Vocabulary An Inspector Calls Developing Language Skills

Give a definition for each of these words (use a dictionary to help you if necessary). On
Activities: Act 1
the line beneath, write the character(s) from the play that the word could be applied to.
affluent Parts of Speech
Identify the underlined part(s) of speech in the following quotations. Use the

words in the box below to help you.
capitalist Mrs Birling When you’re married you’ll realize that men with important work
 to do sometimes have to spend nearly all their time and energy on their
business. 
impertinent


Birling There’s a good deal of silly talk about these days – but – and I speak
industrialist as a hard-headed business man, who has to take risks and know what he’s
 about – I say, you can ignore all this silly pessimistic talk.

materialistic 

 Birling A man has to mind his own business and look after himself and his
own.
omniscient


Eric (involuntarily) My God!
provincial


Birling Rubbish! If you don’t come down sharply on some of these people,
socialist
they’d soon be asking for the earth.



Extension: What other sophisticated vocabulary could you use to describe the events, Inspector It’s better to ask for the earth than to take it.
characters or themes of the play? Try to come up with three examples and then share
them with a partner. 
Sheila But these girls aren’t cheap labour – they’re people.


Sheila (laughs rather hysterically) Why – you fool – he knows. Of course he

knows.


verb adverb noun adjective

conjunction pronoun interjection determiner

Extension: Can you find one other example of each?

4 An Inspector Calls Developing Language Skills Activities: Act 1 1
Active or Passive Formality Matters
Are the following sentences written in an active or passive voice? (The active voice Mr Birling is very conscious of his status. Correct the informal utterances below so that
is when someone is doing something; the passive voice is when someone is having they sound more like something a man of his standing would say.
something done to them.) “Hey, Edna. Bit o’ port over ’ere will ya.”
Mr Birling boasts to Gerald that he is expecting to receive a knighthood. 
 
Eric drinks a bit too much. “I tells ya, there ain’t no way in hell we’re goin’ to war.”
 
The evening soirée is interrupted by the inspector’s call. 
 “There’s this right big ship called Titanic, well posh like, and unsinkable they reckon.”
Eva co-ordinated a strike at the Birling factory. 
 

Mr Birling refuses to take responsibility for Eva Smith’s demise. “Your mum, wotsername – Lady Croft – she looks down her nose at us Birlings.”
 

Eva Smith was sacked by Mr Birling. 

 “The yoof of today! You lot don’t know yer born. Back in the day I was worked to the
bone.”
Eva was accused of smirking at Sheila.



Eva Smith changed her name to Daisy Renton.
“Give over Inspector! It’s hardly my fault the girl’s popped her clogs.”


Extension: Write a sentence of your own in both the active and passive voice. 

Extension: Make Mrs Birling’s speech colloquial: “Arthur, you’re not supposed to say
such things–”

2 An Inspector Calls Developing Language Skills Activities: Act 1 3