Act 1

• What event is the Birling family celebrating at the beginning of the play?

  Sheila Birling’s engagement to Gerald Croft
• What does the celebratory atmosphere of the Birling family represent?

  Their sense of self-assurance and privilege
• How does Priestley use the opening setting to comment on social issues?

  It exposes the disconnect between the wealthy and the working class
• What does the decorous dining room symbolize in the play?

  Conformity and rigidity of the upper class
• How is Mr. Birling characterized in the play?

  As a businessman with capitalist values
• What dramatic irony is present in Mr. Birling's speeches?

  He speaks of the Titanic and war, unaware of their outcomes
• How is Mrs. Birling portrayed in the play?

  As a cold and controlling matriarch
• What classist attitudes does Mrs. Birling embody?

  Indifference to the suffering of the lower class
• How is Sheila Birling initially characterized?

  As spoiled and naive
• What does Eric Birling's awkwardness suggest about his character?

  Hints at his moral discomfort
• What does Gerald Croft represent in the play?

  The upper class with some empathy
• How does the arrival of Inspector Goole affect the Birling family?

  It disrupts their comfortable, self-assured world
• What role does Inspector Goole play in the narrative?

  He acts as a catalyst for change
• What does the mystery of the Inspector's identity create?

  Suspense in the narrative
• How does the Inspector's questioning affect the characters?

  Forces them to confront their roles in Eva Smith's death
• What is the central moral message of the play?

  The interconnectedness of society and social responsibility
• What is a key theme highlighted by the Inspector's questions?

  Social Responsibility
• How does dramatic irony function in the play?

  It undermines Birling's speeches with audience knowledge
• What event sets the central plot in motion?

  Eva Smith's suicide
• What does the Birlings' indifference toward Eva Smith's death reveal?

  Their moral failure
• In what time period is the play set?

  Early 20th century
• What does Inspector Goole symbolize in the play?

  Social conscience
• What class do the Birlings represent?

  The capitalist class
• What does the play critique?

  The class system and social inequality
• What is the Inspector's role in the play?

  To challenge the characters' moral beliefs
• What theme is prevalent throughout the play?

  The theme of guilt
• How does the play end regarding the Inspector's identity?

  It ends with ambiguity about his identity and purpose