describes the essay? Convincing, critical analysis and exploration: Thoughtful, developed consideration: Clear understanding

The group of words that best describes the essay is "Convincing, critical analysis and exploration." This is because the essay demonstrates a high level of critical analysis, providing a convincing exploration of the themes in "An Inspector Calls" and effectively connecting specific examples to broader social and political contexts. While the essay also exhibits "Thoughtful, developed consideration" and "Clear understanding," the emphasis on convincing analysis and exploration aligns more closely with the overall evaluation provided.

Like I said:

It is almost impossible not to get a grade 9 if you write that much!

But, what if you wrote the 567 word version?

ChatGPT gives it the same grading:

The phrase that best describes the essay is "Convincing, critical analysis, and exploration." This is because the essay demonstrates a convincing analysis of the themes in "An Inspector Calls," including critical examination and exploration of the characters' motivations and the broader societal implications.

We can tell from this that it would get a lower mark in Level 6, but it would still be a grade 9.

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Character — A contrast essay on the character of Mr Birling and the inspector in An inspector’s call

Comparison of The Characters of Mr Birling and The Inspector in an Inspector Calls

• Categories: An Inspector Calls Character

About this sample

Words: 1232 |

Pages: 2.5 |

Published: Jun 29, 2018

Words: 1232 | Pages: 2.5 | 7 min read

Table of contents

Introduction, how is mr birling presented in an inspector calls in contrast to the inspector.

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Model Essay: Mr Birling (An Inspector Calls)

Subject: English

Age range: 14-16

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

23 August 2018

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A model essay for GCSE (grade 9), exploring Mr Birling’s importance in An Inspector Calls. It includes detailed analysis and contextual discussion.

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Mrs Birling Analysis

Roles of mrs birling.

Mrs Birling is a stereotypical upper-class pre-war woman with capitalist views. She lets her husband control her, even though she is of a higher class.

Role in the family

• Although she is of a higher class than her husband, she is subservient (lets him control her) to him in a patriarchal (male ruled) household and society.
• She is in charge of the household and of teaching Sheila how to be a good-mannered young lady who understands pre-war etiquette perfectly.

Role in the play

• Priestley portrays a stereotypical upper-class pre-war woman – she is concerned about her reputation, social status and appearance.
• Her priorities are to keep an unblemished (perfect) reputation and dress well so as to show off her husband’s wealth.
• She shares her husband’s capitalist ideas about people only looking after themselves – she is uninterested in how her actions affect others.
• Mrs Birling represents the selfish attitudes of the wealthy higher classes. She thinks lower-class people deserve their misfortune and thinks they are completely inferior to her.

Connection with Eva

• When a pregnant Eva approached the Brumley Women’s Charity Organisation for financial help, Mrs Birling (who chaired the committee) took a disliking to her and refused to give her any help.

Character Development of Mrs Birling

Mrs Birling represents the uncaring upper class. She won't accept blame and doesn't learn anything from the interrogation. She tries to intimidate Inspector Goole and her husband.

Cold-hearted

• Priestley highlights Mrs Birling as cold-hearted and unlikable throughout the play.
• Right from the start, she scolds Mr Birling for a small social error.

Uncaring upper class

• Priestley uses Mrs Birling to really bring out the uncaring, selfish, self-centred nature of the upper classes in society.
• He felt that these were the people who needed to change in order to improve wider society.
• People like Mrs Birling needed to care about other people to accept the changes that needed to happen to improve everyone’s lives (not just those of the upper classes).
• Mrs Birling refuses to even cooperate with a police detective, showing that she feels she is above the law – instead, she challenges him and calls him ‘impertinent’ for doing his job.

Accepts no blame and doesn't change

• She does not care at all about the lives of the lower classes, and feels that Eva’s misfortunes were her own fault.
• Is this why they get a second visit from a real police inspector? Does Inspector Goole act as a warning, which they do not take?

Interactions with Inspector Goole

• She is the only character to stay completely unaffected by Inspector Goole’s revelations – she shows no emotion about Eva until she learns about Eric’s involvement.
• Mrs Birling also tries to intimidate Inspector Goole into leaving and lies to him outright.
• Later in the play, she tries to deny truths that she doesn’t want to believe because they tarnish (ruin) the perfect image of the family (such as Eric’s drinking and Gerald’s affair with Eva).

Significance of Mrs Birling

Mrs Birling highlights the negative aspects of capitalism and how the upper classes mistreated lower-class people.

Negative aspects of capitalism

• Priestley uses Mrs Birling to highlight serious social issues in British society – capitalism bred people who did not care for anyone but themselves, and who saw lower-class people as less than human.
• This means that they did not care how they treated these people.
• Priestley presents Mrs Birling as a villain to encourage the audience to understand the horrible consequences of a capitalist society – he knew that social attitudes needed to change for society to become fairer and more caring.

Mistreatment of lower classes

• Mrs Birling also helps to show how terrible life was for lower-class people in pre-war Britain – their lives depended on higher-class people making the decisions for them.
• If their social superiors chose to mistreat them, or not help them, there was little that lower-class people could do to have a happy life.

1 Plot Summary

1.1.1 Act 1 Summary

1.1.2 Act 1 Key Quotes

1.2.1 Act 2 Summary

1.2.2 Act 2 Key Quotes

1.3.1 Act 3 Summary

1.3.2 Act 3 Key Quotes

1.3.3 Act 3 More Key Quotes

1.3.4 End of Topic Test - Acts 1, 2 & 3

2 Context & Key Themes

2.1 Context & Key Themes

2.1.1 Social Class & Equality

2.1.2 Class Tension

2.1.3 Abuse of Power & Corruption

2.1.4 Socialism vs Capitalism

2.1.5 Blame & Responsibility

2.1.6 Attitudes to Women

2.1.7 Characterisation of Women

2.1.8 Dramatic Function of Characters

2.1.9 End of Topic Test - Context & Key Themes

2.1.10 End of Topic Test - Context & Key Themes 2

2.1.11 Grade 9 - Key Themes

3 Key Characters

3.1 Mr Birling

3.1.1 Mr Birling Analysis

3.1.2 Mr Birling Quotes

3.2 Mrs Birling

3.2.1 Mrs Birling Analysis

3.2.2 Mrs Birling Quotes

3.2.3 Exam-Style Questions - Mrs Birling

3.3.1 Sheila Analysis

3.3.2 Sheila Quotes

3.3.3 End of Topic Test - The Birlings & Sheila

3.4.1 Eric Analysis

3.4.2 Eric Quotes

3.5.1 Gerald Analysis

3.5.2 Gerald Quotes

3.6 Inspector Goole

3.6.1 Inspector Goole Analysis

3.6.2 Inspector Goole Quotes

3.6.3 End of Topic Test - Eric, Gerald & Inspector Goole

3.7 Grade 9 - Key Characters

3.7.1 Grade 9 - Key Characters

4 Authorial Method

4.1 Arrangement & Structure of the Play

4.1.1 Setting, Lighting & Dramatic Irony

4.1.2 Structure & Chronology

4.1.3 Structure & Chronology 2

4.1.4 End of Topic Test - Authorial Method

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Mr Birling Quotes

Mrs Birling Quotes