Inspector Goole

Inspector Goole is the cornerstone for the action in the play, without whom none of the characters’ secrets would be revealed. He is the personification of conscience and guilt: he forces everyone else to confront how they failed Eva Smith, persisting in his line of enquiry to the point that each character has to accept their responsibility. Priestley shows how the Inspector commands the scenes, often returning the warring family to the issue at hand: the girl’s death. He exhibits impressive skills in rhetoric, using the words of others to expose their prejudices and elicit feelings of guilt.