S HEILA B IRLING

Priestley uses Sheila as an example for how the audience should react to the
inspector’s message; with receptivity and willingness to change.

Initial Impression
 Sheila is initially presented as jealous and shallow so that he can contrast it against her
development into a mature and morally-aware woman Summary
o Sheila is initially dislikeable  An exemplar for how the audience
 Priestley demonstrates her materialistic view of life through how she can only should respond to the inspector
“really feel engaged” once she owns a material token (i.e. the ring) of her  Initially presented as jealous and
relationship. shallow – shown to mature
 This suggests that the nature of the marriage is based upon money and strategy throughout the play
rather than love, as it doesn’t feel real until a financial investment has been  Represents the younger generation an
made  A product of her environment and her
 but it is also reflective of her superficial obsession with outward appearances family
o Superficial and materialistic  Parallels between Sheila and Eva
 Acts as the inspector’s proxy once he
 Needs material token of marriage
has left
 She is left with her mother talking about dresses
 Rejects the cycle of suffering by
 Always asks about appearance
rejecting her parent’s views
o her reaction to Eva’s suicide is to ask whether she was “pretty?”
 as though a person’s appearance is an integral part how they should be judged
and perceived.
 Priestley then develops this characteristic beyond being shallow and towards jealousy, as “pretty” continues to be
used when describing the Eva that Sheila got fired.
 By linking Sheila’s reasoning for getting Eva fired – “she was a very pretty girl” – to the
question she asked when finding out about a mysterious suicide, Priestley is suggesting that
“now I really feel
her enquiry was being used as a method for deciding whether Sheila would feel sympathy
engaged”
for Eva
 or whether she “could take care of herself”
 more suitable as a subject of jealousy than empathy.
 The fact that Sheila is shown thinking about appearance in relation to suicide shows just how shallow and prone to
jealousy she is
o therefore Priestley encourages the audience to form a negative first impression of her.
 However, Priestley could be implying that Sheila is a victim of society and her environment through her obsession
with physical appearance, as she is only judging other in the way that she herself if judged
o Women in 1912 had few rights and no political role to negotiate them
 Expected to marry, so poor standard of education
 Not independent in finance or employment
 Property of family until property of husband
 Reliant on both for stability and quality of life
 Women could get work but only low paid jobs were available to them (and they were paid less than men in them)
o She is accustomed to a life of comfort – a "fairly substantial" and "heavily comfortable" house
 Therefore, upper-class women are reliant upon finding a husband to maintain the standard of living they desire
 Cannot provide this for themselves as jobs and societal views prevent it
 Thus marriage for love is not open to them
o The only value a woman possesses is her ability to attract a man
 It is through a husband that they gain status and influence
 Obvious men only value looks – “she was very pretty”, “pretty and a good sport” and use of prostitutes
o Therefore, it is no surprise Sheila’s focus on marriage is material
 Feel safe once she knows money and financial security is involved (symbolised by the ring)
 View ring in terms of it being a “beauty”
 She has to be a “beauty” to maintain stability
o Her jealousy is also excused by it being valid “you’ll have to get
 Gerald did have an affair with other women used to that, just as I
 Sense that affairs are common – SB “you’ll have to get used to that, just as I had” had”
  Women must make compromises in marriage to obtain the stability they need in a world which discriminates
against female independence
 Eva is a threat, because any girl prettier than her could risk her being without a provider or way to provide for
herself
 Send her into Eva’s position
o Arguably it is not wrong for Sheila to be viewing the world in terms of beauty and judging others on their appearance,
as this is how she is judged and valued in the world
 Priestley establishes Sheila as a product of her environment and her parent’s manipulation
o lets the audience be more forgiving towards her behaviour.
o Through linguistic echoes of her parents’ words, he demonstrates that her dislikeable traits have been heavily
influenced by other people
 thus she cannot be held fully accountable.
o When she acts materialistically towards her engagement, it is merely a regurgitation of her
“impertinent”
father’s business orientated speech “such a silly word”
 marital toast to “lower costs and higher prices”
o Sheila’s jealous critique of Eva as “impertinent” is an out of character linguistic echo of her mother’s formal
mannerisms
 A link that is strengthened by Mrs Birling’s repeated use of the adjective “impertinent” later in the play
 And by Sheila’s objection to it as “such a silly word”.
o Sheila is usually more colloquial in her speech, practically touching upon slang through her use of “squiffy” and “jolly
well”
 her description of Eva as “impertinent” stands out to the audience and communicates Priestley’s defence of Sheila
as being influenced by her parents instead of acting out of a spiteful disposition.
 It is questionable whether Sheila can be blamed for treating Eva as inferior when that is how she has been raised
to act.
o This is a necessary distinction to make, as Priestley uses his didactic play to target the younger generation, and so it is
necessary for him to stress the importance of rejecting the conservative, outdated views of one’s parents in order to
reform society along socialist lines.
 Priestley establishes parallels between Sheila and Eva in order to show that the progression of a woman’s
life depends entirely on the family she is born into.
o This in turn allows him to comment on the inequality within society, as Sheila’s life is easy because she is
upper class, whilst Eva’s life has been full of suffering due to her being of lower class.
o Sheila is described as a “pretty girl in her early twenties”; this is similar to the
description of Eva as “twenty-four” and “very pretty”. “pretty girl in her
 Sheila’s looming wedding and respected husband makes her “very excited” by the early twenties”
future
 Eva was so terrified of what tomorrow held that she killed herself.
o The contrast between the lives of the two young women is emphasised by making them similar in all ways
except class – even down to the men they are connected to
 Sheila is engaged to Gerald whilst Eva is exploited by him as a mistress
 Sheila is related to (and teases) Eric whilst Eva is raped by him.
o Because class is what differentiates them, the audience is given the impression that it is class that
determines that Sheila will live an easy, carefree life whilst Eva is subject to constant suffering
 therefore, Priestley is able to use Sheila as evidence of the divisive nature of social class and how it
creates undeserved privilege and undeserved persecution.
 Two things society would be better off without.
 Alternatively, Priestley could have made Eva and Sheila similar to offer the audience with an explanation
for why Sheila is the most able to emphasise with the lower classes
o (and thus the most receptive to Priestley’s messages of socialism, conveyed through the inspector).
o As well as a physical similarity, they are both subject to societal oppression.
 Whilst Sheila is privileged, she still has a greatly diminished role in society due to being a woman, and in
line with 1912 values, she is expected to obey the men in her life (be it Mr Birling or Gerald)
 submit to their decisions – namely marriage to a man who’s lack of fidelity she can criticize only
“half seriously”, and whose frequent absence she is expected to “get used to”.
o She is not exploited like Eva is, but she is still of controlled by men and stripped of any authority or
autonomy.
 
Consequently, the audience might conclude that, because Sheila is able to recognise herself in Eva, she
is more able to put herself in Eva’s desperate position and view the events the inspector describes
through Eva’s perspective
 Links events together and understands that their combination led to Eva’s suicide
 Sees Eva as a real person – “these girls aren’t cheap labour – they’re people”
o This personal level of perception means that Sheila is unable to dismiss her own role in Eva’s death
 she never attempts to make excuses for her actions or hide what she did.
 This is in sharp contrast to the other members of her family who have to be prompted by the inspector
to talk, or who try to avoid their role (either by leaving like Eric, or refusing to admit responsibility like
Mrs Birling).
o Therefore, Priestley is able to prove – through Sheila – that in order for the audience members to improve
society and avoid being the cause of suffering, it is necessary for them to stop disconnecting themselves
from the lower classes, and instead start viewing the world from the perspective of the persecuted.
 Priestley presents Sheila as overly emotional and endows her with a feminine compassion for others.
o She reacts with great emotion upon hearing of Eva’s death
 “how horrible!”
“how horrible”
Development / Nuances
 Priestley presents Sheila as gradually realigning her views with the inspector so that she can serve as an exemplar for
how the audience should respond to the inspector – and to the play
o She instantly realises the message he is providing through Eva – that “these girls aren’t cheap labour, they’re people”
 She recognises their individuality and condemns her father for his exploitation
 This implies she may not have been aware of it before – naïve
“these girls aren’t cheap
 Also refers to “girls” in the plural – able to
labour, they’re people”
o This transition is shown through a dramatised representation
 (she goes closer to him wonderingly)
 She is Physically moving closer to him to reflect her opinions moving in line with his
 Also shows her respect for him
 Impressed by his values and presentation
 Recognises what he is doing as noble and moral
 Wonder connotes imbalance of power – he is superior to her
o She is very receptive to his message – young – “we often do on the young ones. They’re more impressionable”
 Not too late for her to be shaped and changed – neuroplasticity
o This alignment then leads her to act as his proxy
 Understands and believes in his message so is willing to then teach and persuade others
 Her understanding is deeper that others
 Recognises his omniscience and connection to time
 Understands greater importance and significance
o Audience should be receptive then spread the message to others
“it was my own
 Priestley uses Sheila to provide a template for how people should respond to their own sins
fault”
o She immediately accepts responsibility
 Admits that “it was my own fault” and that she “was in a furious temper”
 Thus, shows that she knows Eva wasn’t to blame, and that she only mistreated Eva because of her own flaws and
jealousy
 This is especially significant as it contrasts her mother’s view that “firstly I blame the girl herself”
 Sheila is maturing to have her own opinions and not cleave to her parents influence
 This is a change from before the inspector’s arrival when she had adapted her mother’s view of Eva as
“impertinent”
 Now forming her own opinions – crucial for society to change
o She is almost presented as being eager to confess – tells inspector everything without needed to be prompted
 Suggests she was aware it was wrong and it was affecting her conscience
 “I felt rotten about it at the time” “I felt rotten about it
 Just needed to be reminded
at the time”
 Humans need to be reminded to act on the natural conscience we all possess
 It is a relief to get it off her conscience – humans have a natural tendency to want to tell the truth and remove
secrets that they are holding
 Christian message – importance of confessing sins and repenting – enable person to move past them
 Inspection is similar to a catholic confession / penitentiary rights
 o This is unique amongst her family
 Eric hides from the truth – leaves the house
 Also uses euphemisms and remains vague – avoid the true extent of his crime
 Gerald initially denies knowing Eva
 MB pretends he was entitled to sack Eva to “keep labour prices down”
 Also blames Eva for not stirring up trouble
 SB blames Eva and Eric – she is most eager to avoid responsibility
o Perhaps it is Sheila’s unique blend of characteristics – female, emotional, similar to Eva, young and receptive – that
allows her to realise the true evil of what they did and thus she feels the most compelled to confess and repent
o Priestly presents Sheila as unique among her family so that he can emphasise the importance of choosing what is
morally right even when everyone else is content with immorality
 Audience must reject the values of society even though they are deemed acceptable
 Important to reject the old views and promote the new ones (Socialism)
 Priestley presents Sheila as overemotional; however, this emotion can be viewed as a necessary factor in the
motivational forces for societal reform
o This is as if people do not feel emotion and empathy, their impact on other won’t matter
 Because Sheila can feel empathy – “they’re people” / “it was a mean thing to do” she cares about Eva’s suffering
 The death impacts her – “oh – how horrible” so she can’t dismiss it like birling does
o She is described as being “hysterical”
 Hysteria was a disorder characterised by ungovernable emotional excess and the diagnosis was reserved for
women (hence “hys” – prefix for womb)
 She is showing emotion because she feels passionate about the inspectors message and about the need to accept
responsibility and change
 This is a good thing! It’s her passion and emotion which will stop her from reverting to the past like
everyone else
 Yet hysteria has historically been used as a method of controlling women
 Symptoms were classed as any unfeminine behaviour
 Serve as a way to keep women adhering to their gender role
 Used against women that were seen as unruly or unpredictable
 Keep women out of power – seen as unsuitable leaders because of their emption
 In fact, Priestley suggest people in power should be emotional – necessary for them to start thinking of
others and set up a welfare system that protects citizens
 Whenever Sheila presents views that go against the societal norm, she is dismissed as hysterical
 When criticising her mother’s pride, she gives a [short hysterical laugh]
 When she realises SB is condemning Eric she’s told she is “behaving like a hysterical child”
 Birlings and Gerald are trying to dismiss Sheila because she is aligning herself with IN and expressing
socialist views (same way they dismiss inspector as "a socialist or some sort of crank"
o Use hysteria as a way to reject the truth of her arguments – thus continue living in comfort and
privilege

Final Impression
 Priestley leaves the audience with an ambiguous perception of whether Sheila has really changed
o "it frightens me, the way you talk" – inversion of the sentence
 Reverse syntax – leave it open for debate what she is frightened of
 Makes her fear the focus of the sentence – concentrate on that rather than subject
of fear makes it seem as though her fear may be more complex and widespread “It frightens me, the
 Is it just fear of how they talk, or also fear of facing what she has done and fear of what her way you talk”
life would be like if she truly did take responsibility and reject the privilege she enjoys
o Easier to forget –their talk is frightening because it is convincing and appealing
o Doesn’t fully reject Gerald or the ring
 She finishes the play in precisely the same dramatic position – receiving engagement
 Implies she may have returned to the same ideological position
 Ring also made a symbol of her accepting the corruption, gender and class inequality of society that Gerald
imbodies
 And a sign of her rejecting what will benefit her – financial stability and UC status – in light of principles
and morality
 Marks whether she will choose responsibility and reform or individualism and materialism
 o 1912 failed to bring about change, and it was not Sheila’s generation, but the next generation born of the second
world war that brought socialist reform to the world
 Thus, Eric and Sheila failed – there were two wars and capitalism continued
 Only after 1945 that change started
 leave audience with a sense of obligation – they must be the ones to act like Sheila but bring about real change

Audience Reaction
 Priestley intends for the audience to remain supportive of Sheila throughout so that they identify with – and aspire
towards – her acceptance of responsibility.
o Attempts to excuse her sin – blaming it on “you used the power you had”
 It is the abuse of power and the uneven distribution of power that causes suffering – not Sheila herself
o See paragraphs on victim of parents / environment
o This is necessary, as she presents the socialist argument in the inspector’s absence – as well as the exemplary
response to his message – so she needs to be likable, so that the audience wants to follow her example and advice –
reform themselves.

Within the Play (dramatic techniques)

 Rhetorical devices – persuade family (and audience)
 End in same position as start – accepting ring
 (half serious half playful) stage direction
 These points have already been discussed in detail in the other paragraphs, but it is worth recognising that they will tick
the box for recognising the form of the text

Relationship with other characters

 Priestley then displays Sheila rejecting the values her parents taught her, and resisting the manipulation of her
environment
o Achieved through rebellion against her parents
o Challenges her father - "these girls aren’t cheap labour " – and mother - "you mustn’t try to build a kind of wall" / "is
such a silly word"
 Criticising their values and attitudes
 Disapproves of the exploitation her father employs – sees them as individuals
 Mother’s idea of impertinent is redundant – there is no impertinence as it implies the user is superior to
the recipient of the term – all are equal, so impertinence doesn’t exist - now thinking like a socialist
 Also realises her parents are responsible for covering up injustice and allowing it to happen – hates that
her mother is trying to separate herself from this
o Refuses to do as she is told
 Doesn’t go up to bed, won’t be quiet
 Lost respect for them
o This change is recognised by Mr Birling
 Refers to her as "young woman" – lost power over her
 No longer able to infantilise her- she has rejected their manipulation and matured
 Not allowing them to treat her as a child – now making up her own mind, forming her own opinions
 Priestley implies that Sheila develops an alignment with the inspector and takes on his values of socialism
o Argued above in nuances
 Priestley presents Sheila as being aware of the inspector’s potential supernatural nature
o She realises his message is not only about Eva but about all of society
o Makes connections between the inspector and the manipulation of time
“I don’t understand
o (goes closer to him wonderingly)
about you”
 Wonder has connotations of the supernatural
 There is something about him that is not normal or natural - "I don’t understand about you"
“he knows”
 Is he a “ghoul” or ghost? A religious figure of judgement?
o Aware of the inspector’s omniscience
 “you fool, he knows” – Sheila has realised that the inspector is not there to find out what has happened as he
already knows all of the ways they have wronged Eva and society
 Thus she is aware that his purpose is for them to realise what they have done
 “I don’t need to know any more – neither do you” – inspector is there to make them face their own actions, not to
find out what they did
  He is there for them – to give them a chance to change themselves, reform society and prevent war and
suffering
o Aware of the significance of time – “we haven’t enough time”, “I’m glad I found out in time” – inspector : “I haven’t
much time”
 She has a sense of urgency
 Aware that inspector is exerting influence over time – they have a chance to influence the future
 Their decisions and reactions will influence Ouspensky’s theory of time
o This awareness is what makes Sheila such an important character
 She understands the urgency and necessity of her family’s conversion to socialism and acceptance of
responsibility in order to prevent something bigger
 This knowledge drives her to act as the inspector’s proxy once he has left
o Also possible that this means she has recognised the religious role of Inspector
 Respects his authority and messages – from god
 Also recognises that the message is about realising morality and the consequences for them in the afterlife
 Priestley uses Shiela’s relationship with Gerald as a symbol representing her internal battle between capitalist and
socialist thought
 Marrying Gerald’s represents accepting the corruption, gender and class inequality of society
 Rejecting him is thus rejecting the individualist school of thought – putting principle and morality before her own
financial security
o Sheila’s initial relationship with Gerald is exciting and childish – she is excited by the financial stability and power it
will bring her
 Ring is an important symbol of his financial investment in her
 She is “very pleased with life and rather excited ” – living happily unaware of life’s cruelties and inequalities
 Blissful ignorance
o When the inspector arrives and reveals the deep seated corruption and exploitation within society – as presented
through Gerald’s actions (abuse of power) – she rejects him
 Not just because of finding out about the affair – she suspected that all along
 “you and I aren’t the same people” – she has changed too “you and I aren’t the
 Changed how she views him, but also how she views the injustices in society – can same people”
no longer sit and ignore them
 She returns the ring to him – the ring will thus serve as the symbol for whether Sheila accepts or rejects Gerald
o Once inspector was revealed as a fake, Gerald attempts to reverse their relationship
 Offers her the ring again
 Sheila is still reticent because she knows that the inspectors message had a greater meaning
 Doesn’t matter if he’s real – the things she found out about how society operates are real
 She still can’t accept it even though it may not have resulted in death – “lucky for us”
 Also, the inspector doesn’t impact whether Gerald had a n affair or not
o Yet she doesn’t reject or accept
 “No, not yet. It’s too soon. I must think”. “No, not yet. It’s
 She is unsure of what to think – not as certain anymore as the source of her change has had its too soon. I must
validity question think”
 Still reliant on legal and social authority
o Thus, Priestley leaves the play on a cliff-hanger where the audience is questioning whether Sheila will accept
capitalism or shun it for capitalism – a decision which forces them to consider what they would do themselves were
they in the same situation.

What are they used for?

 Sheila acts as the Inspectors proxy once he has left the stage so that Priestley can continue to present socialist ideas
once he has left.
o Priestley emphasises the relationship between them by echoing INS style of speech in Sheila
 She references “fire and blood and anguish”
 Inspectors exact words –shows he has had a lasting impression on her
 She is considering the wider implications of his words – perhaps aware that the warning goes beyond their single
case to a global level (world wars)
o Sheila tries to convince her family to change once the inspector has left
 Now that socialism’s representative has left, they are trying to find ways to dismiss it, just as they dismiss INS as “a
socialist or some sort of crank”
 Sheila has showed consistent recognition of the greater importance for their change
 Aware of time – “we haven’t much time” and that “I’m glad I realised in time”
  Awareness of something bigger, and that inspector isn’t there to find out what they did – “he knows” –
but to force them to face it and to stop them from “build(ing) a kind of wall” between themselves and LC
 Thus she drives the force trying to maintain it
o Priestley infuses Sheila’s language with rhetorical devices
 “You knew it then. You began to learn something. And now you’ve stopped.”
 Direct address – accusing them and trying to distance herself (she has changed – doesn’t want association
with their values)
 Rule of three
 Short and memorable accusations – like inspector
 This demonstrates that she is trying to be persuasive – feels the importance of persuading them to change
 Trying to continue inspectors work
 Also portrays desperation – she is losing their support as they try and excuse their behaviour
o Sheila is responding to his mass-like speech with a missionary approach
 Trying to convert others and continue his work
 Aim of mass – mass means dismissal – the family has been dismissed, Sheila is now going forth to spread the word
of the inspector (as opposed to god)
 “go in peace” – end of mass – expected to continue gods work in community
 Sheila will continue inspectors work in her family
 Sheila is presented as the main hope for change and reform
o It is Sheila’s ambiguity over change that triggers the second death
 Sheila was inspectors last hope for change
o She remained persistent that they were responsible, acted as proxy, tried to persuade others to change
o Now she is showing uncertainty, it marks his failure to get them to learn lesson
 Thus comes the arrival of the "fire and blood and anguish" – death
o Indeed, this is contextually correct, as it wasn’t until 1945 that society started to change
 Took a second war – a second death – to finally stop people from ignoring their responsibility and reform society
 Priestley provides an exemplary reaction to his message through Sheila, so that the audience is able to see
how they too should react.
o Sheila consistently demonstrates the correct attitude towards social responsibility throughout the play.
 Upon having her offence revealed, she is quick to take responsibility, explaining that “I was in a furious
temper”
 thus accepting her actions were not invoked or justified by Eva, but by her own flaws.
o This is in sharp contrast to her mother’s insistence that “I did nothing I’m ashamed of”,
 highlighting the need for the younger generation to reject the individualism of their parents in order to
uphold morality.
o More importantly, after accepting responsibility, Sheila then responds with resolve to change her ways and
make up for her past actions promising that “I’ll never, never do it to anyone again”.
 Instead of just accepting she was involved in an injustice, she is deciding to make up for it by taking an
active role in improving society for the future.
 She has clearly learned the lesson the inspector and Priestley intended.
o Equally, Sheila’s response shows recognition that Eva is one of many people disadvantaged by
individualism, as she refers to “anyone”
 demonstrating that she is not just sorry for an isolated event that – in Birlings words – “ended badly,
that’s all”
 she feels responsible for the much wider issues plaguing society that Eva’s death is but a symptom of.
o This distinction is important to make, as it is the difference between Priestley asking the audience to make
amends with a single individual they have harmed and asking them to take responsibility for the
improvement of society as a whole.
Quotes:
pretty girl in her early twenties
very pleased with life and rather excited
Now I really feel engaged
Nothing to do with you Sheila
Oh - how horrible
Oh I wish you hadn't told me
Pretty?
I think it was a mean thing to do
But these girls aren't cheap labour - they're people
gives a half-stifled sob and then runs out
I felt rotten about it at the time
So I'm really responsible?
I was in a furious temper
It was my own fault
very pretty girl / big dark eyes
looked as if she could take care of herself
If I could help her now, I would
I'll never, never do it again to anybody
We haven't much time
He means that I'm getting hysterical
Then I'm staying
she goes closer to him wonderingly
I don't understand about you
you seem to have made a great impression on this
child
impertinent is such a silly word
Your daughter isn’t living on the moon
I don't dislike you as I did half an hour ago
You and I aren’t the same people
(with sudden alarm) Mother - stop - stop!
I behaved badly too. I know I did.
You don't seem to have learnt anything
it's you two who are being childish - trying not to
face the facts
we hardly ever told him anything he didn't already
know
we're all in it - up to the neck
I suppose we're all nice people now
he inspected us all right
So there's nothing to be sorry for, nothing to learn
it frightens me the way you talk
fire and blood and anguish
you knew it then. You began to learn something.
And now you've stopped.
No not yet. It's too soon.