mark my inspector calls essay gcse

Initially, Mr. Burling's conversation with Gerald hints his egotistical and negligent attitude towards the lower class. He informs Gerald of the most important things a man should do, which is to "look after his business and to look after himself and his own". This foreshadows his downfall, as in the play we see him trying to defend his stance against the inspector. Possibly, Mr. Birling is ranking each responsibility, conveying how looking after one's business and himself is more important than anything else. The fact that he says that a man has to do this connotes how he believes that without this a man may live a difficult and unsuccessful life. This is ironic, as this advice soon comes to embarrass him. His carelessness and individualism was perhaps one of the leading reasons to the suicide of Eva Smith, causing him to be humiliated and demeaned by the inspector. Mr. Birling was on the brink of losing his status due to this. Therefore, Priestley uses the plight of Mr. Birling to give the audience an insight into the mercenary society before the war, pleading them to not go back to their old ways.

Reply 1

nikiiiiiii

Original post by Hello123Hello

hey I haven't read inspector calls so not sure what mark this would get but some general advice from someone who got a 9 in lit would be to explain your point a bit better. Your overall argument seems good but it need to be more developed.I think if your argument is that the author is urging people not to go back to the selfish and individualist society from before the war, you could focus more on how Mr burling's selfishness is a leading cause for eva's suicide and how it negatively effects himself and others as currently I don't see much of a link between each of your statements. Perhaps include another quote to prove your point about how his carelessness led to Eva's death, or a quote showing how he was nearly ruined.
Including context and tying that to author intention is great. a general tip is to try incorporating context throughout your paragraphs rather than tagging it on the end. for example, you could have mentioned how Mr burling's attitude was common at the time when you first introduced the point.
Pointing out structural methods such as foreshadowing is great as it shows you're thinking about the play as a whole
The last advice I'd give is that you sort of repeat yourself -" Possibly, Mr. Birling is ranking each responsibility, conveying how looking after one's business and himself is more important than anything else" doesn't feel necessary to include as you've already stated this when introducing the quote.
hope this helps! let me know if you want more tips/help and good luck !