How does Priestly explore responsibility in An Inspector Calls?

Priestly explores the theme of social responsibility through the actions of the characters in the play. Through Sheila, the Inspector, and Mr and Mrs Birling, Priestly suggests that everyone has a collective responsibility to one another. First performed in the UK following the end of World War II, the play engages with the welfare of the working class and suggests the need for unity and equality in an ever changing socio-political climate.

To begin, Mr Birling starts by expressing that he has a responsibility to ‘his own’, the pronoun ‘his’ evoking his belief that his personal ownership is central to his belief system. Furthermore, he continues that a responsibility ‘for everything that happened to everybody’ would be ‘very awkward’. The adjective ‘awkward’ here expresses his unease and discomfort towards the concept of shared social responsibility.

His individualistic attitude is demonstrated elsewhere through his labelling of socialists as ‘cranks’ and his view of Eva as ‘cheap labour’. By inferring Mr Birling’s capitalist values, his character is represented as selfish and unfeeling in his attitude towards others. In light of the post-war context whereby many of the audience members likely lost loved ones, Mr Birling’s disregard for Eva’s passing portrays him as an unlikeable character.

Moreover, Mrs Birling shares similar values to Mr Birling, as is evident when she discovers her involvement in her death and immediately blames Eva’s father, stating that ‘it’s the father’s responsibility’. Considering Eric’s misconduct, unbeknown to Mrs Birling until the play’s conclusion, Priestly employs dramatic irony here to discredit her character and expose the flaws in her belief system.

Standing in sharp contrast to Mr and Mrs Birling is their daughter Sheila. While initially appearing childish, Sheila demonstrates the true meaning of accepting responsibility. For example, she defends Eva Smith claiming that Eva and other members of the working class are ‘not cheap labour, they’re people’. Not only does her empathy directly juxtapose her father’s apathy, Priestly suggests she is forming her own beliefs and opinions, ones that significantly guide her to adopt a growing sense of responsibility. While Mr and Mrs Birling are firmly stuck in their ways, Priestly shows that Sheila has learnt from her experience. Thus, through the character of Sheila, Priestly expresses his view that the younger generation, and their ability to change and adapt, is his hope for the future and the key to guiding other generations towards a collective societal responsibility.

However, the most fundamental character in the play is the Inspector, who arguably embodies the views of Priestly himself. His final speech at the end of the play expresses that ‘we are members of one body’, affirming that ‘we are responsible for one another’. The repetition of the collective pronoun ‘we’ implies that it is our collective duty to look out for one another. Furthermore, the Inspector refers to the fact that there are ‘millions and millions of Eva Smiths’.

The use of the surname ‘Smith’ is particularly significant in being a common name of the time, so it was likely to personally appeal to the audience and remind them of someone they know themselves. Priestly thus adopts this surname as a mechanism to encourage the audience to form an affinity with the plight of Eva and coerce them towards adopting a sense of collective responsibility themselves.