J. B. Priestley's Presentation Of The Inspector

How does Priestley’s presentation of the inspector help convey the key messages of the play?

Priestley uses his portrayal of the inspector to support his key messages, such as supporting socialism and the need for social responsibility, as well as showing the faults of capitalism. He does this by presenting the inspector as an authoritative, mysterious figure who casts judgement on the Birlings and gains sympathy from the audience for Eva Smith.

Priestley carefully crafts the inspector’s character as someone who has great authority and control; this gains respect from the audience and so we are willing to accept the messages he is conveying. This authority is clear from the beginning when the inspector enters, interrupting Mr Birling’s speech

This can be seen when the inspector subverts Mr Birling’s words and says ‘They might. But after all it’s better to ask for the world than to take it’ which highlights Mr Birling’s immorality and his stereotypical view of the working class. The juxtaposition between the two verbs ‘ask’ and ‘take’ shows the power divide between the classes; ‘ask’ is a very polite verb that shows the vulnerability of the lower social classes and victims of capitalist exploitation while the verb ‘take’, has aggressive connotations shaming Mr Birling for his forceful use of power which the audience can associate with capitalism. This message is enhanced by the repetition of ‘you’ in his closing speech. This holds the Birling’s accountable and casts judgement on them effectively criticising capitalism. The inspector also showcases the Birling’s immorality and cruelty by using strong emotive verbs such as ‘used’, ‘refused’, ‘slammed’ and ‘punish’. These verbs all have very negative connotations and holds the Birling’s accountable as the inspector rewords their stories to show them in the wrong. He shows the audience the callousness and immorality of the Birling’s whilst he associates these negative ideologies with

This is immediately seen at the beginning through the ironic use of the homophones in his name, ghoul and ‘goole’, the audience is immediately given a sign that the inspector is a supernatural figure and not what he seems. We can see this idea being enhanced through the inspector not being a real police inspector, this causes the audience to wonder at why the inspector was there at all and they are left with the idea of his omniscience and him as a somewhat higher power. This idea of the inspector being a supernatural justice figure is emphasised through the tricolon of apocalyptic imagery ‘if men will not learn their lesson, then they will be taught it in fire and blood and anguish’. This tricolon further enhances how karma will affect the audience if they do not learn from the messages of this play. The use of the pronoun ‘they’ and not we, shows the detachment from men suggesting he is a higher power and a conscience figure. This idea is further accentuated through the cyclical structure of the play as the ending repeats the beginning, we are left with the impression that if the elder Birling’s had learnt from the inspector and accepted blame that the inspector would not visit again. As the audience leaves, they reflect on their own behaviour and moral views as they worry for their own