How does Priestley portray the concept of blame in An Inspector Calls?
Neither Mr Birling nor Mrs Birling accepts responsibility for their part in Eva’s
death. Mrs Birling shifts blame from Eva to the father of Eva’s child, ‘she only
has herself to blame…go look for the father of the child. It’s his responsibility’.
The structural shift represents the extent of her denial. Mrs Birling’s blaming of
Eva Smith for her misfortune reflects the attitude that some upper-class
individuals held at the time of writing - that the poor deserved misfortune,
unlike the upper classes who were entitled to their wealth. These individuals
were against the creation of a welfare state.
Inspector Goole’s role in the play is to encourage self-reflection and self-
blame. This is reflected in the stage directions - the lighting becomes ‘brighter
and harder’ when the inspector arrives to symbolise his shedding light on
character flaws and immoral actions. Priestley was using the character of
Inspector Goole to encourage his contemporaries to reflect on their actions to
ask themselves whether or not they were doing enough to support the poor in
the aftermath of the world wars.
Sheila and Eric blame themselves for their role in Eva Smith’s death by the
end of the play. The structural change in their attitudes suggests that Priestley
had hope for the younger generations who were adopting socialist views and
pushing for social inequality in the early 20th century.
Neither Mr Birling nor Mrs Birling accepts responsibility for their part in Eva’s
death. Mrs Birling shifts blame from Eva to the father of Eva’s child, ‘she only
has herself to blame…go look for the father of the child. It’s his responsibility’.
The structural shift represents the extent of her denial. Mrs Birling’s blaming of
Eva Smith for her misfortune reflects the attitude that some upper-class
individuals held at the time of writing - that the poor deserved misfortune,
unlike the upper classes who were entitled to their wealth. These individuals
were against the creation of a welfare state.
Inspector Goole’s role in the play is to encourage self-reflection and self-
blame. This is reflected in the stage directions - the lighting becomes ‘brighter
and harder’ when the inspector arrives to symbolise his shedding light on
character flaws and immoral actions. Priestley was using the character of
Inspector Goole to encourage his contemporaries to reflect on their actions to
ask themselves whether or not they were doing enough to support the poor in
the aftermath of the world wars.
Sheila and Eric blame themselves for their role in Eva Smith’s death by the
end of the play. The structural change in their attitudes suggests that Priestley
had hope for the younger generations who were adopting socialist views and
pushing for social inequality in the early 20th century.
