An inspector calls key quotes
Act one
‘The general effect is substantial and heavily comfortable, but not cosy and homelike’
‘The lighting should be pink and intimate until the inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter
and harder’
‘Arthur birling is a heavy looking, rather portentous man in his middle fifties’
‘Arthur birling….with fairly easy manners but rather provincial in his speech’
‘Her husband’s social superior’
‘Sheila is a pretty girl in her twenties’
‘Gerald croft is an attractive chap around 30’
‘Like one of these purples faced men’
‘Here, I’m not a purple faced man’
‘Just a little, thank you’ (Mrs birling about wine)
‘Arthur you’re not supposed to say such things-’
‘I was awfully busy at the works all that time’
‘Men with important work to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time and energy on
their business’
‘When you’re married you will realise’
‘Really, the things you girls pick up these days!’
‘Eric, when you’ve a daughter of your own, you’ll understand why’
‘you’re just the kind of son in law I’ve always wanted’
‘Are working together- for lower costs and higher prices.’
‘Arthur, I don’t think you ought to talk about business on an occasion like this’
‘I hope it won’t be too long before you’re married’
‘There’s a good deal of silly talk nowadays’
‘I speak as a hard-headed businessman’
‘ You can ignore all this silly pessimistic talk’
‘we’ve passed the worst of it’
‘The Germans don’t want war’
‘And I say there isn’t a chance of war’
‘And unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable’
‘a few German officers talking nonsense’
‘Silly little war scares’
‘Except of course in Russia, which will always be behindhand naturally’
‘I’m talking too much’
‘I might find my way into the next honours list’
‘Mother says we mustn’t stay too long. But I don’t think it matters’
‘you’d think a girl had never had any clothes before she got married’
‘Women are potty about them’
‘Clothes mean something quite different to a woman’
‘a sort of sign or token of their self-respect’
‘You don’t know what some of these boys get up to nowadays’
‘a man has to make his own way’
‘Has to look after himself- and his family too’
‘Like bees in a hive’
‘Community and all that nonsense’
‘a man has to mind his own business’
‘I wanted you to have the benefit of my experience’
‘An inspector? What kind of inspector?’
Act one
‘The general effect is substantial and heavily comfortable, but not cosy and homelike’
‘The lighting should be pink and intimate until the inspector arrives, and then it should be brighter
and harder’
‘Arthur birling is a heavy looking, rather portentous man in his middle fifties’
‘Arthur birling….with fairly easy manners but rather provincial in his speech’
‘Her husband’s social superior’
‘Sheila is a pretty girl in her twenties’
‘Gerald croft is an attractive chap around 30’
‘Like one of these purples faced men’
‘Here, I’m not a purple faced man’
‘Just a little, thank you’ (Mrs birling about wine)
‘Arthur you’re not supposed to say such things-’
‘I was awfully busy at the works all that time’
‘Men with important work to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time and energy on
their business’
‘When you’re married you will realise’
‘Really, the things you girls pick up these days!’
‘Eric, when you’ve a daughter of your own, you’ll understand why’
‘you’re just the kind of son in law I’ve always wanted’
‘Are working together- for lower costs and higher prices.’
‘Arthur, I don’t think you ought to talk about business on an occasion like this’
‘I hope it won’t be too long before you’re married’
‘There’s a good deal of silly talk nowadays’
‘I speak as a hard-headed businessman’
‘ You can ignore all this silly pessimistic talk’
‘we’ve passed the worst of it’
‘The Germans don’t want war’
‘And I say there isn’t a chance of war’
‘And unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable’
‘a few German officers talking nonsense’
‘Silly little war scares’
‘Except of course in Russia, which will always be behindhand naturally’
‘I’m talking too much’
‘I might find my way into the next honours list’
‘Mother says we mustn’t stay too long. But I don’t think it matters’
‘you’d think a girl had never had any clothes before she got married’
‘Women are potty about them’
‘Clothes mean something quite different to a woman’
‘a sort of sign or token of their self-respect’
‘You don’t know what some of these boys get up to nowadays’
‘a man has to make his own way’
‘Has to look after himself- and his family too’
‘Like bees in a hive’
‘Community and all that nonsense’
‘a man has to mind his own business’
‘I wanted you to have the benefit of my experience’
‘An inspector? What kind of inspector?’