Mystery and detective fiction
Priestley was deliberate in crafting a play that fused elements of realism with aspects of morality drama and detective fiction, creating a hybrid structure that challenges audience expectations. Set entirely in one room and unfolding Aristotelian in real time, the play adheres to the Aristotelian unitiesof place, time, unities and action – techniques typical of classical drama. However, the inclusion of the Inspector as a mysterious, almost supernatural figure who seems to know more than he logically could adds an uncanny quality that disrupts pure realism. His name, Goole, itself sounds like ‘ghoul,’ suggesting that he may not be a conventional character at all. The play also incorporates the conventions of a whodunnit, keeping the audience engaged in uncovering the truth behind Eva Smith’s death. However, instead of revealing one definitive culprit, Priestley reveals that all the Birlings are complicit in different ways, subverting the detective genre’s usual aim of closure. Although you don’t need to understand too much about the broader genre context, for your GCSE you should consider how this structural choice reinforces Priestley’s theme: the collective guilt of society. No single character is solely responsible, but rather, each one’s selfishness and lack of empathy contributes to the tragedy. This narrative approach keeps the audience intellectually and morally engaged, asking them to interrogate their own complicity in social issues.
The Theatre
It is worth noting that the institution of theatre and the arts have always contained elements of elitism. In particular, the notion of being a theatregoer or a connoisseur of drama productions is typically a privilege only afforded to those of the upper and middle classes who are able to afford tickets even to this day. However, in the post-war environment of 1945 when this play debuted, going to the theatre was generally more affordable. Following the end of World War II, seats in the stalls or standing cost approximately 2 shillings and 6 pence, equating to £5.97 in 2025, whereas boxes or spaces higher up could be around 4 or 5 pounds, which would be the same as two days wages at the time or at least £220.62 nowadays. This means it is likely that audiences to the original London production of An Inspector Calls may have been from a wider variety of social backgrounds, and therefore representative of the class divide in the play itself.
Whilst Priestly had already received acclaim for his 1934 play Eden End, reviews after the opening of An Inspector Calls were mixed, to say the least: some found it “heavy” and too long, containing “no theatrical ethics” (Lionel Hale, The Daily Mail), whilst others found it a triumph of British theatre, with critic Stephen Hale calling it “the best coup de théâtre of the year.”
