Mrs Birling

• Who is Mrs. Birling married to?

  Mr. Birling
• Who are the children of Mrs. Birling?

  Eric and Sheila
• What public role does Mrs. Birling hold?

  She sits on the council for charity organizations
• How does Priestley use Mrs. Birling as a symbol?

  To represent the hypocrisy of the upper classes and the need for a welfare state
• How is Mrs. Birling described in the stage directions?

  As "about fifty, a rather cold woman"
• What does Mrs. Birling's cold nature reveal about her character?

  It reveals her unsympathetic and individualistic nature
• What does Mrs. Birling represent about the upper classes?

  She represents their selfish nature, privileges, and prejudices
• How does Mrs. Birling perceive the working classes?

  As inferior
• What does Priestley depict about domestic life in the early 20th Century through Mrs. Birling?

  He depicts the inequality between men and women
• What convention does Mrs. Birling adhere to after dinner?

  She goes to the drawing room while men remain in the dining room
• How does Mrs. Birling initiate her exit from the dining room?

  By announcing it is time for Sheila and herself to "leave you men"
• What does Mrs. Birling's commitment to the patriarchal status quo lead to?

  It leads her to become complicit in her own oppression
• How does Mrs. Birling view marriage?

  As a means to secure financial security and social status
• What does Mrs. Birling's indifference to Gerald's affair demonstrate?

  It shows that she views such affairs as expected of men
• How does Priestley describe Mrs. Birling in relation to contemporary women?

  As a "cold woman," which contrasts with the expected loving and maternal nature
• What message might Priestley be conveying through Mrs. Birling's detached attitude towards suffering?

  That her attitude is irrational and unnatural
• How does Mrs. Birling react to Sheila's distress over Eva's suicide?

  She is unsympathetic
• What does Mrs. Birling believe about the nature of marriage?

  That it is a transaction rather than centered around love
• How does Gerald cover up his affair with Daisy Renton?

  By telling Sheila he’s "busy at the works"
• How does Mrs. Birling view men's sexual desires?

  As something that should be accepted and satisfied by submissive women
• What does Mrs. Birling believe about Eva's suicide?

  That it is Eva's own fault
• How does Mrs. Birling view working-class women who turn to prostitution?

  She believes they voluntarily choose it rather than being forced
• How does Mrs. Birling respond to the Inspector's message of collective responsibility?

  She rejects it and denies her role in Eva's suicide
• What does Mrs. Birling believe about class inequalities and their impact on Eva's death?

  She believes class inequalities did not cause Eva's death
• How does Mrs. Birling perceive displays of emotion?

  As a sign of weakness
• How does Mrs. Birling attempt to silence Sheila?

  By telling her she is "behaving like a hysterical child"
• What historical context does Priestley reference with the term "hysteria"?


  It has been used to control women and prevent them from acquiring power
• How does Mrs. Birling react to Sheila's socialist views?

  She opposes them and uses hysteria to dismiss her
• How does Gerald align himself with Mrs. Birling regarding Sheila's behavior?

  He sides with Mrs. Birling in attacking Sheila for being "hysterical"
• What does Mrs. Birling symbolize in relation to the suffrage movement?

  She symbolizes the upper classes who resisted the movement
• How does Mrs. Birling view the suffrage movement?

  As undermining traditional gender roles and leading to domestic chaos
• What conservative view does Mrs. Birling hold about women's roles?

  That women should have moral and domestic roles, excluding themselves from politics
• Why is Mrs. Birling resistant to changing society?

  Because she is privileged and her lifestyle is threatened by suffrage
• How does Priestley depict Mrs. Birling's feelings towards her husband's origins?

  She is ashamed of his lower-class origins
• How does Mrs. Birling's social superiority affect her marriage?

  It creates a dynamic where Mr. Birling's mannerisms are unnatural to her
• What does Priestley suggest about the nature of the Birling marriage?

  That it is arranged like a transaction for social mobility or financial gain
• How does Mrs. Birling respond to Sheila's discomfort about Gerald's affair?

  She accepts it and suggests Sheila will have to get used to it
• How does Priestley describe the Birling household?

  As not feeling "cosy or homelike"
• How does Sheila's relationship with her mother change throughout the play?

  She shifts from being a victim of her mother's influence to rejecting it
• How does Sheila's vocabulary reflect her mother's influence?

  She initially uses formal vocabulary like "impertinent" as echoed by her mother