Mr Birling Character Analysis

Priestley presents the characters of the Inspector and Mr Birling as complete opposites, with totally different views and attitudes towards society. The Inspector is a socialist who believes “we are members of one body.” Conversely, Mr Birling has very capitalist views and thinks “a man has to mind his own business and look after himself.”

Mr Birling is extremely arrogant. He makes very long speeches at dinner, discussing matters that the audience would know were incorrect. Priestley uses dramatic irony, where we know things that the characters obviously don’t. For example, he claims war will never happen and that the Titanic is unsinkable. This is revealed when Mr Birling says, “And I’m talking as a hard-headed, practical man of business. And I say there isn’t a chance of war. The world’s
This is apparent in the line, “as if we were all mixed up together like bees in a hive - community and all that nonsense.” This simile is used to compare people made up of different social classes who are integrated together, just like a hive of bees. Mr Birling dismisses the words ‘together’ and ‘community’, as it suggests that he needs to take responsibility for others. He is a ruthless character, who is obsessed with ‘titles’ and doesn’t care about anyone else who is of a lower class than him. It totally disgusts him to think about having to be ‘mixed’ with the lower class. By using this simile, Priestley creates a clear image in the minds of the audience. However, throughout the play, he uses very few similes, tending to adhere to the appropriate language spoken by the higher social classes. Priestley ensures that Birling’s capitalist views are strongly portrayed from the start of the play.

Priestley uses the Inspector as a vessel for his own socialist ideas. They both promote social responsibility and criticise the problems caused by the class