essay plan on sheila birling

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Essay: How does Sheila change in An Inspector Calls?

Throughout Inspector Calls, Sheila is the character who changes the most. At the beginning of the play she is a young, naïve girl who is happy to be told what to think and do; by the end she is the only character who really takes responsibility for the death of Eva and is happy to tell her parents that she thinks they are wrong.

The stage directions describe her as being “very pleased with life” a phrase which reflects her luxurious upbringing. She’s also described as being “excited” an adjective that suggests she is looking forward to her life. In both these respects she could be viewed as being ignorant to the reality of what her luxury costs others, or how difficult the times ahead will be.

Sheila refers to her parents as “mummy” and “daddy,” nouns that are associated with young children and not young adults; she is also told off by her mother for squabbling with her brother, a fact that reinforces our vision of her as being infantilised by her parents.

Sheila is then given a ring by her fiancé Gerald. “Is it the one you wanted me to have?” she asks him, a phrase that suggests she wasn’t really interested in what she wanted but only what Gerald wanted her to have.

Throughout the opening she is presented as a child, with no real desires or wishes of her own. In many respects, she is the traditional rich young woman – without a real mind of her own by virtue of her gender.

When the Inspector arrives, he explains how her spoilt behaviour in a shop led to Eva being sacked. “Then I’m really responsible,” she accepts, quickly recognising her role in the girl’s downfall. Also, she observes that the Inspector is getting ready to speak to Gerald next and pushes this through, asking direct questions to Gerald and working out the reasons why he wasn’t where he said he was the summer before. In both these cases, she is showing independent thought – by accepting responsibility even when others don’t and by pushing Gerald against his wishes.

During their time with the inspector, her parents and Gerald repeatedly try to send Sheila out of the room to protect her from his news – her mother argues that she is “looking tired,” something that we would only really say to a very small child. Sheila repeatedly refuses, arguing that she will stay until “I know why that girl killed herself.” Here, she clearly shows herself standing up to her parents, sticking to her desire to discover the truth of the situation.

At one point Arthur argues that the inspector is making “quite an impression” on Sheila, suggesting that she’s coming around to the inspector’s way of thinking. “We often do on the young ones,” the inspector replies, suggesting that his socialist values are more affective on younger people. This reflects a view of Priestley’s which was that socialism and left wing values are more impactful on younger people, a fact that’s often reflected in even modern opinion polls where right wing conservatives tend to be older. This is also shown in how, by the end of the play, Mr and Mrs Birling remain unchanged by the arrival of the inspector, while their children change – even Gerald admits that the events “affected him,” before he reverts back to his old ways.

Even after the inspector leaves, Sheila continues to push his ideas trying to make sure that her family don’t forget him. She claims they are beginning to “pretend” that nothing has happened, clearly accepting that things won’t be the same again. Her use of the verb is interesting as well, as games of “pretend” are really childish things. It seems that the girl who was once infantilised is now accusing her parents of playing make-believe. She also argues that her parents “don’t seem to have learnt anything,” behaving almost like a school mistress arguing that a lesson has been missed. She also says, in response to a speech from Eric in which he accepts responsibility, that he makes her feel a little less “ashamed” of them, a word which really shows just how powerfully Sheila sees her parents’ remorseless behaviour.

Her frustration is clear throughout the ending, where she says her parents’ behaviour “scares” her. This clearly references the inspectors closing words about “fire and blood and anguish” which referenced the years of war that would follow the period between the play being written and being performed. The audience at this point would doubtless be agreeing with Sheila regarding her fear. Her parents continue to ignore her desire to grow up, infantilising her again by suggesting that she’s just “tired” and “hysterical,” though they can’t ignore her final words when she refuses Gerald’s ring again which clearly shows that she has grown up enough to express herself completely.

It’s also interesting that the final stage directions of the play say that Sheila is “facing the door” that the real inspector will soon enter through. This very specific instruction from Priestley could suggest that Sheila is ready to face the inspector, or that she is ready to leave. The last line of the play though is Sheila rising from her seat which symbolically suggests that she, as a representative of young women, will rise.

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Example Essay: Sheila

How does Priestley present Sheila as a character who learns?

An Inspector Calls is about how people should be more responsible. Priestley wrote An Inspector Calls to teach his 1945 audience about social responsibility.

Early in the play, Priestley makes clear Sheila is immature and has an easy life. In the opening stage directions, Priestley describes Sheila as ‘pleased’ with herself. Sheila is pleased because she is engaged to Gerald Croft. Priestley also writes in the stage directions ‘heavily comfortable house’ and ‘champagne’, which demonstrates that Sheila has quite an easy life due to being very wealthy. It is clear that Sheila doesn’t have many worries; her only worry at this point is being engaged to a wealthy man. Priestley also presents Sheila as immature by having her refer to her parents as ‘mummy’ and ‘daddy’. These words reveal that, at this stage in the play, she is still quite childish and looks up to her parents. This changes later in the play when the inspector arrives. Perhaps Priestley presents Sheila in this way to show that the lives of upper class people were very easy in 1912.

When the inspector arrives, Priestley demonstrates that Sheila starts to change. The audience learns from the inspector’s questioning that Sheila selfishly had Eva Smith fired because she was jealous of her good looks. When the inspector reveals that Eva Smith is dead, Priestley makes clear Sheila takes full responsibility for her actions by writing ‘I started it’. These words reveal that Sheila recognises that she contributed to Eva Smith’s death and that she feels very guilty about what she did. It is clear that Sheila is starting to change, as she is thinking about others - she is not just thinking about herself. Priestley does this in order to demonstrate to his 1945 audience that the younger generation in society can learn from their mistakes and learn to take more responsibility for other people.

After the inspector leaves, Priestley presents Sheila as a character who tries to change her parents. Priestley has Sheila state ‘I guess we’re all nice people now’. In other words, Sheila is saying to her parents that they think they’re nice people again simply because they’re realised the inspector isn’t real. Priestley has Sheila make a point to her parents that they haven’t actually learned anything because they’ve gone back to their old ways as soon as they realised the inspector wasn’t real. It seems they only cared about their reputation. At the end of the play, Priestley also has Sheila call her parents ‘mother’ and ‘father’, which suggests that she has grown up and no longer looks up to her parents in the same way. By having Sheila change in this way, Priestley is giving hope to his 1945 audience that society can change for the better if wealthy people start to take more responsibility for the working classes.

‘An Inspector Calls’ is about how people should be more responsible. Priestley explores the theme of responsibility throughout the play, notably through the differences between the older and younger generations, through which he gives his 1945 audience hope of a better society built on a model of social responsibility. As Sheila learns from her actions, accepts responsibility and challenges her parents to do the same, it could be argued that she learns the most in the play.

Early in the play, Priestley’s portrayal of Sheila as smug and immature conveys the sheltered lives of many of the upper classes. In the opening stage directions, Priestley describes Sheila as ‘pleased’ with herself due to her recent engagement to the wealthy businessman Gerald Croft. Living in a ‘heavily comfortable house’ and toasting her engagement with ‘champagne’, Sheila has little to worry her at this stage of the play; she is smugly consumed with the celebration of her engagement. Priestley also has Sheila refer to her parents at the start of the play as ‘mummy’ and ‘daddy’. These terms of address are an indication of the way her parents have infantilised her and sheltered her from the harsh realities of the word; this sheltered life is only possible for Sheila due to the wealth and status of her family. Additionally, the fact that Sheila uses these words to refer to her parents indicates that she still looks up to them and respects their views, something that changes dramatically as the play progresses. Perhaps Priestley presents Sheila in this way early in the play to demonstrate the sheltered and easy lives that many upper class young women led in 1912, in comparison to their working class counterparts, who suffered extreme hardship.

During the inspector’s questioning, Priestley uses Sheila’s actions to demonstrate the need for the upper classes to take greater responsibility for the working classes. Upon being questioned by the inspector, Sheila admits to selfishly having Eva Smith fired due to petty jealousy. Rather than deflecting responsibility onto others, Sheila recognises her role in Eva Smith’s death stating, remorsefully, ‘I started it’. Priestley contrasts Sheila’s remorse with the stubbornness of her parents, who claim they were ‘perfectly justified’ and ‘can’t accept any responsibility’ for their actions. Priestley’s portrayal of Sheila’s actions in the department store indicate just how much power and status wealthy people had in England in 1912, and how frequently this could be misused, deeply affecting the working classes. His choice to contrast older and younger generation characters could indicate to his 1945 audience that hope for a better society in the future must be placed in the younger generation, who are more impressionable and more likely to learn from their mistakes.

After the inspector leaves, Priestley contrasts Sheila with her parents to reveal how much she has learned and her commitment to make a permanent change. In contrast to her parents, who are delighted to discover the inspector was just a ‘hoax’, Sheila remains contrite about her role in Eva Smith’s death. Priestley has Sheila accuse her parents of not learning anything, saying ‘I guess we’re all nice people now’. The sarcastic tone in Sheila’s words demonstrate how infuriated she is with her parents for being so willing to forget the actions they took, revealing that they were simply concerned with their own reputation, and have not learned the errors of their ways. Additionally, Priestley has Sheila accuse her mother of ‘trying to build a wall’ between the Birlings and the inspector. This metaphorical wall symbolises the insight Sheila has gained into the huge divide between upper and lower classes, suggesting she has realised how unwilling many upper class people are to recognise their responsibility to others. Priestley’s presentation of Sheila as such a changed character offers a powerful message to his 1945 audience, suggesting that he believes the socialist society that he envisions is achievable if younger people take greater social responsibility.

Priestley demonstrates that Eric also learns, but it is clear that Sheila learns the most. Priestley makes clear from the opening that Eric is not like the other Birlings, as he seems slightly awkward and, as noted by Sheila, drinks heavily. His transformation, therefore, is not as great as Sheila’s; Sheila transforms from being a sheltered, selfish, childish individual, wrapped up in herself and her own happiness, into a more socially responsible young woman who appears to commit to changing in the future.

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Sheila Birling Essay Plan- An Inspector Calls

Subject: English

Age range: 14-16

Resource type: Assessment and revision

Last updated

28 May 2024

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Sheila Birling character essay plan, from J.B Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’.

Ideal for English Literature GCSE. Seven key points alongside quotations and both surface level and deep, single word analysis and context to strengthen points.

Took around 2 hours to collect quotations and information, aswell as analysis.

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