CHARACTER OF ARTHUR BIRLING

Priestley uses the character of Mr Birling as a construct for capitalism and demonstrates the
individualistic nature of this ideology through Mr Birling’s appearance and personality. He is the
head of the Birling family. Mr Birling is the husband of Sybil and father of Sheila and Eric. Priestley
describes him as a "heavy-looking man" in his mid-fifties, with easy manners but "rather
provincial in his speech." He is the owner of Birling and Company, some sort of factory business
which employs several girls to work on (presumably sewing) machines. He is a Magistrate and, two
years ago, has been the Lord Mayor of Brumley. He is a man of some standing in the town. He has
worked his way up in the world and is proud of his achievements. He even plays golf with all the big
shots. He has a preoccupation with money and power and will do anything to keep both of them.

Mr Birling is described as being 'pompous' and 'portentous' by Priestley. The use of such negative
words portrays Birling as an unlikeable person. The audience can learn more about Mr Birling
through the way he interacts with other characters in the play. The way Birling is presented in the
play gives readers the impression that he is one of those who like many others at the time believed
that men were superior to women. This is shown when he says ‘women's clothes are a token of
their self respect', it is evident that Birling is not a man that upholds the interests of women, and
regards them as being inferior. 

The play is set just before the outbreak of World War One and within the extravagant Birling
household. Mr Birling’s dominant position within a static society (poor stay poor and rich stay rich)
is portrayed through his patriarchal role as owner of Birling and Co. which only employs young
women at extortionately low wages, and his marriage to Mrs Birling, who accepts her own
domination by Mr.Birling. This is a reflection of Mr Birling’s control over his household; she is often
ordered to sit in the “drawing room”, while men talk. He is indifferent to his daughter’s concerns
regarding Gerald’s alleged affair as this could compromise the economic relationship between the
Croft business and his own.

However, he is aware of people who are his social superiors, which is why he shows off about the
port to Gerald, "it's exactly the same port your father gets." The higher status of Gerald is
evidenced by Mr Birling’s hesitant tone: “you ought to like this port, Gerald … It’s exactly the
same port your father gets”. The uncertain verb “ought” reveals Mr Birling’s insecurity and
wariness of not giving Gerald orders, as he would to those below him on the social hierarchy. He is
proud that he is likely to be knighted, as that would move him even higher in social circles. He sees
Gerald Croft as his social superior. He is a social climber. He wishes to enlarge his self-importance.
He describes himself as a "hard-headed practical man of business," and he is firmly capitalist,
even right-wing, in his political views.

Birling is keen for Sheila to marry Gerald as Gerald’s father is also a successful businessman and if
she marries Gerald, there is an opportunity for the companies to merge. Even the relationship he has
with his family is based around the business. He claims the party "is one of the happiest nights of
my life." This is not only because Sheila will be happy, but because a merge with Crofts Limited
will be good for his business. He seems to regard the marriage of his daughter almost as a
commercial arrangement. Being a father he wants the best for his children and does not want to upset

1
or distress them. He also approves of Sheila and Gerald marrying and expects a time of 'increasing
prosperity’ but feels a little uneasy because Gerald's parents might feel that their son is marrying
'beneath himself'. Arthur feels that he is in control of his children even though they are in their early
twenties.

Mr.Birling is always the centre of attention. The words he uses while talking to his family, "(rather
heavily) I just want to say this. (Noticing that Sheila is still admiring her ring) Are you
listening, Sheila? This concerns you too." This phrase shows that he has to feel he has control over
his family. Sheila replies by saying, "I'm sorry Daddy." This somewhat shows that he has brought
her up to obey him and to always listen to him because he is the man of the house.

He is very optimistic for the future and the world is a comfortable place for Mr. Birling. He feels so
confident about his abilities that he can’t see anything which he could not deal with effectively. Mr
Birling is portrayed as ignorant and arrogant; his speech is diluted with dashes and hesitations, while
his arguments such as “the Germans don’t want war” and “the Titanic is unsinkable, absolutely
unsinkable” are proven invalid by dramatic irony (the audience knows and understands that the
Germans did want war and that the Titanic did sink, as they play was performed in 1945. Priestley
uses dramatic irony to make Birling’s optimism seem foolish and short-sighted, which in turn
undermines his authority. He is optimistic for the future and confident that there will not be a war,
strikes or other problems.

Mr.Birling’s trust in technology is illustrated by his reference to contemporary inventions and

progress but it is shown that his optimism is no more ‘unsinkable’ than was the ‘Titanic’ which he
mentions with much pride. History tells us that his trust in the technology of 1912 is sadly misplaced
as is his assertion that there will never be another war. Birling’s insistence here on the importance of
facts is ironic in the light of the later events. He proves to be the most reluctant to face uncomfortable
facts. Priestley shows how unthinking and unquestioning Birling’s optimism is.

Birling finds it difficult to think about other people or see issues from other people’s points of view.
He doesn’t believe in “community and all that nonsense.” He sees people as something to use to
get what he would like. He doesn’t treat the people who work for him well and doesn’t show an
understanding of why they are discontent. Birling sees himself as a hard-headed employer. His
workers are paid the going rate, no less and no more. His attitude towards strikers is unsympathetic.
Those he sees as trouble makers are given a sack.

One part of Arthur Birling’s character is his sarcasm. When he and his family are having a
conversation with Gerald, Birling mentions his business rival, Sir George Croft, who is also Gerald's
father, and says at their celebration party to Gerald 'It's a pity Sir George and - er - Lady Croft
cant be with us, but they're abroad and so it can be helped. As I told you, they sent me a very
nice cable - couldn't be nicer'. Throughout the play, Birling’s language is sarcastic which brings out
his arrogance. Arthur Birling is very egotistical about himself, his wealth and is always boasting
about how his position is supreme and it could only get better. Birling has used dramatic irony a few
times in his speech such as when he says 'We're in for a time of steadily increasing prosperity.’
Another dramatic device used is foregrounding. Priestley has used foregrounding in the play many
times to signal to the audience something which is going to happen, he has also used it in the

2
language of Birling for instance, when Birling is speaking about his possible knighthood, 'I gather
there's a very good chance of a Knighthood - so long as we behave ourselves'.

He is extremely selfish. He wants to protect himself and his family. He believes that socialist ideas
that stress the importance of the community are "nonsense" and that "a man has to make his own
way." He wants to protect Birling and Co. Arthur Birling is a confident man. It also emphasises the
fact that he is a capitalist and that he does not share with other people and as long as he is well he
doesn't care about anyone else. Halfway through this speech the stage directions, 'We hear the
sharp ring of a doorbell' interrupt Birling. The inspector is at the door but Birling doesn't know this
yet however he is already uneasy with the situation because he was interrupted. Priestley has
structured the scene so that the bell rings in the middle of his speech to show how Birling can
become apprehensive by the smallest thing. He enjoys being in control and often ensures that
everyone knows that he is in charge. No one has ever had the opportunity to undermine Mr Birling
before, so when the Inspector comes in and takes control, Mr Birling is angry about this.

When the Inspector first enters the room, Birling doesn't recognise him so he tries to turn the
questioning to the Inspector, ‘I'm still on the bench-and I thought I'd never seen you before.’ He
uses this to try and win the Inspector over because he is a highly respected man. However, Birling is
quickly put back on the spot by the Inspector and his uneasiness with the questions is once again
emphasised by Priestley. The stage direction, 'somewhat impatiently' is used and this shows that
Birling is losing patience with the Inspector and can’t stand the fact that he is being interrogated over
this death.

Arthur Birling's pomposity and self-centred arrogance are again shown when he brags on about his
upcoming knighthood and his connections with 'Royalty', expressing that he was 'Lord Mayor' for
the area he lived in and he and his family are 'well behaved' which should get him this knighthood
which he feels he rightfully deserves. Further, into the play, Birling again expresses his awareness of
the area and the people living in it. His conversation with the Inspector starts with 'you're new,
aren't you?' clearly indicates that Birling knows everyone in the police. Mr.Birling starts to brag
when he says 'I was an alderman for years - and Lord Mayor two years ago' and that he is 'still
on the bench' this lets the Inspector know that he knows people in 'high places' and he is a law-
abiding citizen.

Priestley deliberately creates the Inspector as the antithesis of Mr Birling in order to compare the
ideologies that each character symbolises. Mr Birling represents capitalism, while the Inspector is
symbolic of socialism. Birling’s constant attempts to condescend the Inspector with rhetorical
questions such as “Is it now?” or “eh Inspector?” create a façade of authority to mask his own
insecurity in his social status.

Birling is identified by the Inspector as the initiator of Eva Smith’s downfall: he refuses her request
for a raise in his factory and forces her to find work elsewhere. He is portrayed throughout the play
as a fierce capitalist, who cares only for the prosperity of his own company—even at the sacrifice of
his labourers’ well-being—and for the prospect of ever-greater success. His business is of greater
importance than his own family – this foreshadows Mr Birling’s indifference to Eva Smith’s suicide,

3
which is initiated through his refusal to grant her a pay rise. He cannot see that he has done anything
wrong when he fires Eva Smith - he is just looking after his business interests. He has no regrets.

Mr.Birling becomes impatient with the Inspector. He regards police not only as their protectors but
also as their servants. Birling thinks that it is outrageous of the Inspector to talk to the man of social
standing in a way he has done. Birling takes it for granted that the honours and public offices confer
upon him some kind of special status which means that people must talk respectfully to him.

Birling does not treat the working-class people as normal people who deserve wages and due respect;
he just exploits them and pays them with great reluctance. His main aim is to achieve "lower cost
and higher prices." This again shows that he is very self-centered and only cares about himself;
lower costs and higher prices means he would get more money because he'd be paying less for goods
as well as he'd be getting a larger profit from the public, who'd buy these items at expensive prices.
The reason he thinks there won't be a war is that he thinks that the lower class people have no power
to cause a commotion or to cause a problem. He also thinks that capitalism will keep the world
economy stable. He fails to see that a stable world is built on social fairness, not money.

Another example of Mr Birling's ruthless and uncaring character is when he is asked a simple
question by Inspector Goole about the dismissing of Eva Smith and wage demands in which he
replies "...if you don't come done sharply on some of these people, they'd soon be asking for the
Earth". This illustrates the poor treatment of his employees. In addition, the fact that he refers to his
employees as 'these people' demonstrates how he has separated himself from his 'lower class'
employees and this further shows how he is portrayed as arrogant through interaction with other
characters. 

It becomes clear to Mr.Birling that the Inspector will reveal the truth to everyone. He offers the
Inspector thousands of pounds to put right his mistake. Not only is he offering the money at the
wrong time, but also from a purely financial point of view, he is doing wrong business. The sad fact
is that Eva has deserved the extra money, something which Mr.Birling denies.

Birling dismisses the idea of social responsibility and is not willing to accept any responsibility for
the death of Eva Smith. Even when it is evident that his actions affected the course of Eva’s life, he is
unwilling to feel responsible or to change in any way. According to him if people take responsibility
for others, it would make life awkward for some. He instead places the blame on others and thinks of
ways to ensure he and his family is not linked to Eva/Daisy or her death so that there is no possibility
of a scandal which may affect his status and his chance of getting a knighthood.

He is ambitious and business-minded. However, he is willing to ignore the needs of others, including
his family to get what he wants and to keep the power and fortune he has accumulated. His
reputation is very important to him and he is anxious to ensure there are no public scandals which
could affect that reputation.

Birling says that he dislikes his daughter, a young unmarried girl being dragged into the affair.
Birling’s hypocrisy is shocking. He adopts different standards while dealing with Eva. As Eric says,
4
Birling is not the kind of father a young chap can go to when he is in trouble. He is not only callous
towards those he perceives to be their social inferiors; he is inadequate as a parent.

Mr.Birling’s reaction to the news of his son’s sexual indiscretions is very different from his reaction
to Gerald’s. He treats Eric and Sheila as though they are still young children. Eric tells that he hates
to see the “fat old tarts” with whom he has seen his father’s ‘respectable friends’.Here we get an
idea about the kind of people with whom the Birlings get along and the true colour of certain people
who are considered respectable citizens.

The most disturbing part of the play for Mr. Birling is the scene in which he learns that his own son
is shown to be a thief, a drunkard and is responsible for fathering a child. When he learns of all this
he exclaims 'You damned fool - why didn't you come to me when you found yourself in this
mess?' Eric's reply indicates that Mr. Birling was never close to his son 'Because you're not the
kind of chap a man could turn to when he's in trouble.’ Such a response indicates that things
aren't going to improve after the play ends.

Mr Birling’s relationship with his son, Eric, lacks a sense of familial connection. Eric opposes the
way that his father runs Birling & Co. and is against the way his father exploits the employees. He
remains “not quite at ease” with his privileged life, formed at the expense of the lower classes, yet he
accepts it. The father-son divide is symbolic of the divide between the older generation and the
younger generation. Eric’s resentment of Mr Birling’s workplace practices reveals that Eric will also
oppose capitalism and is more aligned to the concept of socialism. Priestley creates an instantaneous
divide between father and son, as Mr Birling exclaims “we try for the highest possible prices”,
which Eric demonstrates his disgust by responding with the rhetorical question “why shouldn’t they
try for higher wages?”

He wants to protect his reputation. As the Inspector's investigations continue, his selfishness gets the
better of him: he is worried about how the press will view the story in Act II, and accuses Sheila of
disloyalty at the start of Act III. He wants to hide the fact that Eric has stolen money: "I've got to
cover this up as soon as I can."

In Brumley, Birling is a public figure and in being so, is obsessed with his status. He is selfish and
self-centred and is anxious that there are no scandals that could affect his family name. However,
even when Birling can see his family is falling apart by the end of the play, he is not able to see that
he has any part of it. He blames the Inspector and everyone around him, but he does not accept any
responsibility himself. He says the Inspector has made a “nasty mess” of the night’s celebrations,
even though the Inspector has only questioned actions they are all responsible for.

Birling is dismissive and does not change in any way throughout the play. Even when the Inspector
has implicated everyone in his family and himself to have affected Daisy/Eva’s life he is not affected
by it at all. He shows no remorse or guilt but instead worries about how all this will affect him.

When, at the end of the play, the Birlings discover that the Inspector is a fraud and no suicide has
taken place, Mr. Birling is triumphant and relieved that the revelations will not precipitate a social
5
scandal. Gerald’s theory of the Inspector not being real is “eagerly” and “triumphantly” accepted
by Mr Birling, despite his actions being real. Priestley’s use of the adverb “eagerly” to describe both
Mr Birling’s denial of the Inspector’s existence and also Sheila’s agreement with Eric that “this girl’s
still dead” emphasises the divide between the generations. He is resistant to any lesson that might be
gleaned from the Inspector’s interrogation and remains unchanged by it. Mr. Birling loses all
patience with Sheila. He is desperate to find a way of avoiding the truth and is shown by his
willingness to believe Gerald’s theory. He wants everyone to admit that it has been a hoax and the
imposter has had a good laugh.

At the end of the play, he knows he has lost the chance of his knighthood, his reputation in Brumley
and the chance of Birling and Co. merging with their rivals. Yet he hasn't learnt the lesson of the
play: he is unable to admit his responsibility for his part in Eva's death.

Priestley uses the character of Mr Birling, not only as a method to critique capitalism but to reveal
the cycle of oppression caused by social divisions and classism. Mr Birling attains validation of his
superiority in an almost sadistic manner (pleasure in inflicting pain), through denying pay rises and
maintaining poor working conditions and hours - essentially exercising complete control over these
lower-class women. The excessively self-centred nature of Mr Birling is, in essence, driven by his
determination to uphold an appearance of affluence - ultimately and inevitably at the expense of his
employees, causing the firing of Eva Smith.

Priestley contrasts the characters of Eric and Sheila, against Mr and Mrs Birling. The younger
generation acknowledges their failure in their morality. However, the older generation merely
considers the potential detriment to their social status through prosecution, while disregarding any
moral duty. The cyclical structure of Mr Birling’s outlook creates a static character, who cannot
change. Priestley, through the character of Mr Birling, critiques how these societal flaws and
capitalism allow the upper-classes to be supported and their unfair privileges maintained.