An Inspector Calls Quotes UPDATED
ACTUAL Exam Questions and CORRECT
Answers
STAGE DIRECTIONS: "The lightning should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives,
and then it should be brighter and harder.' - CORRECT ANSWER - Context: The Burnings
enjoy a lifestyle conducted away from the prying eyes of society- When the Inspector arrives, his
aim is to shine a light on their behaviour.
Evaluation: The lightning is symbolic of how the Birlings live their lives, and what the
Inspectors role is in the play. "Pink" suggests both a luxurious lifestyle and a gentle, comfortable
way of living. The Inspector brings a 'brighter" light that foreshadows the fact that he intends to
shine a light on the way they behave. "Intimidate" has associations with a close knit family (or
the closed ranks of the upper classes). The Inspector plans to expose this with a "harder" light.
Technique: Stage directions; Symbolism.
BIRLING: 'l'm talking as a hard-headed, practical man of business.' - CORRECT
ANSWER - Context: Birling behaves as a patriarch (male head of the family) should do -
society would expect him to be a provider for his family, unemotional and rational, focusing on
the family business and maintaining their wealth.
Evaluation: The alliteration of the "h" sound in the "hard headed", a phrase biding repeats
frequently, has a cold tone, mimicking his coldness towards his workers. "Hard" shows Birling
has no caring, compassionate side, and "headed" suggests he views things with his head, not
heart - he has no sympathy- Birling is giving us this speech at his daughter's engagement, yet he
does not identify himself as a father or husband, but as a 'practical man af business'. His main
role in society is as a businessman, not a father.
Technique: Characterisation; alliteration.
BIRLING: "Lady Croft while she doesn't object to my girl - feels you might have done better for
yourself socially." - CORRECT ANSWER - Context: Birling makes clear he knows that
Lady Croft feels the Birlings are beneath them socially - to their generation, marriage is about
social status. not love.
Evaluation: Biding refers to Sheila as "my girl". It may be this is said with a sense of pride, but
the tone seems to be one of ownership rather than love. The phrase "done better" makes marriage
seem like a competition Gerald has failed. The word "socially" has nothing to do with love or
compassion, but entirely to do with public appearance. The hesitant sentence structure from
, Biding highlights how the upper classes don't talk openly and honestly they prefer to keep things
private
Technique: Characterisation; Sentence structure; Plot.
BIRLING: "I was Lord Mayor here two years ago when Royalty visited us. And I've always been
regarded as a sound, useful party man. So well -- I gather there's a very good chance of a
knighthood." - CORRECT ANSWER - Context: Birling is determined to show his value to
Gerald and Lady Croft by emphasizing his
movement through the establishment and up the social ranks.
Evaluation: Birling doesn't focus on Sheila's value as a person - instead, he lists words from the
semantic field of power and politics- "Lord Mayer", "Royalty" and "knighthood" focus on upper
class hierarchy (social ranking) and influence. Being a "sound, useful party man" suggests
Birding believes in hierarchy and not questioning those above you - when the "party" tell him to
do or think something, he does it.
Technique; word Choice; Characterisation.
BIRLING: "Everybody has to look after everybody else, as if we were all mixed up together like
bees in a hive - community and all that nonsense." - CORRECT ANSWER - Context:
Birling dismisses the idea of community. The play is set pre-war but performed after World War
Two, a time when the county had to come together.
Evaluation: The simile refers to "bees", insects that are all workers, except a single queen bee -
there would be no hierarchy for Biding to abuse. "A hive" is an enclosed space with nowhere to
hide from responsibilities. Words such as "everybody", "together" and "community" are
dismissed by Birling as they suggest people need to take responsibility for others. Being "mixed
up" would alter the class system that protects the Birlings, hence his dismissive and patronising
tone when describing it as "nonsense".
Technique: Characterisation; Key quote.
INSPECTOR: "She'd swallowed a lot of strong disinfectant. Burnt her inside out, of course." -
CORRECT ANSWER - Cortext: The inspector is determined to let the Birlings and the
audience know just how horrific Eva Smith's death was, and the suffering she went through,
Evaluation: The inspector makes Eva's suffering explicit. The adverb "a lot" highlights the
desperate desire of Eva to die, and the adjective "strong" re-emphasises her determination to kill
herself. The imagery of "burnt her inside out" emphasises her physical pain but also refers to
how the Birlings similarly "burnt ' her both inside and out. The inspector's tone when he says "of
ACTUAL Exam Questions and CORRECT
Answers
STAGE DIRECTIONS: "The lightning should be pink and intimate until the Inspector arrives,
and then it should be brighter and harder.' - CORRECT ANSWER - Context: The Burnings
enjoy a lifestyle conducted away from the prying eyes of society- When the Inspector arrives, his
aim is to shine a light on their behaviour.
Evaluation: The lightning is symbolic of how the Birlings live their lives, and what the
Inspectors role is in the play. "Pink" suggests both a luxurious lifestyle and a gentle, comfortable
way of living. The Inspector brings a 'brighter" light that foreshadows the fact that he intends to
shine a light on the way they behave. "Intimidate" has associations with a close knit family (or
the closed ranks of the upper classes). The Inspector plans to expose this with a "harder" light.
Technique: Stage directions; Symbolism.
BIRLING: 'l'm talking as a hard-headed, practical man of business.' - CORRECT
ANSWER - Context: Birling behaves as a patriarch (male head of the family) should do -
society would expect him to be a provider for his family, unemotional and rational, focusing on
the family business and maintaining their wealth.
Evaluation: The alliteration of the "h" sound in the "hard headed", a phrase biding repeats
frequently, has a cold tone, mimicking his coldness towards his workers. "Hard" shows Birling
has no caring, compassionate side, and "headed" suggests he views things with his head, not
heart - he has no sympathy- Birling is giving us this speech at his daughter's engagement, yet he
does not identify himself as a father or husband, but as a 'practical man af business'. His main
role in society is as a businessman, not a father.
Technique: Characterisation; alliteration.
BIRLING: "Lady Croft while she doesn't object to my girl - feels you might have done better for
yourself socially." - CORRECT ANSWER - Context: Birling makes clear he knows that
Lady Croft feels the Birlings are beneath them socially - to their generation, marriage is about
social status. not love.
Evaluation: Biding refers to Sheila as "my girl". It may be this is said with a sense of pride, but
the tone seems to be one of ownership rather than love. The phrase "done better" makes marriage
seem like a competition Gerald has failed. The word "socially" has nothing to do with love or
compassion, but entirely to do with public appearance. The hesitant sentence structure from
, Biding highlights how the upper classes don't talk openly and honestly they prefer to keep things
private
Technique: Characterisation; Sentence structure; Plot.
BIRLING: "I was Lord Mayor here two years ago when Royalty visited us. And I've always been
regarded as a sound, useful party man. So well -- I gather there's a very good chance of a
knighthood." - CORRECT ANSWER - Context: Birling is determined to show his value to
Gerald and Lady Croft by emphasizing his
movement through the establishment and up the social ranks.
Evaluation: Birling doesn't focus on Sheila's value as a person - instead, he lists words from the
semantic field of power and politics- "Lord Mayer", "Royalty" and "knighthood" focus on upper
class hierarchy (social ranking) and influence. Being a "sound, useful party man" suggests
Birding believes in hierarchy and not questioning those above you - when the "party" tell him to
do or think something, he does it.
Technique; word Choice; Characterisation.
BIRLING: "Everybody has to look after everybody else, as if we were all mixed up together like
bees in a hive - community and all that nonsense." - CORRECT ANSWER - Context:
Birling dismisses the idea of community. The play is set pre-war but performed after World War
Two, a time when the county had to come together.
Evaluation: The simile refers to "bees", insects that are all workers, except a single queen bee -
there would be no hierarchy for Biding to abuse. "A hive" is an enclosed space with nowhere to
hide from responsibilities. Words such as "everybody", "together" and "community" are
dismissed by Birling as they suggest people need to take responsibility for others. Being "mixed
up" would alter the class system that protects the Birlings, hence his dismissive and patronising
tone when describing it as "nonsense".
Technique: Characterisation; Key quote.
INSPECTOR: "She'd swallowed a lot of strong disinfectant. Burnt her inside out, of course." -
CORRECT ANSWER - Cortext: The inspector is determined to let the Birlings and the
audience know just how horrific Eva Smith's death was, and the suffering she went through,
Evaluation: The inspector makes Eva's suffering explicit. The adverb "a lot" highlights the
desperate desire of Eva to die, and the adjective "strong" re-emphasises her determination to kill
herself. The imagery of "burnt her inside out" emphasises her physical pain but also refers to
how the Birlings similarly "burnt ' her both inside and out. The inspector's tone when he says "of
