M R B IRLING

Mr Birling is a concept through which Priestley can oppose and critique capitalism – he
represents the flaws and villainy of capitalism, but also the greed and resistance to change
of the upper classes that support it.

Initial Impression
 Caricature of capitalism
o Large, pompous, confident, arrogant, dominates conversation, formal wear Summary
 Presented as uncaring and selfish – suggest that individualism leads to a person no  Caricature of capitalism
longer caring about others  Inspector’s antithesis
o Doesn’t consider wellbeing of his daughter  Static character – represents resistance to
change
 Dismisses Sheila’s worries about an affair – doesn’t want to jeopardise  Ridiculed and portrayed as foolish through
business dramatic irony
 One of the happiest nights of my life” – the marriage is based around  Insecure about his position in the class
benefitting him system
 Audience is encouraged to dislike him and
o Marriage is a transaction – “she’ll make you happy” in return for connections to a extend this dislike to the ideology he
“older and bigger” company represents
 Gerald doesn’t have to make Sheila happy as his role is to provide familial  Possible middle-class audience is also meant
connections for MB to relate to his insecurity
 It is a financial arrangement hence he toasts no to their happiness but to
“lower costs and higher prices”
o Business and money are more important to him than his family – this emphasises the extent to which his
individualism goes as if he doesn’t care about his daughter he will have no hesitation in driving an unrelated girl to
suicide
 Emphasised by the parallels between Sheila and Eva
 Women seen as possessions – value from exchange and exploitation
o Suggest that capitalism is therefore an uncaring ideology as it leads to people placing money before human being
 Hence it is the precursor to wars, which place acquisition of land and resources before human lives to such an
extent that people die
 Heavy looking face as in it is not carefree but miserable “provincial in
o Wealth has not brought him happiness, but a constant feeling of inadequacy speech”
compared to UC and need to always be presenting a certain image to maintain his
position
 “Provincial in speech” - Suggestive of lower class origins
o Born in a poorer background in the countryside so had to work his way up through society (via exploitation)
o Thus his position is not stable (didn’t inherit it) and he’s constantly having to assert his right to be MC and respected
in society through materialistic signs of his affluence
o Capitalism and industry offered social mobility as people could get wealthy but social mobility was still restricted as
you couldn’t reach the top of social hierarchy without inherited connections
o To improve social position he has to rely on strategic marriage into a respected family (Croft)
 Provincial suggests lack of sophistication (E.g. pronunciation, manners and etiquette)
o Looked down upon by UC – Mrs B is his “social superior” so conditions and censors him- shows embarrassment by his
poor etiquette (e.g. acknowledging contact with staff)
o She has a natural sense of what is socially correct that comes from her upbringing – he doesn’t – intruder and out of
place
o Provincial has connotations of traditionalist and conservatism – stuck in the past and unwilling to change
 Priestley uses his initial presentation of Mr Birling to establish the insecurities he feels due to his middle-class
position within society.
o By having this insecurity introduced early on, it becomes an integral aspect of Mr Birlings character
o remains in the audience’s consciousness as a potential explanation for his actions
o reminder that it is class divisions causing the society’s suffering
 don’t benefit anyone – even middle class
 Opening description of the house as “substantial and heavily comfortable but not cosy or homelike” instantly provides
the evidence for their affluence and privilege, but the addition of it not being homelike suggests it is all superficial
o the comfort they live in is merely material, rather than emotional
o “substantial” furnishings as proof of Mr Birling’s need to demonstrate his wealth and success
 Need that is derived from his social inferiority.
 As a middle-class man, Mr Birling represents new money and self-made fortunes, but the lack of respected family
origins (he is “provincial in his speech” suggesting a lowlier origin) condemn him to being looked down on by the
upper class.
o Priestley then uses this to show the cycle of oppression created by social class
o Mr Birlings relative inferiority causes him to impose his superiority over those below him, compensating for his
insecurity by asserting his dominance where he can – dominates conversation, control lives of Eva and employees and
their pay and actions
 It is this need to maintain appearances and reputation – and subsequent need to maintain affluence – that drives his
greed and selfishness
o Therefore the source of Eva’s firing and eventually her suicide.
 Priestley also needed to clearly portray the insecurities of the middle class because it was these insecurities that made
them susceptible to his message
o MC would likely compose the bulk of his audience due to theatres being expensive enough to restrict access to the
financially stable
o His vision for reform was aimed at the younger generation - they were “more impressionable” - but specifically those
within the middle class, as they had the perfect combination of influence and power from their wealth, but also the
experience of class-based prejudices and the difficulty of progressing up the social hierarchy that would compel them
to use their influence to change society.

Final Impression
 Mr Birling is eager to dismiss Eva’s death and the message of the Inspector
o Doesn’t want society to change when it benefits him
o Also, a sense of him having worked for what he has – not naturally upper class – so more pressure to maintain
appearances and public image so that he is not rejected from society
 He is constantly influenced by the insecurities he has from his provincial origins
 Resistant to change and reticent to accept responsibility “eagerly”
o Older generation provide the opposition to the changes that would improve society.
“triumphantly”
 Vehement acceptance of Gerald’s theory about the inspector not being real
o responds “eagerly” and “triumphantly”
o Desire to dismiss the Inspectors message of social responsibility just as he dismissed Eva’s death with his
“impatiently” said “Yes, yes”.
o Makes his profits by ignoring his social responsibility to care for others – exploiting labour power and paying
subsistence wages – so it is only natural that he will also want to find a way to discredit the evidence the Inspector
has provided in favour of responsibility.
 Significant that Priestly describes Birling with the adjective “eagerly”, as this is also used to describe Sheila’s manner
when she agrees with Eric’s view that “this girl’s still dead” and that they are still guilty of acting immorally
o The linguistic echoed serves to emphasize the contrast between the old and young generation’s response to the
Inspectors message
o Sheila and Eric are both receptive and recognise the abuse of their moral duty whilst Mr and Mrs Birling both consider
only the legal and social consequences of their actions – worrying about the risk of a “public scandal” - as these are
the only consequences that will impact their public image and thus the only consequences that could negatively
impact them.
 OG intend to live the same way they did before shown by cyclical structure
o Begin and end the play with Birling offering Gerald a drink.
o Nothing has changed visually, and equally nothing has changed regarding their attitudes.
 Thus Priestley provides the argument that the reason for society’s flaws is the resistance provided by the upper classes
in order to maintain the status quo that ensures their privileged positions.
 Static character – no change
o This allows Priestley to comment on how those benefitted by capitalism and societies flaws will continue to support
them (and oppose change) in order to maintain their privilege
o More on this point below!
 Present him as greedy, selfish, uncaring, exploitative
o Associate these characteristics with capitalism
o Audience turn towards its alternative - socialism “her husband’s social
superior”
Relationship / Interaction with other characters
 His wife is “her husband’s social superior”
o Individualism of capitalists – don’t marry for love but for social status
 o Their marriage was likely arranged – like a transaction (his financial support for her family connections)
 Strengthened by “reproachfully” – sense of her disliking or feeling ashamed of him
 Very aware of his inferiority – criticise and attempt to teach him etiquette
 “have to get used to, just as I did” – unhappy marriage
 Doesn’t feel “cosy or homelike” – the family is a created concept not one built on love but built for appearance

 Uneasy relationship with Eric

 Sense of Eric disapproving and condemning the way MB runs his business
o Eric can see the hypocrisy and exploitation of business but is too weak to act on it
o Instead he accepts his life and privileges but remains “not quite at ease”
o Criticises father frequently from the start – “why shouldn’t they try for higher wages” when |”we try for the highest
possible prices”
 Points out “it isn’t (a free country) if they can’t go and work somewhere else”
 This foreshadows that Eric will oppose capitalism and his father
o Eric’s views are more socialist leaning
o Therefore could suggest his actions were influenced by his dissatisfaction and disillusionment with a society he can’t
change but disapproves with
 Too weak to change it so accepts and joins in
“you’re not the kind
 Tries to influence and train Eric in his capitalist, individualist approach
o Passing on views and values to children – influence them of father a chap can
o Lectures him in “ a man has to make his own way – has to look after himself” go to when he’s in
o Just as Birling mistreats and exploits women, so does Eric – learnt from a bad example trouble”
 Cycle of suffering as each generation continues the flaws of their parents
 Need a catalyst to break the cycle and start change
 Suggestion that he is a bad father and that his lack of support is responsible for Eric’s offences
o “you’re not the kind of father a chap can go to when he’s in trouble”
 Eric has not had a good role model

 The inspector’s antithesis

o Birling represents capitalism; Inspector represents socialism
 Contrasting messages – Birling lectures on individualism and “a man has to look after himself” whilst inspector
teaches a lesson of social responsibility as “we are all one body”
 These differences are reflected in appearance
o MB is physically large in appearance – “heavy looking” - but inside he is insecure and weak
 His positions and views have no sustenance or strength (as shown by dramatic irony)
 Places emphasis on outward appearance and public image – “you seem like a nice well-behaved family” - rather
than inner morality and goodness
 Attempts to demonstrate social status with material possessions
o Inspector is not physically big but creates the “Impression of massiveness”
“heavy looking” VS
 He is morally and ideologically strong – his views have strength and size
“impression of
 Socialism is as powerful as the character that represents it
 Confident in the validity of his stance – he has moral high ground massiveness”
 This confidence can be perceived by others as “massiveness”
 Stronger because what he presents is himself rather than an edited image
 He is powerful without the need for material indicators so wears a “plain darkish suit” – simple
 Not interested by what people “seem to be” but by how they truly are – values and inner morality/goodness
 A person’s value is determined but their actions and values not their appearance (which can be
manipulated)
 And reflected in speech
o Inspector “speaks carefully, weight fully” with evidence and knowledge to support his statements (e.g. letter, diary,
photo) – he is presenting a convincing argument
o MB is shown as foolish and ignorant through dramatic irony – he doesn’t know what he’s talking about and provides
unsubstantiated opinions that are obviously wrong – he is presenting an unconvincing argument
 Competes for dominance and authority with the Inspector
o Tries to lead conversation by asking questions - “How can I help you” “you’re new “I was an alderman
aren’t you” for years – and Lord
 Try to present dominance and being in control of conversation Mayor two years ago”
 Inspector isn’t swayed or affected
o Attempts to intimidate and condescend Inspector – assert his authority through
social status
 “I was an alderman for years – and lord mayor two years ago”
“you ought to like
His positions have no relevance so he is bringing them up simply to demonstrate his social
this port, Gerald …
position
 Similar to what he said to Gerald – wants people to know It’s exactly the
 Trying to assert dominance and superiority same port your
 Always trying to present image of power to mask insecurity father gets”
 Condescend with rhetorical questions - “eh inspector?” “Is it now?” “wouldn’t it”
 Challenging him to disagree
o Responds to perceived lack of power by exerting power over his children
 Inspector makes him feel inferior – contradicts him and overrides
 MB responds by controlling Eric and Sheila - “you’ve had enough of that port, Eric” “you keep quiet Eric”
 This is telling of his treatment of LC – reflecting the inadequacy he feels into oppression
 Lack of power lead to him trying to assert power over those below him

 Relationship with Gerald betrays his insecurities - “you ought to like this port, Gerald … It’s exactly the same port
your father gets”
o Auxiliary verb – “ought” – shows element of doubt and insecurity - wary of sounding like he is ordering Gerald or
telling him what to think / or do
 Very aware of his position in society and that G is above him on the hierarchy
o Directing speech at Gerald – trying to impress and develop relationship with him
 Middle class didn’t have social esteem – wealth not enough for social mobility – so had to rely on developing
connections to respected families (e.g. wedding)
o Taken great effort to match the port choice of Gerald’s father
 Trying to present image of wealth – prove he is Gerald’s equal, hide insecurity he feels and counteract Lady Croft’s
disapproval of the marriage
o Mr B is trying to secure the marriage between G and S
 Marriage is for selfish and materialistic purpose - unite families to boost status and combine businesses
 More like a business arrangement than a marriage – not emotional
 He has a lot to gain from the marriage – trying to impress Gerald
o Power of class shown – Gerald is younger than Mr B but it is Mr B trying to impress because he is lower in class
 Contrast to the assertive command given to Edna directly before – respect is only earnt through wealth and class

Nuances “but the whole thing’s

 Mr Birling is a static character different now”
o Shows no remorse and takes no responsibility
 Because Eva’s suffering will not impact him if he is not held legally or socially accountable for it, he believes that
“the whole thing's different now” – i.e. it no longer matters that she suffered
 That he says this “jovially” illustrates that he is glad that they can revert to their old attitude – resistant to change
even if it is for the good of society
o This is to show that the older generation are too fixed in their ways to change
 Thus Priestley is targeting the younger generation who are “more impressionable”
 Needs to remain static so that Priestley has a constant symbol for capitalism
o Through him, he can portray the selfish source of opposition to change
o Reformers will undoubtedly face opposition – warned and prepared for this through Mr B’s refusal to change
o Allow Priestley to continue commenting on capitalism
o Way for different characters to find flaws in capitalism through finding flaws in MB
o It is through opposing Mr B that the audience can see Sheila has aligned herself with Inspector
 Having MB as constant allows Priestley to contrast and emphasise the change demonstrated by YG
o Mr B serves as contrast to the younger generations plasticity
 Priestley is trying to persuade against capitalism
o To have a multidimensional character representing capitalism would be to sacrifice his demonization of the ideology
he opposes
o Needs capitalism to be viewed as intrinsically evil so MB must be fundamentally dislikeable
 Leave no room for arguing in favour of capitalism
 Priestley makes his lack of progression explicit by his use of a cyclical structure – the play opens and ends with Mr
Birling offering Gerald a drink – “you ought to like this port, Gerald” progresses to “Gerald, have a drink”.
o He has not changed in his views or his actions
What do they represent / how are they used
 Presented as a caricature of capitalism and individualism
Allow priestly to extend audience’s dislike of him to the views he represents
o
“heavy looking” - reveals his dominating presence and confidence
o
o“Heavy” suggests an excess of food implying greed and, but also financial capability to provide himself not only with
enough, but with excess.
 Contrast to workers Gerald describes as “broke”
 Thus Mr Birling’s life of comfort comes from the exploitation of lower class labourers
 Priestley suggest this exploitation is characteristic of capitalism
o Individualism allows him life of comfort - “a man has to look after himself”- as he can ignore the consequence his
lifestyle has on his employees
 Focus on benefit to himself
o Equally, ignore the distress marriage causes Sheila and focus on benefit on his business – “lower costs and higher
prices”
 The importance of Priestley making these connections is that it establishes Birling as the representative for capitalism –
and therefore whenever Birling is opposed by the Inspector, or whenever Birling is portrayed in a negative manner later
in the play, the resentment the audience feels towards him will extend to the capitalist views he sports.
 Mr Birling is a construct through which Priestley can criticize capitalism and discredit the views and aims associated
with it

 Priestley could use Mr Birling’s predictions of “steadily increasing prosperity” and resistance to the idea of war to
connect capitalism to war
 He predicts “steadily increasing prosperity” – capitalists did benefit from war – factory
owners instrumental in producing weapons and supplies for war effort – make a lot of “steadily increasing
money when products are being used and destroyed prosperity”
o Mr Birlings dismissal of fears about war suggests that for Capitalists, war isn’t a worry
as it benefits them
o War is made efficient by capitalism, and capitalism is accelerated by war -mutually beneficial relationship
o Indeed, large businesses and factories did benefit from the two world wars due to manufacturing deals (e.g. weapons,
transport, ammunition) – in fact WW2 was what helped America out of the great depression
 War is produced by greed
o Greed that causes people to view businesses as “friendly rivals” can lead to countries becoming “friendly rivals” like
the naval arms race between Germany and England
 Desire for land and resources at the expense of civilians powers war effort
 War is decided by the elites but fought by the poor and lower classes
 Just as UC benefit from the suffering of LC
 Marxist concept of class struggle and war as a capitalist construction (from greed)
o Marx viewed war as the natural result of class systems and free market
 Cooperation, community and responsibility is needed to prevent war
o Priestley campaigned for united Nations
o It is MB’s dismissal of Eva’s death that leads to second death
 His dismissal of war will lead to war
 And the dismissal of the need for responsibility and socialism

Audience reaction
 Audience is supposed to respond negatively to MB so that their dislike of him extends to the views he represents
o Dismiss his statements on history as wrong and unsubstantiated due to dramatic irony
 Automatically dismiss his views on socialism too
 However, it is possible the (likely majority middle class) audience is encouraged to emphasis or relate to Mr Birling’s
insecurity
 Middle class would likely compose the bulk of his audience due to theatres being expensive enough to
restrict access to the financially stable
 Priestley needed to clearly portray the insecurities of the middle class because it was these insecurities that
made them susceptible to his message
o Hence Mr Birling’s nervousness around Gerald (upper class representative), eagerness to buy the right type
of port and the reference to his “provincial” background
o Priestley is establishing him as someone in a position of influence but still insecure and held back by a lack
of social mobility (wasn’t born into his wealth)
 His vision for reform was aimed at the younger generation - they were “more impressionable” - but
specifically those within the middle class, as they had the perfect combination of influence and power from
their wealth, but also the experience of class-based prejudices and the difficulty of progressing up the social
hierarchy that would compel them to use their influence to change society
 Sheila is an example of this – her privileged position in a respected family could make her very
influential (like her mother on the charity board)
 Unlike Mrs Birling, she emphasises with the poor and would potentially use her influence to make
positive changes to society
 It is not enough for people to recognise the injustice of the world because those who recognise it often
don’t have the power to change it
 Hence Priestley is trying to convince those with power (i.e. the middle class) that everyone would
benefit from a less defined class system

 Could see his opposition to change as the cause of Eva’s second death
o Didn’t learn from inspector’s lesson
o By supporting the capitalism MB represents, audience will be preventing the change necessary to prevent the wars
that Eva’s death represents
o If we take the front door ringing and the phone ringing as the symbols of Eva’s death, both instances coincide with Mr
Birling expressing capitalist views
 The first time we hear of Eva’s death is after Mr Birling has expressed his belief that a man should “Mind his own
business and look after himself and his own”
 The second time we hear of Eva’s death (the phone ringing) is after his dismissal of the importance of progressing:
“Now look at the pair of them – the famous younger generation who know it all. And they can't even take a joke”
– he has dismissed Eva’s death and will likely return to his old mindset
 Hence this is when the second death occurs – he has demonstrated that he has not changed at all and so the
suffering of the lower classes that Eva represents will never end
o This ties in with Priestley’s fascination with Ouspensky’s theory of time – that time will repeat itself until we learn
from our mistakes
o Priestley further emphasises this with the cyclical structure of the drama of the play – Mr Birling is
offering Gerald a drink just as he was at the start of the play (port)
“the German’s
 This symbolises that nothing has changed don’t want
war”
Within the play (structure / dialogue / dramatic device / entrance / exit)
 Priestley utilities dramatic irony to present Mr Birling as both foolish and ignorant,
o This aim is made clear by the obvious irony created by referencing well-known events
o Rejects suggestion of war with the flippant “to that I say – fiddlesticks”, then claims “the Germans don’t want war”.
 His overbearing confidence is made clear by the dismissive nature (e.g. “fiddlesticks”) of his assurances and his
certainty is communicated through the repetition of his opinion –
o opinions would have seemed especially ignorant to the contemporary audience of 1946 (lived through two world
wars)
o influence the audience’s view of Mr Birling, suggesting that his opinions are unsubstantiated and flawed
o Even before the inspector arrives audience would have dismissed Mr Birling’s statement that “a man has to look after
himself” instead of his “community and all that nonsense”, as all his previous opinions were proven wrong (the titanic
was not “unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable” and the “time of steadily increasing prosperity” ended up as the great
depression)
 Natural for them to assume his opinion of socialism is equally invalid – a view Priestley has himself of society’s
resistance to socialism.
o Audience’s relief at release from Mr Birling’s ranting entangled with relief at the inspector arriving
 Had been dominating action of the play – boring/dull/repetitive
 Thus, establishing atmosphere of relief around inspector – encourage favourable perception of him
 Relief extended to change from capitalism to socialism
 Inspector is there to save society from the views of people like Mr Birling

 Also makes him dislikeable as he has dismissed the wars that would have impacted the audience’s lives so
significantly.
o By establishing this negative opinion of Mr Birling at the start of the play, Priestley is able to secure the audience’s
support for the inspector and his socialist views in favour of Mr Birling and his seemingly flawed capitalist views
 This is made more effective by the characterisation of the inspector as Mr Birling’s antithesis – gives the audience
a binary choice
  Inspector acts as a medium for presenting his own ideas so Priestley is simultaneously convincing the audience of
his own stance on how society should be following the wars.
o All Mr Birling’s points have been disproved by hindsight that the audience will have
 E.g. they know about the sinking of the titanic, the great depression etc
 o Only opinion without certain fallacy is that of socialism being "nonsense"
 Inspector arrives to provide the evidence to complete the series of invalidations
 By the end of the play, Mr Birlings opinion on socialism will also be proved incorrect

 Ridicules MB through dramatic irony

o Repetition shows him to be confident in his opinions – thus intensifies how foolish he looks
o Makes irony personal to the audience – “steadily increasing prosperity” when they likely suffered in the great
depression – “there isn’t a chance of war” when they’ve lived and suffered through two (Almost certainly lost loved
ones)
 The dismissal of something that greatly influenced their lives will lead them to dislike and demonise MB

This is a tricky concept to express so here is an example paragraph of how this could be used:
Mr Birling rejects the suggestion of war with the flippant “to that I say – fiddlesticks”, before claiming “the Germans don’t
want war”. His overbearing confidence is made clear by the dismissive nature (e.g. “fiddlesticks”) of his assurances and his
certainty is communicated through the repetition of his opinion – an opinion that would have seemed especially ignorant to
the contemporary audience of 1946, who had just lived through two brutal world wars (of which Germany played a major
role in starting). Priestly is then able to use this to influence the audience’s view of Mr Birling, suggesting that his opinions
are unsubstantiated and flawed, but it also makes him dislikeable as he has dismissed the wars that would have impacted
the audience’s lives so significantly. By establishing this negative opinion of Mr Birling at the start of the play, Priestley is
able to secure the audience’s support for the inspector and his socialist views in favour of Mr Birling and his seemingly
flawed capitalist views – and as the inspector acts as a medium for presenting his own ideas, Priestley is simultaneously
convincing the audience of his own stance on how society should be following the wars. Even before the inspector arrives, it
is likely the audience would have dismissed Mr Birling’s statement that “a man has to look after himself” instead of his
“community and all that nonsense”, as all his previous opinions were proven wrong (the titanic was not “unsinkable,
absolutely unsinkable” and the “time of steadily increasing prosperity” ended up as the great depression) so it is natural for
them to assume his opinion of socialism is equally invalid.

 His views and opinions summon the inspector

o Repetition of “a man has to look after himself” - acts like incantation
o He gives a lecture that is the antithesis of the Inspector’s lecture
 Inspector arrives to correct this and prevent YG from being influenced in the wrong way
 Lecture serves as evidence for why inspector’s lesson is needed
o Door bell interrupts - “we hear the sharp ring of a front doorbell”
 Inspector is there to interrupt the play’s capitalist narrative (due to MB’s dominance) just as doorbell interrupts
capitalist speech
 Priestley hopes his message of socialism will interrupt the capitalist narrative of history for something favourable

Quotes:
Mr Birling (Rather impatiently) yes, yes. Horrible business.
You ought to like this port, Gerald I don't understand why you should come here
It’s exactly the same port your father gets They keep changing
Provincial in his speech It’s my duty to keep labour costs down
A heavy looking, rather portentous man How do you get on with our Chief Constable Colonel
Giving us the port, Edna? That's right. Roberts?
It's one of the happiest nights of my life Public men, Mr Birling, have responsibilities as well as
For lower costs and higher prices privileges
Older and bigger There’ll be a public scandal
We’ve passed the worst of it They don't talk like that
To that I say - fiddlesticks! Rather excited / eagerly / triumphantly
The Germans don't want war Probably a socialist or some sort of crank
Unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable Smiling / jovially / heartily
Feels you might have done better for yourself socially
Very good chance of a knighthood
A man has to make his own way – has to look after
himself – and his family too, of course
Community and all that nonsense
Mind his own business and look after himself and his own
– and –
Alderman for years / Lord Mayor two years ago
What can I do for you?