Who is to blame?
In J.B. Priestley's play, "An Inspector Calls", we learn that a number of characters have contributed to the suicide of Eva Smith. Who do you think deserves the most blame and why?
Answers
Hi, personally I do not think that one specific individual is to blame, however if you look the idea that every action has a consequence then I would say that Mr Birling is to blame. He was the first person to let Eva down and therefore the chain of events with the rest of the family etc started with him.
02 July 2013
In Priestly's play, An Inspector Calls all of the Birlings and Gerald Croft can be blamed for Eva's death to some extent. Each of the character's actions contribute to Eva (or Daisy's) eventual suicide. What is more important is how each of the characters react to the discovery of their actions; the younger characters Sheila and Eric learn from their mistakes but the older characters Mr and Mrs Birling and Gerald (representative of the monied upper classes) feel that their behaviour does not matter if it is not publicly revealed. Priestly implies that there is hope for us as a society if we learn from our mistakes but those in charge tend to be more interested in their own preservation than those of the common man or woman (hence the name Eva Smith).
29 September 2013
To add to this, link Priestley's socialist views to the messages in his play of social repsonsibility
29 September 2013
Your question would seem to presume, using the concept of 'blame; here, a fixed moral universe where what is right or wrong can be read of a list. Ethics and religious belief show us a that humankind has come up with a variety of positions over what is ethical, or not, so a clear answer might be not possible. Each observer of this play will portion blame (ie make a moral judgments) in different ways, I would proffer.
01 October 2013
I feel that the author is trying to get across that every character is to blame no one single character. And how many little things can add up to one huge thing and how you should be responsible for your actions. But if I had to blame one character I would blame Eric as he is the more immature or the characters and he did effectively rape Eva Smith.
04 October 2013
Probably leaning towards Sheila. She was the most immature one of the group imo, and ruined everything. It's understandable, albeit cruel, that Mr.Birling let her down, but business is business and it is what it is. If I recall right, it's not even like she was left without money. Sheila just got her sacked out of sheer pettiness.
08 April 2022
In my opinion, I think Sybil Birling is to blame for Eva's death. This is because Sybil looks upon the working class with utmost disgust and calls Eva's death "absurd business". Furthermore, Eva seemed as if she had hope of turning her life around. However, upon getting rejected by Mrs.Birling, she seemed to have lost all hope that anyone would help her, as Mrs.Birling is annoyed with Eva Smith, which ultimately lead to her demise.
18 April 2022
Mr. Birling and Shiela, in my opinion, are the key ones to blame for Eva Smith's death. Mr. Birling is partially to blame because he initiated the series of unfortunate events. He was simply being a "practical man of business", and Eva would not have been able to secure a better job at Millwards if he hadn't done so. Shiela Birling, on the other hand, sacked her from Millwards solely because she was prettier than her.Her feeling of jealousy had aroused her to convince Millward's manager to sack her,going as far as to threaten them to never shop there again unless they sack her.Considering she is a frequent and loyal customer, they do what she requests, resulting in the departure of that "pretty, lively-looking girl."
18 April 2022
I would say its Mrs. Birling as she didn't provide the help/money when Eva needed it very desperately as she was pregnant but instead she was chased away and was told that its the fathers responsibility. The unborn fetus may have been her last hope of living which has been so after getting rejected by the committee she had nothing to do. The father was Eric who according to Eva is not responsible enough and she just cant tell Mrs. birling about this as she knows that this will make Eric's life hard and disrupt their family relationship. So with no other choice she decided to take her own life as well as the baby's and not wanting be anyone else burden anymore, this is also the reason why she has rejected when Eric tried to give her the stolen money. This also shows that despite being in such a hard situation she still cared for Eric and didn't want him to get into any trouble because of her
21 April 2022
its defo eric man, i mean cmon the dude couldn't even take care of his first son. Like bro this man just shoved his gf down the pipe.it was very unfatherly. Eric most likely is the most guilty and this is something he wont forget for his whole life.
27 April 2022
Eric 100 percent. lost his first son due to his stupididty.like bruh this man couldnt even take care of eva properly.defo the most guilty.
27 April 2022
eric literally forced himself into eva. he is a pervert
27 September 2022
In my opinion Mrs. Birling and Eric are the most responsible for the death of Eva Smith, Eric raped Eva Smith when he was drunk then left her all by herself when she was pregnant and homeless with no income which then led her to go and ask Mrs. Birling for help, Mrs. Birling could have been Eva's last hope for help and could have helped her and her baby get a place to stay at and food to eat but instead she rejected Eva and thought she was lying when Eva called herself "Mrs. Birling", Mrs. Birling also blamed the father saying its his responsibility not knowing the father was her own son.
03 February 2023
I have speaking exam about this question, can anyone please suggest how could I write ?
22 June 2023
eric, hes dumb
27 June 2023
I personally believe it was Eric that was responsible for the death of Eva Smith, I mean Eric couldn't even take care of his first son. Like Eric just put his girlfriend down in a bad spot, couldn’t get a job so it was officially over for a while, and the fact is that he tried to help out, but not legally, it was very unfatherly. Eric most likely is the most guilty and this is something he wont forget for his whole life, he should have his part properly, this is why the chain of events actually started, all because of his stupidity, he couldn’t even take care of Eva, so I doubt he could have even raised the kid right, therefore I think Eric is most responsible for the death of Eva Smith, Because Eva Smith met Eric in the of the Palace Theatre, and thats when eric basically raped eva smith and made her pregnant, and to try keep her stable, he stole money to give to Eva
27 June 2023
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