‘An Inspector Calls’ - Plot Summary

• Act One


  One spring evening in 1912
• The Birling family


  • Celebrating Sheila's engagement to Gerald
  • Sheila suspects Gerald lost interest in her last summer
• Arthur Birling: 'Every man should look after himself'
• Inspector Goole


  Arrives and says that a woman called Eva Smith has taken her own life by drinking disinfectant
• Inspector Goole's questioning


  Questioning the family members, one by one
• Eva Smith


  • Sacked from Arthur Birling's factory for striking in protest against low wages
  • Sacked from a department store last year at Sheila's request
• Daisy Renton


  Eva Smith's changed name
• Gerald's reaction


  Appears shocked
• Eric's reaction


  Leaves
• Act Two - everyone’s tangled up in the Inspector’s investigation


  . Although he wants to keep it a secret, Gerald eventually describes how he spent last summer with Daisy Renton - she was his mistress

  . Gerald is upset. Sheila returns his ring and Gerald leaves

  . The Inspector gets Sybil to confess that she persuaded the Women’s Charity Organisation to reject Eva/Daisy‘s appeal for help. Eva/Daisy was pregnant at the time

  . Sybil blames the father of Eva/Daisy’s child for her death

  . Sheila guesses that the father of the child is Eric
• Act Three - Eric brings shame to the family


  1. Eric returns

  2. Eric knows the Inspector has led everyone to the conclusion he's the father of Eva/Daisy's unborn child

  3. Eric describes how he met Eva Smith at a bar

  4. Eric drunkenly forced her to have sex

  5. Eric got her pregnant

  6. Eric stole money from his father's office to support her

  7. Eva/Daisy rejected the stolen money

  8. Eva/Daisy turned to Sybil's charity for help

  9. Eric says Sybil murdered her own grandchild by refusing to give her charity

  10. The Inspector reminds the Birlings that we are all responsible for each other

  11. The Inspector warns that unless everyone learns to look after each other, the lesson will have to be learnt later with greater suffering
• Act Three - the final twist

  . Gerald returns, having spoken to a police officer who doesn’t recognise the name ‘Goole’. Birling calls the police station to confirm there is no inspector called ‘Goole’ in the area

  . Gerald calls the hospital and finds out that no one has died by suicide. Birling, Sybil and Gerald decide it’s all been a hoax and start to relax

  . Sheila and Eric argue that they are all still guilty of treating someone badly

  . The phone rings. A young woman has just been found dead after drinking disinfectant, and the police are sending an inspector to question the Birling family