Mr Birling
P.1: Insecure in middle class society as he wasn’t born into it as
his wife - his “social superior” - was. Therefore he is eager to
impress Gerald.
Play opens with port - “exactly the same port [Gerald’s] father
gets.”
Port was expensive and associated with the wealthy: Birling
wishes to show off his wealth to others
Gerald has a higher social status than the Birlings so Mr Birling
would like to appear more distinguished than he actually is.
In buying the same port as Gerald’s father, Mr Birling is
presented as someone who is eager to be recognised by
others as sophisticated.
However the stage directions reveal to us that he is
“rather provincial in his speech”, suggesting to the
audience that he wasn’t born middle class.
By presenting Mr Birling as a relentless social
climber, Priestley perhaps criticises the
hierarchical system by suggesting that even when
someone such as Mr Birling is in a comfortable
position, they will always want to be more
distinguished.
Furthermore, Mr Birling’s name Arthur could be an ironic reference
to the legend of King Arthur. Similarly to King Arthur pulling the
sword out of the stone and becoming King, Arthur Birling climbed
the social ladder by growing his business.
However this allusion to King Arthur undermines Mr Birling as
whilst King Arthur used his power to work towards equality,
ruling with a round table symbolising this, Arthur Birling does
not know what to do with his power other than flaunt it.
In this juxtaposition of the great ruler King Arthur and
his comparatively feeble namesake Mr Birling, Priestley
implies the uselessness of wealth and social status in
the 20th century.
P.2: Represents capitalism and the outdated pre-war society
He repeatedly portrays himself as a “hard-headed, practical man of
business”.
This is an allusion to the 1945 Labour manifesto, which
criticised the “hard-faced men” who profited off of the war.
Priestley uses this as a subtle call for the audience to vote
Labour, as he uses almost ridiculous amounts of dramatic
P.1: Insecure in middle class society as he wasn’t born into it as
his wife - his “social superior” - was. Therefore he is eager to
impress Gerald.
Play opens with port - “exactly the same port [Gerald’s] father
gets.”
Port was expensive and associated with the wealthy: Birling
wishes to show off his wealth to others
Gerald has a higher social status than the Birlings so Mr Birling
would like to appear more distinguished than he actually is.
In buying the same port as Gerald’s father, Mr Birling is
presented as someone who is eager to be recognised by
others as sophisticated.
However the stage directions reveal to us that he is
“rather provincial in his speech”, suggesting to the
audience that he wasn’t born middle class.
By presenting Mr Birling as a relentless social
climber, Priestley perhaps criticises the
hierarchical system by suggesting that even when
someone such as Mr Birling is in a comfortable
position, they will always want to be more
distinguished.
Furthermore, Mr Birling’s name Arthur could be an ironic reference
to the legend of King Arthur. Similarly to King Arthur pulling the
sword out of the stone and becoming King, Arthur Birling climbed
the social ladder by growing his business.
However this allusion to King Arthur undermines Mr Birling as
whilst King Arthur used his power to work towards equality,
ruling with a round table symbolising this, Arthur Birling does
not know what to do with his power other than flaunt it.
In this juxtaposition of the great ruler King Arthur and
his comparatively feeble namesake Mr Birling, Priestley
implies the uselessness of wealth and social status in
the 20th century.
P.2: Represents capitalism and the outdated pre-war society
He repeatedly portrays himself as a “hard-headed, practical man of
business”.
This is an allusion to the 1945 Labour manifesto, which
criticised the “hard-faced men” who profited off of the war.
Priestley uses this as a subtle call for the audience to vote
Labour, as he uses almost ridiculous amounts of dramatic
