Gerald Croft Essay Example

Gerald Croft Essay Example Gerald Croft Essay Gerald Croft Essay Gerald Croft tries to avoid any involvement with the questioning from Inspector Goole and says Look here, sir. Wouldnt you rather I was out of this? Automatically the audience will assume hes hiding something and wants to escape any inquiries. Mr. Birling in trying to protect his future son in law from inquiries defends Gerald by saying he is the son of Sir George Croft- you know Crofts Limited. This has a double meaning. In one way Priestly builds up the tension here as we start to believe Gerald has some sort of evolvement in this and that Mr. Birling is trying to protect both of their reputation because they are from upper class society yet this is double standards because as it turns out Gerald who is engaged to Sheila Birling was actually involved in a relationship with Eva Smith. Mr. Birling also has double standards as he is concerned about receiving a Knighthood and recognition in the community yet when Eva Smith tried to better herself by asking him for a salary increase he refused her and because she did not conform had her dismissed like an old rag worthless in his eyes because she did not have the social standing of his own family who seemed to be Mr. Birlings only concern. The Inspector makes it quite clear that Birlings actions had a direct effect on the events that followed leading to the events of Eva Smith but even then Birling does not accept any responsibility and chooses to ignore his part in this girls death. We understand this in Birlings quote I cant accept any responsibility. If we were all responsible for everything that happened to everybody it would be very awkward. Sheila Birling was also guilty of abusing her position in society and through her jealousy of Eva had her dismissed from her second job adding to the distraught circumstances that followed. : As I said at the beginning in a way the play is made up of a whole series of mini climaxes or dramatic moments and each time we learn about a characters involvement with her, its a bit of a climax. You can clearly see a pattern emerging while you are waiting to see how the next characters involved. Each interview leads to a small climax as we find out what somebody did, although some moments clearly stand out as being more dramatic then others. At the end of the second act when you realise the significance of what Mrs Birling has said that is a dramatic moment. She was the hardest for the inspector to crack and find out her involvement and so its quite exciting as an audience to see her shown up for what she really is.  Also a dramatic moment and the way in which Priestly delivers his political message is the inspectors speech. In my opinion the best part in the play because not only do you here the Inspectors final reflection but you also understand Priestlys whole point in writing the play. Another 2 dramatic moments are the realisation after ringing the Police chief that there is no Inspector Goole and then everyone becomes completely baffled but just after they have recovered after believing it was all a hoax theres a final dramatic phone call. The phone rings and everyone learns that a girl has just died on her way to the infirmary after committing suicide by drinking disinfectant and that an inspector was on his way round. The ending of the play comes full circle as if the whole thing was to start over again and I can only say one word to that Brilliant. The inspector gives a short speech before he leaves and trys to make them think of what they had done to this poor innocent girl and that how each and every one of them drove her to her own suicide. Priestly uses this speech and the play to display his and may others of the times Political views in a form of his own political message. The message form Priestly is that the individual and the community have responsibilities. That we can all pursue our own self-interests but we have to think about others as well as ourselves. I think he wrote at a time when he felt that some of the more wealthy upper and middle classes, showed no remorse for the more less fortunate and showed off their own wealth and power. He is not just saying that we should think about others because it is the right thing to do, hes saying that we should think about others because we cannot escape the consequences if we do not think about them. If we cannot help the many who are poor then we cannot save the many who are rich. If we forget about others, then our own selfishness will catch up with us and have terrible consequences e.g. the death of Eva Smith/Daisy Renton by committing her own suicide. The Birlings selfishness does catch up with them in the end. An Inspector calls contains several twists in the plot. The play makes the Birlings ask many questions of themselves and therefore it sends the audience away asking themselves the same questions. Eva/Daisy though a totally poor, immoral and in the lowest part of society is shown to in the last act to be much more moral the most of the Birlings and Gerald Croft.  The girls goodness makes you even more shocked at her death. It is not just individuals like Eric who are guilty, but the whole family and so you are unable to just forget about the crime as being an act of an individual but as an act by all of them. You also have to ask yourself how might you behave in your own family in the similar circumstances. The Inspector, with use of language widens the scope of the responsibility for theirs and our behaviour by making it clearer that there are millions of Evas out there and that our behaviour could have an adverse impact on them and so you are left questioning their behaviour even more. The Emotions of the various family members and their reaction to the realisation that the inspector was not a real inspector can be examined in such a way that you must question your own feelings on this. The realisation that the inspector was a fake seems to lead the family off the hook, but of course it does not and you know this. This only makes us think about the rights and wrongs of the play. Even the realisation that there may not of been a suicide after all does not stop us thinking deeply about the morality of the situation and thats one of the main reasons why I think this is an effective play. As you know the play is set in the Birling household in 1912 before Britain was a welfare state which meant that people did not receive universal welfare benefits and so poverty was much more greater than today. Priestly uses dramatic Irony in that Arthur B thinks that the Titanic wont sink and that there will be no war where as you and me know there was a war and the Titanic did founder on its maiden voyage. I like this sort of dramatic Irony because the characters dont know the Titanic is going to sink and a great war will happen where as the audience, you and me do. Another thing why An Inspector Calls is an effective play is that the Inspector never shows the people the photos of Eva/Daisy at the same time, so they could be different photos of different people every time. Also by sending characters off stage, out of his line of questioning, the inspector can keep control of interrogations. He keeps people hanging on, telling them they cant leave yet etc. more or less implying that they have something important to contribute when it comes to be their time. Finally, of course, amidst all the feelings of relief enjoyed by the family, and perhaps the audience, we hear that a real life inspector is on his way round. This, of course also has the additional effect on you and me that we wonder even more about the Inspector. Who was he? Was there some kind of supernatural thing happening? I mean foreseeing the arrival of a real Inspector and a real crisis for Gerald and the Birlings. I thin perhaps priestly intended him to be a ghost. Well think about it Goole sounds like ghoul. Anyway its a very dramatic moment with a lot of mysterious stuff to end with not to mention the fact you are left with thinking well what happens next as well as all of the moral issues you are left to think about. Also Inspector Goole is so convincing as an Inspector and yet we find out at the end that he doesnt exist. This play has a lot of very good dramatic moments and a cast of strong and interesting characters each with their own purpose. Lastly of course its a play with a strong political message which made maybe still makes you think about our capitalist society and how the upper and middle classes treat the working classes and that after knowing that perhaps Eva Smith/Daisy Renton might not of died they still do not learn from their mistakes which is a shame because I feel that the main thing that makes us human is that unlike animals we have the ability to learn from our worst mistakes so they dont happen ever again and that is why I think An Inspector calls is an effective play and why J.B Priestly is one hell of a writer.