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Responsibility in An inspector Calls - Coggle Diagram
Responsibility in An inspector Calls
Mr Birling
Hes a capitalist
Refuses to accept any responsibility for the poorer and lower class and what they have to suffer with
does not take any responsibility for caring about others - doesn't offer the lower class anything
" they will soon be asking for the earth".
Refuses to take any responsibility for Eva Smith's death - "If we were all responsible for everything that happened to everybody we'd had anything to do with, it would be very awkward, wouldn't it? "
puts money and profit over his daughter
Mr Birling's continued rejection of responsibility seems to be a result of arrogance and disrespect for others.
Accepting blame would be seen as a sign of weakness and imperfection. As Eva's story is revealed, Mr Birling insists he's innocent, saying, “I can't accept any responsibility,”
Eric
Hes a capitalist
"squiffy" - doesn't take responsibility for his actions and himself in general
"In a state where a chap easily turns nasty" - tries to normalize his actions rather than taking responsibility
Eric forces himself upon Eva therefore lacks responsibility - she is a women and can not fight back and he is a man who supposedly has control over her - patriarchal society
Gets Eva pregnant - uses her for his own benefit and doesn't take responsibility for leaving her with life changing problems.
Eric takes responsibility for his actions in the final act of the play
Eric is presented as naive and ignorant of the true extent of the suffering of the lower-class. Remorse and regretis clearly shown by Eric while he accepts responsibilityfor his actions, yet he rejects taking sole responsibility for her suicide.
Mrs Birling
Priestley uses her to suggest the hatred of social responsibility comes from classism and prejudice, as the upper class didn't want to associate with the lower class.
Like Mr birling, she is committed to the idea of her own innocence, refusing to accept the smallest bit of blame.
QUOTE - 'She was claiming elaborate fine feelings and scruples that were simply absurd in a girl of her position " - shows that she is trying to push the blame onto Eva and trying to say it was no one but her own fault,
Priestley portrays Mrs Birling as rejecting any sense of responsibility.
Mrs birling is stable in her character development, she remains ideologically the same, her ways do not change. This demonstrates that she is confident in her own superiority yet also reveals her stubbornness.
Mrs Birling, as a leader of a women's charity organization , refuses to help give financial aid to eva - this is not being responsible.
Mrs Birling says the father of the unborn child should be held responsible.