The play “An Inspector calls” is an allegorical one and so Sheila Birling, the young daughter of the
Birling family, represents the open-minded younger generations in the upper middle classes during
the early twentieth century. Priestley uses her character as a proxy of the Inspector to contribute to
the moral message and voice his socialist beliefs.
In her first appearance Sheila is portrayed as a spoilt child. In the stage directions she is branded as
the unimpressive adjective “pretty” rather than beautiful perhaps alluding to her unmarried status.
However it also has connotations of fragility and flower-like and so could convey her vulnerability
and immaturity which could be due to her nurtured and privileged life. The same adjective is used to
describe Eva who is given a victimized outlook throughout the play as a working class, defenceless
woman. Therefore perhaps Priestley was suggesting that women in all classes had no social power or
voice during this period of time which emphasizes their inferiority in a male dominated society. Her
immaturity is further highlighted when her character uses the child-like nouns “Mummy” and
“Daddy” to address her parents which give her an innocent outlook and so perhaps implies that she
is dependent on them and could suggest that she has not faced any troubles in her lifetime as she
lived in her own upper class bubble. She is also portrayed a materialistic character as comments of
the engagement “ring” with the phrase “never let it go out of my sight” where the “ring” could serve
as a metaphor for luxury and wealth and so the powerful hyperbolic word “never” could convey her
greedy nature at the start of the play which gives her a negative impression. Priestley may have
given Sheila this kind of first impression to show how the upper class were so absorbed in
materialism and money that they were oblivious to the struggles of people who are less fortunate
and to their own people and so shows the negative effects of capitalism as he had socialist beliefs.
Moreover at the start of the play Priestley presents Sheila as a capitalist symbol like the rest of her
family. Her story to the Inspector depicts her lack of consideration for others and her jealous nature
which is one of the seven deadly sins. She says that if Eva was a “miserable plain creature” then she
would not have got her fired from Milward’s. Perhaps the harsh noun “creature” refers to other
working class people which connotes ideas of an animal or servant and therefore suggests that she
thought of them as beneath her and not even human beings. Priestley viewed Capitalism as selfish,
the desire for personal gain and profit distancing people from a more compassionate and Christian
outlook. Priestley believed that with the means of production being owned by businessmen, the
relationship between employer and workforce became impersonal and uncaring. Therefore it
became easier for the upper classes to stereotype the working classes as separate, amorphous and
undeserving. This led to a ‘them and us’ attitude and can be seen through Sheila’s words. This would
have garnered a negative response from the 1946 audience as the war had inclined all classes to
work together and had created a sense of unity and so many people knew that they needed a
change in the social system which had been caused by capitalism.
However as the play progresses Priestley makes Sheila’s character undergo a drastic change as she
begins to become a more mature and strong woman. As the play progresses she begins to refer to
Mrs Birling as the more formal address “Mother” which is a contrast through her previous infantile
mode of address which showcases her growing maturity and becoming less reliant on her parents as
she gains awareness of social responsibility. Perhaps it could also imply that Sheila’s views of her
parents is shifting as it suggests that she has a more colder view of them and this could be due to her
awareness of their callous behaviour towards those who are less fortunate. This notion is further
continued when she uses irony when she is appalled by her parents’ attitudes to carry on as before
when she says “I suppose we are all nice people now.” This irony conveys the notion that Sheila
completely disagrees with her parents as she understands the Inspector’s moral message and so her
role in her family as a young woman grows as she begins to voice her opinions. It also could highlight
tension felt between the younger and older generation and even serve as a metaphor to represent
Birling family, represents the open-minded younger generations in the upper middle classes during
the early twentieth century. Priestley uses her character as a proxy of the Inspector to contribute to
the moral message and voice his socialist beliefs.
In her first appearance Sheila is portrayed as a spoilt child. In the stage directions she is branded as
the unimpressive adjective “pretty” rather than beautiful perhaps alluding to her unmarried status.
However it also has connotations of fragility and flower-like and so could convey her vulnerability
and immaturity which could be due to her nurtured and privileged life. The same adjective is used to
describe Eva who is given a victimized outlook throughout the play as a working class, defenceless
woman. Therefore perhaps Priestley was suggesting that women in all classes had no social power or
voice during this period of time which emphasizes their inferiority in a male dominated society. Her
immaturity is further highlighted when her character uses the child-like nouns “Mummy” and
“Daddy” to address her parents which give her an innocent outlook and so perhaps implies that she
is dependent on them and could suggest that she has not faced any troubles in her lifetime as she
lived in her own upper class bubble. She is also portrayed a materialistic character as comments of
the engagement “ring” with the phrase “never let it go out of my sight” where the “ring” could serve
as a metaphor for luxury and wealth and so the powerful hyperbolic word “never” could convey her
greedy nature at the start of the play which gives her a negative impression. Priestley may have
given Sheila this kind of first impression to show how the upper class were so absorbed in
materialism and money that they were oblivious to the struggles of people who are less fortunate
and to their own people and so shows the negative effects of capitalism as he had socialist beliefs.
Moreover at the start of the play Priestley presents Sheila as a capitalist symbol like the rest of her
family. Her story to the Inspector depicts her lack of consideration for others and her jealous nature
which is one of the seven deadly sins. She says that if Eva was a “miserable plain creature” then she
would not have got her fired from Milward’s. Perhaps the harsh noun “creature” refers to other
working class people which connotes ideas of an animal or servant and therefore suggests that she
thought of them as beneath her and not even human beings. Priestley viewed Capitalism as selfish,
the desire for personal gain and profit distancing people from a more compassionate and Christian
outlook. Priestley believed that with the means of production being owned by businessmen, the
relationship between employer and workforce became impersonal and uncaring. Therefore it
became easier for the upper classes to stereotype the working classes as separate, amorphous and
undeserving. This led to a ‘them and us’ attitude and can be seen through Sheila’s words. This would
have garnered a negative response from the 1946 audience as the war had inclined all classes to
work together and had created a sense of unity and so many people knew that they needed a
change in the social system which had been caused by capitalism.
However as the play progresses Priestley makes Sheila’s character undergo a drastic change as she
begins to become a more mature and strong woman. As the play progresses she begins to refer to
Mrs Birling as the more formal address “Mother” which is a contrast through her previous infantile
mode of address which showcases her growing maturity and becoming less reliant on her parents as
she gains awareness of social responsibility. Perhaps it could also imply that Sheila’s views of her
parents is shifting as it suggests that she has a more colder view of them and this could be due to her
awareness of their callous behaviour towards those who are less fortunate. This notion is further
continued when she uses irony when she is appalled by her parents’ attitudes to carry on as before
when she says “I suppose we are all nice people now.” This irony conveys the notion that Sheila
completely disagrees with her parents as she understands the Inspector’s moral message and so her
role in her family as a young woman grows as she begins to voice her opinions. It also could highlight
tension felt between the younger and older generation and even serve as a metaphor to represent
