The play "An Inspector Calls" explores moral responsibility and social justice through its complex characters and relationships.
Character development of Sheila Birling is central to the play's message. She transforms from a privileged, self-centered young woman into someone who recognizes her role in Eva Smith's death and accepts responsibility for her actions. Initially, Sheila uses her social position to have Eva fired from Milwards department store over a petty incident. However, as Inspector Goole's investigation unfolds, she shows genuine remorse and understanding of how her actions affected others. Unlike her parents, Sheila maintains her changed perspective even after learning the Inspector may have been fake.
The play also examines Gerald Croft's relationship with Daisy Renton (Eva Smith's alternate identity), revealing the power dynamics between social classes. Gerald initially helps Daisy escape poverty but ultimately abandons her for his own social convenience. This relationship exemplifies the exploitation of working-class women by upper-class men, a key criticism in Priestley's work. The themes of responsibility in An Inspector Calls are woven throughout these personal stories, showing how individual actions create a chain of events leading to tragedy. Priestley emphasizes collective responsibility through Inspector Goole's final speech, suggesting that if people don't learn to care for one another, they will "be taught in fire and blood and anguish." The play challenges the audience to consider their own moral obligations to society and questions whether wealth and status should exempt people from social responsibility. Through the interconnected stories of the Birling family and Gerald Croft, Priestley creates a powerful critique of class privilege and moral accountability in early 20th-century British society.
