Birling Is A Cruel And Insensitive Man Who Only Cares About His Public Image

"Mr Birling is a cruel and insensitive man who only cares about his public image." To what extent do you agree with this statement? You must refer to language, structure, and form in your response.

The morality play "An Inspector Calls" by J.B. Priestley is set in 1912 and depicts the Birling family's interactions with an Inspector who visits to investigate the suicide of Eva smith. Mr Birling, the family patriarch, symbolises the idea of capitalism. It is priestely's intention to portray him negatively as a cruel capitalist concerned only with his reputation and wealth however while Mr Birling's actions and beliefs demonstrate a lack of empathy and a focus on his public image, there are occasions when he expresses genuine concern for the well-being

He is constantly attempting to impress his guests with his wealth and social standing. This is clear in the manner in which he discusses his accomplishments, such as his “imminent knighthood” and “his position on the local Bench”. He says in Act 1: ”I might find my way into the next Honours List. Just a knighthood, of course” in this setting, Mr Birling's language demonstrates his desire for social recognition and prestige, his statement about “finding his way into the next Honours List” implies that he is actively seeking some form of official recognition from the government which would raise his status and enhance his reputation. Mr Birling's obsession with his public image and standing is exemplified further by his attempts to intimidate the Inspector by revealing his connections and influence with local authorities. for instance, He mentions golfing with the Chief Constable and Superintendent, implying that he has some power and influence over them. This attempt at intimidation, however, ultimately fails because the Inspector is unimpressed by such displays of money and status. Therefore, Mr Birling's preoccupation with his public image not only blinds him to the harsh realities of the world but also serves as a futile attempt at intimidating those who challenge his

Priestley portrays Mr Birling as a representation of one of the seven moral sins, greed. His greed and selfishness is evident when he mentions how "Gerald's father and him have been friendly rivals in business for some time," but "soon crofts and birlings will no longer be competing, they will be working together." the verbal phrase "working together" indicates that Mr Birling is more interested in increasing his profits and gaining a competitive edge in the market than preserving a friendly rivalry with his competitor. This focus on personal gain highlights his greed and selfishness which is again further accentuated by how he is using this engagement as an opportunity to establish a business relationship with Croft's family, and he also seems to be implying that the two families will benefit from "lower costs and higher prices" as a result of this closer association. This statement reveals how Mr Birling considers his daughter's lifelong devotion to be a business merger. The language and structure of the play also reinforces the idea that Mr Birling is primarily concerned with his own public image. Priestley uses dramatic irony to show that Birling's confidence in his own success and wealth is misguided, and his speeches about individualism and self-reliance are shown to be hypocritical. In Act One, one example of dramatic irony that shows Birling's mistaken confidence and hypocritical ideas is when he discusses