Mr Birling is an upper class gentleman who has an arrogant, yet affable demeanor. He is the first person that The Inspector interrogates and is quit to try and remove all responsibility that he may have had for the death of Eva Smith. Starting off confident and casual, but soon deteriorates into becoming frenzied and irritated. His first priority is too keep himself and his reputation safe, and this attitude is demonstrated very early in the play by saying that ‘a man has to make his own way- has to look after himself.’
ACT ONE:
“Arthur Birling is a heavy-looking, rather portentous man in his middle fifties with fairly easy but rather provincial in his speech.”
“It’s a pity Sir George and- er- Lady Croft can’t be with us, but they’re abroad and so it can’t be helped.”
“I’m going to tell you frankly, without any pretences, that your engagement to Sheila means a tremendous lot to me. She’ll make you happy, and I’m sure you’ll make her happy.”
“Just because the Kaiser makes a speech or two, or a few German officers have too much to drink and begin talking nonsense, you’ll hear some people say that war’s inevitable. And to that I say- fiddlesticks!”
“So- well- I gather there’s a very good chance of a knighthood- so long as we behave ourselves, don’t get into the police court or start a scandal- eh?”
“Well, we’ve several hundred young women there, y’know, and they keep changing.”
“If we were all responsible for everything that happened to everybody we’d had anything to do with, it would be very awkward, wouldn’t it?”
“And this girl, Eva Smith, was one of them. She’d had a lot to say- far too much- so she had to go.”
“That’s something this public-school-and-Varsity life you’ve had doesn’t seem to teach you.”
ACT TWO:
“Now, Sheila, I’m not defending him. But you must understand that a lot of young men-”
“I: (massively) Public men, Mr Birling, have responsibilities as well as privileges.”
“Look here, this wasn’t Gerald Croft-”
“(thunderstruck) My God! But- look here-”
ACT THREE:
“(harshly) So you had to go to bed with her?”
“(furious, intervening) Why, you hysterical young fool- get back- or I’ll-”
“(unhappily) Look, Inspector- I’d give thousands- yes, thousands-”
“Birling, the only active one, hears the front door slam, moves hesitating towards the door, stops, looks gloomily at the other three, then pours himself out a drink, which he hastily swallows.”
“(excitedly) By Jingo! A fake!”
“There’s no Inspector Goole on the police. That man definitely wasn’t a police inspector at all. As Gerald says- we’ve been had.”
“Leave this to us. I’ll admit that fellow’s antics rattled us a bit. But we’ve found him out- and all we have to do is to keep our heads. Now it’s our turn.”
“Some fathers I know would have kicked you out of the house anyhow by this time. So hold your tongue if you want to stay here.”
“(triumphantly) There you are! Proof positive. The whole story’s just a lot of moonshine. Nothing but an elaborate sell! (He produces a huge sigh of relief.) Nobody likes to be sold as badly as that- but- for all that- (he smiles at them all) Gerald, have a drink.”
“Nonsense! You’ll have a good laugh over it yet. Look, you’d better ask Gerald for that ring you gave back to him, haven’t you?”
“(pointing to Eric and Sheila) Now look at the pair of them- the famous younger generation who know it all. And they can’t even take a joke.”
“A girl has just died- on her way to the Infirmary- after swallowing some disinfectant. And a police inspector is on his way- to ask some- questions-”
Themes:
Guilt: Was the first person to do something bad to Eva Smith (firing her), and doesn’t feel guilty for it. Claims any businessman would have done the same person.
Family: Loves his children and his wife, but is quick to insult and blame his children.
Class: Is now upper class, but worked his way up, from a lower class family. Married up- this is showed in how his wife speaks to him.
Love: Has a cold relationship with his wife, she is evidently the more dominant/ domineering partner in the coupling.
Responsibility: Does not accept his responsibility.
Contextualisation:
Represents the evils of the capitalist society that Priestly was so opposed to.
Shows how poorly the upper classes treated the lower/ working classes.
At the very start we see Gerald as someone who is eager to impress Arthur Birling and is very assured of his social and financial standings. He arguably had the largest impact on Eva, as he did have a long standing affair with her. But after her death, Gerald sits on the fence with where he stands in the morality her death. He realises that he and the Birling family, all drove this girl to the point she was at, and even when it’s proven that there is no girl he is far more willing to accept that he was still in the wrong by doing what he did with Daisy Renton, even when there was no death involved.
But Gerald is the one that began the theory of it being a hoax, which could be down to personal denial of having anything to do with the death of a girl he loved.
ACT ONE:
“Gerald Croft is an attractive chap about thirty, rather too manly to be a dandy but very much the easy well-bred young man-about-town.”
“(smiling) Wouldn’t dream of it. In fact, I insist upon being one of the family now. I’ve been trying long enough, haven’t I? (As she does not reply, with more insistence) Haven’t I? You know I have.”
“(quietly) Thank you. And I drink to you- and hope I can make you as happy as you deserve to be.”
“B: She’d had a lot to say- far too much- so she had to go.
G: You couldn’t have done anything else.”
“Well, there’s nothing to settle as far as I’m concerned. I’ve never known an Eva Smith.”
“Shall I go to her?”
“Getting a bit heavy-handed, aren’t you, Inspector?”
“I: So first she changed her name to Daisy Renton-
G: (startled) What?”
“I’m sorry Sheila. But it was all over and done with, last summer. I hadn’t set eyes on the girl for at least six months. I don’t come into this suicide business.”
“(He looks crushed. The door slowly opens and the Inspector appears, looking steadily and searching at them.)”
ACT TWO:
“Mrs Birling, the Inspector knows all that. And I don’t think it’s a good idea to remind him-”
“I went down to the bar for a drink. It’s a favourite haunt of women of the town.”
“She was very pretty- soft brown hair and big dark eyes- (breaks off.) My God!”
“(distressed) Sorry- I- well, I’ve suddenly realised- taken it properly- that she’s dead-”
“Of course, I do. He’s a notorious womaniser as well as being one of the worst sots and rouges in Brumley-”
“(Carefully, to the Inspector) I want you to understand that I didn’t install her there so that I could make love to her.”
“It’s hard to say. I didn’t feel about her as she felt about me.”
“-and by that time Daisy knew it was coming to an end. So I broke it off definitely before I went.”
“She didn’t blame me at all. I wish to God she had now. Perhaps I’d feel better about it.”
ACT THREE:
“(Gerald appears, and Edna withdraws.)”
“That man wasn’t a police officer.”
“But the point is- this sergeant was dead certain they hadn’t any inspector at all like the chap who came here.”
“I did keep a girl last summer. I’ve admitted it. And I’m sorry, Sheila.”
“But how do you know it’s the same girl?”
“He might have showed you the photograph of any girl who applied to the committee. And how do we know she was really Eva Smith or Daisy Renton?”
“What girl? There were probably four or five different girls.”
“That’s right. You’ve got it. How do we know any girl killed herself today?”
“Everything’s all right now, Sheila. (Holds up the ring.) What about the ring?”
Themes:
Guilt: Acknowledges what he did to Eva Smith, but distances himself from blame. Instantly jumps onto the fact that the Inspector wasn’t a real Police Officer.
Family: Comes from a wealthy family, but wants unify with the Birlings and is eager to impress.
Class: From a very upper class family, this is shown in his manner of speaking and tone of voice and actions towards Sheila.
Love: Loves Sheila, but initially accepts when she gives him the ring back. But later acts differently as he gleefully suggests getting reengaged.
Responsibility: Doesn’t feel as responsible as he feels he made her happy.
Dramatic Devices:
Introduces a twist: Adds a twist in the story by explaining that the Inspector isn’t a real inspector.
Changing alliances: Act 1: wants to impress Mr Birling, is in love with Sheila, feels awkward around the family.
Act 2: has to explain things to Sheila, is defended by Birling, and is looked down on by Mrs Birling.
Act 3: Is at ethical odds with Sheila, doesn’t believe the Inspector is real.
