STAGE DIRECTIONS

• mrs birling as “cold”

  • perhaps she is cold in nature as a consequence of the discrimination she has faced in life as a women- despite her position of aristocracy but indeed she is suffering herself.
• “an evening in spring 1912”

  • the sinking of the titanic so thinking of the play as a tragedy
  • “spring” is symbolic of rebirth, optimism and hope
• “pink and intimate”

  • subtle ways of indicating that the family is not harmonious
  • the attempt of intimacy doesn’t work because they are too busy decieving themselves or each other
  • “pink” shows they are looking through rose tinted lenses which is a completely unrealistic approach and not aware of the suffering outside 
• “brighter and harder”

  • “brighter” could symbolise hope and enlightenment
  • how their actions affect others
  • also could refer to christianity - god being the light to guide and the inspector having the light to dictate the rule of the truth
  • “harder” foreshadows the inspector is going to reveal the hard truth and show the family how things really are
• scene never changes 

  Conveys they think of nothing outside their own lives.

  They are disconnected from the wider world.

  Claustrophobic mood, interrogation room atmosphere.

  They never change.

  Allows us to focus on the didactic lessons in the morality play.

  Adds to the lack of subtlety, as the Inspector literally says Priestleys words
• “very pleased with life“

  SHEILA BIRLING

  • contrast to Eva who even though they are quite similar- hates her life so dies
  • contrasts the fire blood and anguish which the inspector suggests society will become 
  • depicts that metaphorical bubble the upper class live in unaware of the anguish outside which aleinates lower class creating an emotionally detached society 
  • out of touch perception with the world