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| “ | Yes, I insisted - it seems. I'm not very clear about it, but afterwards she told me she didn't want me to go in but that - well, I was in that state when a chap easily turns nasty - and I threatened to make a row. (Inspector: So she let you in?) Yes. And that's when it happened. And I didn't even remember - that's the hellish thing. Oh - my god! How stupid it all is! | „ |
| ~ Eric confessing that he raped Eva Smith. |
Eric Birling is the anti-heroic tritagonist in J.B. Priestly's acclaimed 1945 play An Inspector Calls.
He is the son of Arthur and Sybil Birling and the brother of Sheila. Like the rest of the main cast, he at first appears to be a respectable middle-class citizen; however, an investigation into the suicide of Eva Smith exposes that each of them have some secret connecting them to the death. In Eric's case, the secret is that he raped Eva Smith and got her pregnant before stealing money from his father to support her.
Portrayals[]
- In the original run of the play, he was portrayed by Alec Guinness.
- In the play's second run, he was portrayed by Hugh Grant.
- In the 1948 television play, he was portrayed by Derek Blomfield.
- In the 1954 film, he was portrayed by Bryan Forbes.
- In the 1961 television play, he was portrayed by Alan Dobie.
- In the 1987 run, he was portrayed by Adam Godley.
- In the 2015 television film, he was portrayed by Finn Cole.
Personality[]
In the stage directions for Act One, Eric is described as being "Not quite at ease, half shy, half assertive". Throughout the play his assertive side comes to light more, as he is willing to call out his father and mother for their actions towards Eva Smith. However he also attempts to run away from the Inspector at one point rather than take responsibility for his actions in front of everyone else, showing his other side. Despite this he ultimately does take responsibility, and he and Sheila are the only two characters to admit that what they did was wrong and feel some remorse.
According to Sheila and Gerald, Eric commonly gets drunk and goes to the Palace Bar to look for prostitutes, showing his perverted side. This ultimately led to him raping Eva Smith while drunk one night. However, he did attempt to make amends after this, stealing money from his father's factory to support her when he found out she was pregnant.
Biography[]
Act One[]
At the opening of the play, the Birling family are celebrating Sheila's engagement to Gerald Croft, the son of Mr. Birling's business rival. Eric bursts out laughing for no clear reason during the dinner, showing him to be drunk and foreshadowing his drinking problem. Mr. Birling gives a speech about the prosperous future awaiting his company during which Eric asks him if war is possible. Mr. Birling responds by falsely predicting that war will not occur (the war in question being World War One) because the world has progressed too far, and that the Titanic will not sink.
After the dinner is over, Eric, Sheila and Mrs. Birling leave the room in order to allow Mr. Birling and Gerald to talk in peace. After a while Eric returns, complaining about how the women were talking about clothes. Mr. Birling comments that women see clothes as a token of self-respect, which Eric begins to agree with, saying he remembers something before stopping himself. This makes Gerald suspicious that Eric is hiding something, although he assumes it's just a woman he doesn't want his father to know about.
Just then the Birling's maid Edna enters and announces that "An inspector's called". Gerald and Mr. Birling joke that it's probably just about a warrant "unless Eric's been up to something". Eric reacts suspiciously to this, but the inspector enters before the others can discern the reason for his reaction.
The inspector announces that he's there to investigate the suicide of a girl named Eva Smith, who committed suicide by drinking disinfectant. He shows Mr. Birling a photo of her, and he reveals that she used to work for him until he fired her two years prior for leading a strike for higher wages. Eric objects to this, telling his father that it was unfair to sack her for asking for higher wages and that he would have given her what she wanted. His father refutes this, claiming that this isn't how business works and that he can't possibly be responsible for what happened because it was over two years ago. The inspector replies that he isn't only there to speak to him, and the others may be involved as well.
The inspector explains that after being sacked, Eva went to work at a shop named Milwards before being fired for no clear reason. He then forces Sheila to look at her photo, revealing that she had used her influence to have Eva sacked for a perceived slight. Eric comments that "It's a bit thick when you think about it", causing Sheila to snap at him. The inspector then mentions that she changed her name to Daisy Renton after being fired, eliciting a shocked reaction from Gerald. Eric and the others leave the room to allow Sheila and Gerald to talk.
Act Two[]
Eric is largely absent during this act, as he is off-stage while Mr. Birling tries to convince him to go to bed. He refuses to go until the inspector has asked him what he wants to know. While Eric is gone, Gerald is forced to admit that he had an affair with "Daisy Renton" while engaged to Sheila before he leaves in shame. The inspector then begins to interrogate Mrs. Birling, only for the front door to be heard slamming. Mr. Birling goes out and realizes that the noise was Eric leaving.
Through interrogation, the inspector forces Mrs. Birling to admit that a pregnant Eva Smith came to her charity for help but she had her turned away for being impertinent. When asked, she says that Eva didn't take money from the child's father because she suspected he was stealing it. The inspector confirms that the man in question is not Gerald. Mrs. Birling demands that the inspector do his duty by finding the man and forcing him to make a public confession despite Sheila's attempts to tell her something she's realized. When the inspector fails to leave, he is asked what he's waiting for and replies "To do my duty". Mrs. Birling realizes too late that he means Eric was the father. Eric suddenly re-enters, finding everyone staring at him.
Act Three[]
Eric immediately realizes that everyone now knows his secret. Sheila tells him that their mother has directed the inspector to make him publicly confess his guilt, and also reveals that she disclosed his drinking habit to the others. This almost leads to an argument before the inspector interrupts and orders Eric to tell him what happened.
Eric tells him that he met Eva in the Palace Bar the previous November while heavily drunk and they went back to her apartment. Eric admits that he doesn't remember what happened next, but that when they met later she told him he had forced himself on her. They later happened to meet again in the Palace Bar, and they had sex several more times until she revealed she was pregnant. Eric says he tried to help her by giving her fifty pounds so she could support herself. When asked where he got it from, he confesses he stole it from Mr. Birling's office.
This confession leads to an argument until the inspector interrupts and asks Eric what happened next. He replies that Eva realized he was stealing and refused to take any more money. When he asks how the inspector knows this, Sheila and the inspector tell him what Mrs. Birling did. This causes Eric to break down and begin ranting about how his mother killed her and his child. The inspector manages to interrupt and takes charge of the situation, telling all of them to remember what they did to push her over the edge. Before leaving, he tells them that if mankind does not learn that they are responsible for one another, they will have to learn in "fire and blood and anguish".
After the inspector has left, Mr. Birling berates him for his actions, complaining that he was certain for a knighthood and now there'll be a public scandal and he won't get one. Eric points out that it doesn't matter whether or not he gets a knighthood, which he objects to. Sheila then mentions how odd the inspector was, causing Mr. and Mrs. Birling to theorize that he wasn't a police officer, thereby absolving themselves of any responsibility. Eric and Sheila insist that this doesn't matter as they still did what they admitted to, but their parents refute this.
Just then Gerald re-enters and reveals that he spoke to a police sergeant while he was out and confirmed that the inspector was not a police officer. Mr. Birling calls up the Chief Constable, and confirms for himself that the inspector does not exist. Eric and Sheila continue to insist that this makes no difference because they still all did Eva wrong, but Gerald points out that they don't even know it was the same girl, as only one person at a time saw the inspector's photo and they only had his word for it that it was the same photo every time. He calls up the infirmary and confirms that no women have committed suicide in the area recently.
Sheila continues to insist that they're all guilty whether or not there was a suicide, but Mr. Birling mocks her. Just then the phone starts ringing. Mr. Birling answers it, and has a shocked reaction to what he hears. He puts down the phone and announces:
| “ | That was the police. A girl has just died - on her way to the infirmary - after swallowing some disinfectant. And a police inspector is on his way here to ask some - questions... | „ |
| ~ Mr. Birling |
The play ends with all five characters shocked into silence as the curtain falls.
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 villains
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Birling Family (Arthur Birling | Sybil Birling | Eric Birling | Gerald Croft) | ||