An Inspector Calls: “After all y’know we’re respectable citizens and not criminals.” Do we see the Birlings and Gerald Croft as ‘respectable citizens and not criminals’?
...nothing less than seriously negative affects on her. Arthur Birling is a capitalist and believes in the ‘every man for himself ‘ philosophy. “Still, I can’t accept any responsibility .” Surely a man who thinks of himself as respectable and a pillar of his community can see the fact that he is in a way responsible for the death of Eva Smith. Mr Birling was the first person to be in contact with Eva Smith and started the deterioration of her life. Mr Birling is pompous and does not like anyone interfering in the way he runs his life and business. When Mr Birling tells the inspector of when Eva Smith came to complain about the wages of the factory workers, you get the sense that he had already made up his mind before Eva Smith had finished talking. “She’d had a lot to say-far too much- so she had to go.” His actions where definitely wrong, he did not bargain with her but treated her not as a person but as a problem that could be easily solved. I think this was ‘morally criminal’. Mrs Birling is very traditional and looks down on the lower classes. She seems to ‘echo’ Mr Birlings views in her actions and never contradicts her husband. She to refuses to accept any responsibility for the death of Eva Smith and tries to blame other people. She misused her power as the chairman of the committee to see that Eva Smith did not get helped. This is what I would call “criminal” because she abused her position to do exactly the opposite to the purpose of the committee. “Go and look for the father of the child. It’s his responsibility .” Mrs Birling can not be respectable if she shifts the responsibility about when it is her committee’s job to help women in need. Gerald Croft had an affair with Eva Smith. Although he did have an affair with her, he did have good intentions and did a respectable thing by giving her a place to live for a while. “I made her go to Morgan Terrace because I was sorry for her, and didn’t like the idea of her going back to the Palace bar. I didn’t ask for anything in return.” Although he gave her a place to stay, we are not quite sure how much of the good deed is genuine kindness and how much it is of a sexual attraction. Shiela had Eva Smith fired from Milwards when she thought she was laughing at her appearance when she tried on a hat. Sheila accepts what she did was wrong and regrets it. This is more than her mother and father did. I can forgive her for her treatment of Eva Smith as she shows remorse had a genuine reason to be upset at Eva, unlike her parents. I do not think Sheila is ‘criminal’. I think she is by far the most respectable person in her family. Eric met Eva Smith in the Palace bar and go...