An Inspector Calls
I. Very Short Answer Questions
1. Where does the investigation take place?
Ans: The investigation takes place in the dining room of the Birling family’s house in Brumley.
2. What is the name of the mother of Sheila Birling?
Ans: Sybil Birling (Mrs. Birling).
3. What is the name of the Inspector?
Ans: Inspector Goole.
4. Who is Edna?
Ans: Edna is the maid of the Birling family.
5. Who had taken the name of Daisy Renton?
Ans: Eva Smith used the name Daisy Renton.
6. Who said, “I say the girl’s dead and we all helped to kill her”?
Ans: Eric Birling.
Short Answer Questions
7. What is the initial reaction of Mr. Birling to the Inspector’s questioning?
Ans: Mr. Birling is annoyed and offended by the Inspector’s questioning. He tries to show his social status and influence by mentioning that he knows the Chief Constable, hoping to intimidate the Inspector.
8. How does the Inspector react to the agitated response of Mrs. Birling?
Ans: The Inspector remains calm and firm. He continues questioning Mrs. Birling without being influenced by her anger or social status.
9. Why does the Inspector not show the photograph to all the people at the same time?
Ans: The Inspector shows the photograph to one person at a time to avoid confusion and to make each person reveal the truth individually.
10. Can Eva Smith be seen as a victim of personal and professional exploitation?
Ans: Yes. Eva Smith becomes a victim of social, personal, and economic exploitation. She is dismissed from her job, rejected for help, and emotionally hurt by different members of the Birling family.
11. What was the size of the photograph of Eva Smith and what was its purpose?
Ans: The photograph was postcard-sized.
It was used by the Inspector to confront each character separately and reveal their connection with Eva Smith.
12. What was the relationship between Eva Smith and Mrs. Birling?
Ans: Eva Smith went to Mrs. Birling’s charity organisation for help. Mrs. Birling, however, refused to assist her and treated her harshly.
13. How did Mr. Birling deal with the issue of the pay hike demanded by the workers?
Ans: Mr. Birling refused the workers’ demand for higher wages and dismissed Eva Smith because she led a strike demanding a pay rise.
14. How did Eric respond when his relationship with Eva Smith was investigated?
Ans: Eric admitted that he had a relationship with Eva Smith and that she was pregnant with his child. He also confessed that he stole money from his father’s business to help her.
15. What is Mr. Birling’s reaction at the end of the play?
Ans: At first, Mr. Birling feels triumphant when he believes the Inspector was fake. But soon he receives a telephone call informing that a girl has died and a real inspector is coming, leaving the family shocked.
Long Answer Questions
16. Why does Sheila feel that she has been let down by her family?
Ans: Sheila realizes that each member of her family has contributed to Eva Smith’s tragic fate. While she and Eric accept their responsibility, their parents try to avoid blame. This disappoints Sheila deeply. She feels that her family has failed to learn from the experience and has ignored the moral lesson about responsibility and compassion.
17. Comment on the significance of the title of the play.
Ans: The title “An Inspector Calls” is very significant because the arrival of the Inspector changes the entire atmosphere of the play. His questioning exposes the selfish actions of the Birling family and reveals their connection to Eva Smith’s suffering.
The Inspector symbolizes moral conscience and social responsibility. His visit forces the characters to examine their actions and their impact on others. Therefore, the title refers not only to the Inspector himself but also to the call for moral awakening and responsibility in society.
18. How do the different relationships with Eva Smith reflect the personalities of the characters?
Ans: Each character’s relationship with Eva Smith reveals their personality and moral values.
Mr. Birling fires her from his factory for leading a strike. Sheila gets her dismissed from another job out of jealousy. Gerald Croft has a relationship with her but later abandons her. Eric also has a relationship with her and makes her pregnant. Mrs. Birling refuses to help her when she seeks charity.
Through these incidents, Eva Smith becomes a symbol of the suffering working class. Her story shows how the selfish actions of powerful people can destroy the life of a vulnerable person. The play teaches the importance of social responsibility and compassion.