Eva Smith
In Priestley’s enigmatic morality play, “An Inspector Calls”, Eva Smith is a victim of social
injustice, who embodies the suffering of the proletariat -in particular the voiceless women-
who suffered at the hands of the affluent. Arguably, Priestley intended for the audience to
form an affinity for the plight of Eva Smith, and consequently accept a sense of collective
responsibility themselves. Priestley deliberately presents her as a moral, yet severely
mistreated character in order to elicit sympathy for her and, by proxy, the wider working
classes.
Possibly, Priestley intended to evoke this sympathy through the rational voice of Inspector
Goole as he describes “Young women counting their pennies in dingy little back bedrooms”
to the Birlings. By specifically highlighting “women”, Priestley conveys that women faced
more challenges as they were afforded fewer rights. Unmarried women, like Eva Smith, were
moral outcasts, considered to be on the outskirts of society. Furthermore, the noun “Pennies”
is synonymous with poverty and an utter scarcity of charity. Eva Smith – and the innumerable
other women in her situation - suffered a lack of financial independence. Thus, the “dingy”
living conditions of these women were squalid, cramped and uncomfortable. This is in direct
contrast to the luxurious description of the Birling’s house in the opening stage directions,
highlighting the social inequality at the time. Hidden from the view of society, the issue of
inequality is not acknowledged- certainly not by those with privilege. Through his symbolic
portrayal of poverty, Priestley allows his audiences to reflect on their own behaviour and
embrace a more equal and caring society. A post war audience would be particularly receptive
to this more socialist ideology, having suffered serious hardships themselves.
Throughout the play, Eva is treated like a commodity and taken advantage of by all the
wealthy men in the play. She is used, abused, lied to and ultimately forced to play the
stereotypical part of victim. This is a reflection of the way that women living in poverty were
ultimately bound to suffer at the hands of more powerful men. One such powerful man is Eric
Birling who, in the falling action, describes Eva as “pretty and a good sport”. Priestley’s use of
patronising adjective “pretty” reduces her to her looks and implies that Eric does not see value
in her beyond her physical attractiveness. Moreover, by calling her a “good sport”, Eric
demonstrates that he has little respect Eva as his objectifying description dehumanises her,
turning her into a plaything that is not taken seriously. This is symbolic of how little respect
and credit women were given in Edwardian society and creates the disturbing image of a rich
man using poor woman for gratification. A post war audience, who had embraced more
feminist views, would be shocked and appalled by this sexist mistreatment.
It is only the inspector that sees to the heart of Eva’s plight and how she is symbolic of the
suffering of many at the hands of the ignorant affluent. Her somewhat generic story alludes
to the fact that suffering is endemic in Edwardian society, though only acknowledged by
socialists. The Inspector states that “There are millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John
Smiths”. Priestley’s repetition of “millions” and use of hyperbole emphasises how widespread
the suffering of young, impoverished men and women is. Cleverly, “Smith” is traditionally
common surname and so is associated with anonymity. This makes Eva feel unheard unseen
and unacknowledged. In some ways it dehumanises her as it strips her of her individuality. In
In Priestley’s enigmatic morality play, “An Inspector Calls”, Eva Smith is a victim of social
injustice, who embodies the suffering of the proletariat -in particular the voiceless women-
who suffered at the hands of the affluent. Arguably, Priestley intended for the audience to
form an affinity for the plight of Eva Smith, and consequently accept a sense of collective
responsibility themselves. Priestley deliberately presents her as a moral, yet severely
mistreated character in order to elicit sympathy for her and, by proxy, the wider working
classes.
Possibly, Priestley intended to evoke this sympathy through the rational voice of Inspector
Goole as he describes “Young women counting their pennies in dingy little back bedrooms”
to the Birlings. By specifically highlighting “women”, Priestley conveys that women faced
more challenges as they were afforded fewer rights. Unmarried women, like Eva Smith, were
moral outcasts, considered to be on the outskirts of society. Furthermore, the noun “Pennies”
is synonymous with poverty and an utter scarcity of charity. Eva Smith – and the innumerable
other women in her situation - suffered a lack of financial independence. Thus, the “dingy”
living conditions of these women were squalid, cramped and uncomfortable. This is in direct
contrast to the luxurious description of the Birling’s house in the opening stage directions,
highlighting the social inequality at the time. Hidden from the view of society, the issue of
inequality is not acknowledged- certainly not by those with privilege. Through his symbolic
portrayal of poverty, Priestley allows his audiences to reflect on their own behaviour and
embrace a more equal and caring society. A post war audience would be particularly receptive
to this more socialist ideology, having suffered serious hardships themselves.
Throughout the play, Eva is treated like a commodity and taken advantage of by all the
wealthy men in the play. She is used, abused, lied to and ultimately forced to play the
stereotypical part of victim. This is a reflection of the way that women living in poverty were
ultimately bound to suffer at the hands of more powerful men. One such powerful man is Eric
Birling who, in the falling action, describes Eva as “pretty and a good sport”. Priestley’s use of
patronising adjective “pretty” reduces her to her looks and implies that Eric does not see value
in her beyond her physical attractiveness. Moreover, by calling her a “good sport”, Eric
demonstrates that he has little respect Eva as his objectifying description dehumanises her,
turning her into a plaything that is not taken seriously. This is symbolic of how little respect
and credit women were given in Edwardian society and creates the disturbing image of a rich
man using poor woman for gratification. A post war audience, who had embraced more
feminist views, would be shocked and appalled by this sexist mistreatment.
It is only the inspector that sees to the heart of Eva’s plight and how she is symbolic of the
suffering of many at the hands of the ignorant affluent. Her somewhat generic story alludes
to the fact that suffering is endemic in Edwardian society, though only acknowledged by
socialists. The Inspector states that “There are millions and millions of Eva Smiths and John
Smiths”. Priestley’s repetition of “millions” and use of hyperbole emphasises how widespread
the suffering of young, impoverished men and women is. Cleverly, “Smith” is traditionally
common surname and so is associated with anonymity. This makes Eva feel unheard unseen
and unacknowledged. In some ways it dehumanises her as it strips her of her individuality. In
