Analysis of Act One - The Inspector Arrives

Question 1

What does Arthur tell Gerald when they are alone before the Inspector arrives?

Answer 1

Arthur tells Gerald that he is expecting a knighthood. He wants Gerald to tell this to his mother, because he’s worried that Gerald’s mother thinks the Birlings are socially inferior.

Question 2

Why do you think Eric is “uneasy” when Arthur and Gerald joke that he has “been up to something”?

Answer 2

Eric is uneasy because he has been up to something. He’s stolen money from his father to give Eva / Daisy, who he got pregnant, but his family don’t know this.

Question 3

Why does Arthur suspect that Inspector Goole is new to the police force?

Answer 3

Arthur suspects that Inspector Goole is new because he knows the local policemen “pretty well” and has never heard of him.

Question 4

Arthur tells Eric and Gerald that “a man has to make his own way”, and he is critical of the idea of “community and all that nonsense”.
What does this suggest about his approach to business and the people he employs?

Answer 4

This suggests that Arthur believes that a man should look after his own interests first in business and not expect to be helped by others. This attitude, combined with the dismissive term “nonsense” when talking about “community”, implies that he is unlikely to care much about the welfare of his employees.

Question 5

Explain how the mood of the play changes when the Inspector arrives.

Answer 5

• The atmosphere in the
  room becomes more
  serious, as the Inspector
  gives a graphic description
  of Eva / Daisy’s tragic
  death as soon as he
  arrives.
• His arrival creates tension
  — he doesn’t reveal the
  purpose of his visit
  immediately, causing
  Arthur to get impatient and
  making the audience
  wonder why he is there.