Exam Technique & Key Quotations
The Modern-Text Essay: What You Are Being Asked to Do
For An Inspector Calls as a modern text, you will answer one essay question. You will typically be given a choice of two questions, each preceded by a short quotation from the play as a stimulus. You must write about the quotation and the play as a whole. The exam is closed book — you cannot take the text into the exam. This means you must memorise key quotations.
The task rewards a clear personal argument supported by well-chosen evidence and close analysis, alongside an understanding of the play’s context. Allow yourself roughly 50–55 minutes to plan and write a full response. Check your own exam board’s specimen paper for the exact mark allocation and the precise balance between assessment objectives.
The exam is closed book. You must memorise quotations. Aim for 10–15 short, versatile quotations that can be used across multiple essay questions. Short quotations (3–6 words) are easier to memorise and allow more time for analysis. A well-analysed short quotation will always score higher than a long quotation with no analysis.
Assessment Objectives Breakdown
AO1: Read, understand and respond to texts. Use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations. This means you must make a clear argument, support it with evidence from the play, and show that you understand the text in detail. A strong answer gives an informed personal response — your own interpretation, backed by evidence.
AO3: Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written. For An Inspector Calls, this means the 1912 setting, the 1945 writing context, Priestley’s socialism, the class system, the Welfare State, and the dramatic irony created by the time gap. Context must be embedded within your analysis, not bolted on as a separate paragraph.
AO4: Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation. These 8 marks are for the quality of your written English, not for literary terminology. Write clearly and accurately, vary your sentences, and check your spelling and punctuation before you finish.
Many students lose marks by writing about context in a separate paragraph (“In 1912, there was no Welfare State…”). This is called bolted-on context. Instead, weave context into every analytical point. For example:
Weak: “In 1912, workers had no rights. Birling sacked Eva.”
Strong: “Priestley uses Birling’s dismissal of Eva for requesting a living wage to expose how Edwardian employers exploited the absence of workers’ rights, treating labourers as expendable commodities rather than human beings. The 1945 audience, who had just fought a war alongside people from every class, would recognise this attitude as the root cause of social injustice.”
Notice how the second example embeds 1912 context (no workers’ rights), 1945 context (post-war solidarity), and Priestley’s purpose (exposing injustice) within a single analytical sentence. This is what lifts an answer.
Essential Quotation Bank
Memorise these quotations. Each one is short, versatile, and can be used across multiple essay questions. Group them by character or theme to aid memory.
Inspector Goole: “We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other.” | “fire and blood and anguish” | “Public men … have responsibilities as well as privileges.”
Arthur Birling: “a man has to mind his own business” | “unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable” | “If we were all responsible … it would be very awkward.”
Sheila: “these girls aren’t cheap labour — they’re people” | “You began to learn something. And now you’ve stopped”
Eric: “You’re not the kind of father a chap could go to when he’s in trouble” | “I’m ashamed of you as well — yes both of you”
Mrs Birling: “a girl in her position”
Essay Structure: The PEEAL Paragraph
For each paragraph, use the PEEAL structure: Point (make your argument), Evidence (provide a quotation), Explanation (explain what it means), Analysis (analyse language, structure, or dramatic technique — this is where you show your skill), Link (connect to Priestley’s purpose or the wider play). The strongest responses also include an alternative interpretation within the analysis step, showing that you can consider multiple readings.
Point: Priestley uses dramatic irony to systematically undermine Birling’s authority and, by extension, the capitalist philosophy he represents.
Evidence: Birling confidently declares that the Titanic is “unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable.”
Explanation: The repetition of “unsinkable” and the intensifier “absolutely” reveal Birling’s arrogant certainty. He presents his opinion as unquestionable fact.
Analysis: The 1945 audience knows the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage in April 1912, killing over 1,500 people. This dramatic irony transforms Birling from a figure of authority into a figure of ridicule. Priestley’s purpose is structural: if Birling is catastrophically wrong about a factual prediction, his moral philosophy — “a man has to mind his own business” — must be equally unreliable. The audience is thus primed to reject Birling’s individualism before the Inspector even arrives. Alternatively, the Titanic itself can be read as a symbol of Edwardian hubris: a society so confident in its own superiority that it believed it was indestructible, only to be destroyed by forces it refused to acknowledge.
Link: Priestley uses Birling’s failed predictions to discredit the entire pre-war capitalist worldview, clearing the way for the Inspector’s socialist alternative.
Planning Your Essay
Spend 5–7 minutes planning before you write. Read the stimulus quotation carefully and identify which character, theme, or dramatic technique it relates to. Then plan 4–5 paragraphs:
Paragraph 1: Analyse the stimulus quotation directly. What does it reveal about the character or theme? What language techniques can you identify?
Paragraphs 2–3: Explore the theme or character across the wider play. Use your memorised quotations. Always link to Priestley’s purpose and context.
Paragraph 4: Consider an alternative interpretation or a contrasting character/moment. This shows evaluative skill.
Conclusion: Brief, purposeful. Don’t repeat your points — instead, make a final, overarching statement about Priestley’s message.
1. Retelling the story: The reader already knows the plot. Don’t summarise what happens — analyse why Priestley makes it happen and how he uses language and structure to shape the audience’s response.
2. Bolting on context: Never write a separate context paragraph. Weave it into every point.
3. Ignoring the stimulus: Your first paragraph must analyse the given quotation. Then broaden to the wider play.
4. Feature-spotting without effect: Identifying “Priestley uses dramatic irony” is not enough. You must explain the effect on the audience and link it to Priestley’s purpose.
5. Treating characters as real people: Always remember that characters are constructs. Write “Priestley presents Birling as…” not “Birling is…” This shows awareness of the writer’s craft.