An Inspector Calls Rhetorical Analysis

How is Inspector Goole presented by Priestley in ‘An Inspector Calls’?

Inspector Goole is presented as an omnipotent figure throughout the play. His immediate presence shows his power as he is able to transform the settings of the scene and the overall atmosphere of Birling's party. The lighting changes from “pink and intimate” to “brighter and harder” after his arrival. In these opening details, Priestley’s use of the adjective ‘pink and intimate’ has connotations of warmth and happiness that a familial setting should be encased with, whereas the comparative adjective ‘harder’ opposes this. This juxtaposition metaphorically shows how the Birlings are in their own bubble, but the opposing lighting changes shows how the Inspector will shine

When the Inspector arrives, he informs the Birling family about Eva’s suicide in which she consumed strong disinfectant that “burnt her inside out”. Priestley’s use of graphic language and violent vern ‘burnt’ evokes an emotional response with the post-war audience of 1945 and the 21st century audience alike. The use of the adjective ‘burnt’ could also have connotations with hell, conveying the idea that the poor are damned in their lives. This association with hell is linked to the contemporary Christian belief that suicide is a grave sin; committing suicide violates the commandment ‘thou shalt not kill’, which is punishable by an afterlife in hell. The fact that Eva still chose suicide demonstrates that her life was already a living hell, and could imagine nothing worse. However, it also implies that the death itself is what will cause the Birling’s to be accursed to hell, in order to repent for the wrongs they have caused Eva and the rest of the lower class. Priestley’s language persuaded the audience to feel immense sympathy, not only for Eva Smith, but also for all of the working class. It could be argued that Eva Smith’s suffering and suicide is used as a metaphor to highlight the continuous struggles faced by the working class, throwing into relief the issues within society and how these problems are

This is encapsulated by the older members of the Birling family, used to represent the older generation as a whole. The Inspector states that “If there’s nothing else, we’ll have to share our guilt”. The state of ‘nothing’ refers to Eva’s situation, that there is nothing left of her after her suicide. Priestley uses the personal pronoun ‘we’ to give society a sense of unity, implying that everyone must do the same and follow the Inspector’s teachings. The Inspector is unusual here because he includes himself in the ‘guilt’, which could be inferred to have been done because he is echoing one of his messages for post war Britain, which is to come together and get rid of the class system..The play was set in 1912, a time in which society was divided not only by gender but also social class. Priestley’s use of the inclusive pronoun is paradoxical, subverting the audience’s expectations of a divided society. Augmented by Priestley’s use of the imperative verb ‘have to’, he persuades the audience to take responsibility for their actions towards other members of society in order for society to progress. Alternatively, the use of the verb ‘share’ could further reflect Priestley’s socialist ideologies that wealth should be more evenly distributed within society instead of the rich upper and middle classes being greedy.