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Conflict In J. B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls

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How does J.B. Priestley present conflict in the play “An Inspector Calls”? An Inspector Calls by J.B Priestley is a play composed of three acts that is centred on the suicide of Eva Smith and the “chain of events” that lead to the unfortunate incident. Priestley’s heroine Sheila is presented as a Socialist. Consequently, her relationship with her parents fluctuates as she embraced the need for social justice. In the beginning of the play Priestley portrayed Sheila as the perfect daughter ready to be whisked away in the engagement that would allow the Birling’s to procure a higher status. In particular Birling suggests to “look forward to a time when the (friendly rivals) Crofts and Birling’s are no longer competing.” The oxymoron suggests Sheila’s relationship with Gerald is the key to acquiring social mobility. However, by the third act Sheila no longer aims to impress Gerald. Instead Sheila (bitterly) announce: “You …show more content…

Moreover, the conflict between the Inspector and Birling is magnified through several use of dramatic irony. To exemplify; in the beginning Priestley introduced Birling as a “hard-headed business man”. The alliteration amplifies Birling’s desire for prosperity. Thus, creates a positive impression on the contemporary audience. However, as the play progresses Birling’s continuous lack of credibility impacts the audience negatively. Birling; clearly disliked by the playwright, is not only portrayed as self-important but a person with no sense of decorum which is not only repugnant to Priestley but also to the audience. Additionally, Birling is left “damned exasperated” by the conclusion of the play. The expletive emphasises the ramifications of the Inspector in Birling’s ego. Perhaps, this conflict between the Inspector (the surrogate author) and Birling is a result of the powerful opposing views between: capitalism and

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In the inspector calls the inspector shown as a all knowing main charcter. His purpose within the play is to make the Birling family take responsibility for there foul actions they took towards eve smith/daisy renton Priestly uses the quote "each of you helped kill her"this imply that the inspector wanted them to accept there and share there responsibility for each action the Birlings faimily did. Alternatively it also shows that due to the class of Birlings it took the inspectors appearance for them to realise there Responsibility as before they were very adimate that they would not take responsibility"i cant take any responsibility"In summery it shows how much the inspector wants them to see the wrong they have done and accept it. Looking specifically

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