Form & Structure - An Inspector Calls
Why is 'An Inspector Calls' a Play? Correct Ans-1. The audience is held captive and cannot
gain respite from the interrogation. This fulfils Priestley's
objective of forcing the audience to reflect on themselves as they gain that same intensity that the
characters on stage feel
2. Priestley wrote 'Theatre Outlook' shortly after An Inspector Calls in which he declares that
"you on your side cannot fully enjoy what is happening unless you....become part of the audience
and indeed part of the whole performance, sharing the collective response and experience." It
joins the audience collectively and breaks down the barriers of individualism, reflecting the key
theme of £we are members of one body." Therefore, we can argue that the form of the text
actually helps to create a glimpse of the collective society Priestley is calling for
The Well Made Play Correct Ans-Features of the Well Made Play:
1. Plot - there is one main story and most of it happens before the play begins. In 'An Inspector
Calls', the characters' interactions with Eva take place before the play begins
2. Entrances and Exits - the timings of these must develop tension and increase suspense. For
example, Sheila sees the photograph of Eva, and leaves the stage in distress. Priestley increases
tension by making the audience wait for her next entrance and her revelations
3. Revelations about identity - in the play, the 'chain of events', reveals that each character has
influenced the life of Eva smith who, it later transpires, is also Daisy Renton
4. Complications - clashes between The Inspector and the characters, clashes between the older
and younger generations, and clashes in attitude to class. These clashes have an important
purpose: to focus the attention of the audience on his socialist message, centred around the plot
device of Eva
5. Exposition - at the beginning of the play, we are introduced to the characters and relationships
, 6. Climactic curtain - where an act or scene ends on an incredibly tense and dramatic moment.
For example, at the end of Act 1, when Sheila has confronted Gerald about his affair with Eva,
the Inspector enters and asks "Well?". Then the curtain falls, leaving the audience in suspense-
they question how he knows about Gerald's affair with Eva
7. Obligatory Scene - a scene essential to the play where a secret is revealed, which adds drama
and tension e.g. when The Inspector reveals Eva's suicide and that disinfectant had "burnt her
inside out". It is the reason why The Inspector calls on the Birlings and so is an obligatory scene
8. Denouement - a scene at the end that ties up loose ends. This intentionally does not feature in
An Inspector Calls to leave the audience on a note of ten
Detective Story/Whodunnit Correct Ans-1. The play can be likened to a Whodunnit murder
mystery. A traditional Whodunnit contains a detective that questions suspects and eventually
narrows down the list of suspects to just one - the criminal. At the same time, the audience enjoys
piecing together the "chain of events" and trying to work out who the culprit is
2. Priestley inverts this idea by Inspector Goole revealing that everyone is responsible for the
death of Eva smith. By inverting the audience's expectations of the genre, Priestley presents his
key message of social responsibility, and he encourages the audience to consider their own
actions to others
Morality Play Correct Ans-In 'An Inspector Calls', The Inspector encourages the characters to
confess their sins and to repent. This is similar to the Morality Play which originated in the
Middle Ages and had characters that played the Seven Deadly Sins: envy (jealousy), wrath
(anger), sloth (laziness), avarice (greed), gluttony, lust
1. Mr Birling - Avarice/Greed, Gluttony: he is a capitalist, greedy for money and exploiting
others for "lower costs and higher prices". Elements of gluttony are on the table in the opening
stage directions
Why is 'An Inspector Calls' a Play? Correct Ans-1. The audience is held captive and cannot
gain respite from the interrogation. This fulfils Priestley's
objective of forcing the audience to reflect on themselves as they gain that same intensity that the
characters on stage feel
2. Priestley wrote 'Theatre Outlook' shortly after An Inspector Calls in which he declares that
"you on your side cannot fully enjoy what is happening unless you....become part of the audience
and indeed part of the whole performance, sharing the collective response and experience." It
joins the audience collectively and breaks down the barriers of individualism, reflecting the key
theme of £we are members of one body." Therefore, we can argue that the form of the text
actually helps to create a glimpse of the collective society Priestley is calling for
The Well Made Play Correct Ans-Features of the Well Made Play:
1. Plot - there is one main story and most of it happens before the play begins. In 'An Inspector
Calls', the characters' interactions with Eva take place before the play begins
2. Entrances and Exits - the timings of these must develop tension and increase suspense. For
example, Sheila sees the photograph of Eva, and leaves the stage in distress. Priestley increases
tension by making the audience wait for her next entrance and her revelations
3. Revelations about identity - in the play, the 'chain of events', reveals that each character has
influenced the life of Eva smith who, it later transpires, is also Daisy Renton
4. Complications - clashes between The Inspector and the characters, clashes between the older
and younger generations, and clashes in attitude to class. These clashes have an important
purpose: to focus the attention of the audience on his socialist message, centred around the plot
device of Eva
5. Exposition - at the beginning of the play, we are introduced to the characters and relationships
, 6. Climactic curtain - where an act or scene ends on an incredibly tense and dramatic moment.
For example, at the end of Act 1, when Sheila has confronted Gerald about his affair with Eva,
the Inspector enters and asks "Well?". Then the curtain falls, leaving the audience in suspense-
they question how he knows about Gerald's affair with Eva
7. Obligatory Scene - a scene essential to the play where a secret is revealed, which adds drama
and tension e.g. when The Inspector reveals Eva's suicide and that disinfectant had "burnt her
inside out". It is the reason why The Inspector calls on the Birlings and so is an obligatory scene
8. Denouement - a scene at the end that ties up loose ends. This intentionally does not feature in
An Inspector Calls to leave the audience on a note of ten
Detective Story/Whodunnit Correct Ans-1. The play can be likened to a Whodunnit murder
mystery. A traditional Whodunnit contains a detective that questions suspects and eventually
narrows down the list of suspects to just one - the criminal. At the same time, the audience enjoys
piecing together the "chain of events" and trying to work out who the culprit is
2. Priestley inverts this idea by Inspector Goole revealing that everyone is responsible for the
death of Eva smith. By inverting the audience's expectations of the genre, Priestley presents his
key message of social responsibility, and he encourages the audience to consider their own
actions to others
Morality Play Correct Ans-In 'An Inspector Calls', The Inspector encourages the characters to
confess their sins and to repent. This is similar to the Morality Play which originated in the
Middle Ages and had characters that played the Seven Deadly Sins: envy (jealousy), wrath
(anger), sloth (laziness), avarice (greed), gluttony, lust
1. Mr Birling - Avarice/Greed, Gluttony: he is a capitalist, greedy for money and exploiting
others for "lower costs and higher prices". Elements of gluttony are on the table in the opening
stage directions
