Sheila- Key Quotations Flashcards
“But these girls aren’t cheap labour, they’re people”
This quotations shows how the younger generation of Birlings are much more sympathetic than the older. Where Mr Birling saw Eva as a slave and not a human, Sheila sees her as an equal that she hurt
“If she’d been some miserable plain little creature, I don’t suppose I would have done it. But she was pretty and looked as if she could take care of herself. I couldn’t be sorry for her”
This quotation shows Sheila’s dark side. If Eva was just being rude, she would have let it go. But the fact she felt threatened by Eva’s beauty made her act and punish her. This is similar to how Mr Birling keeps his reputation clean
“I’ll never, never do it again to anybody”
This quote again shows Sheila’s difference to her parents. She regrets the decision she made and wants to undo it. She changes after finding what she did and how it hurt people, unlike her parents who refuse to accept responsibility
“I know I’m to blame- and I’m desperately sorry”
This quote shows how Sheila wishes she could apologise to Eva. She regrets her actions after she finds out the consequences. She hopes that the inspector will not judge her as much if she apologises and changes her ways
“We all started like that- so confident, so pleased with ourselves until he began asking questions”
This quotation shows how Sheila knows what the inspector is up to. She realises he breaks them down until they confess to what they did, then tells them the consequence of their actions. She knows he will do this with the entire family and it will work that way.
“It’s you who’s being childish- trying not to face the facts”
This is Sheila standing up to her parents and trying to get them to accept their role in Eva’s death. She feels guilt still, even when realising Eva isn’t dead, however her parents celebrate and laugh it off.
