This deep dive covers Function 2: THE METHOD — He Already Knows Everything within Inspector Goole (character) for GCSE English Literature. Revise Inspector Goole (character) in An Inspector Calls for GCSE English Literature with 12 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 3 of 17 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
🎭 Function 2: THE METHOD — He Already Knows Everything
The Inspector's method is Priestley's most powerful dramatic device. He does not ask questions to find out information — he already knows the answers. He asks questions to force the Birlings to confront themselves. When he shows Birling the photograph, he does not wait for a confession; he moves at exactly the moment needed to prevent each character from deflecting.
Notice the structure of each interrogation. The Inspector presents a fact (Eva Smith was sacked from Birling's factory). He allows the character to respond — usually with a denial of moral responsibility. Then he produces the next fact. He never argues; he accumulates. The weight of evidence is not legal evidence — it is a moral chain that holds regardless of whether a single person is technically responsible.
Priestley also structures the Inspector's method around timing. He refuses to let all five Birlings be present for each other's confessions simultaneously. He manages what information is shared when. He keeps Sheila and Eric in the room while the parents try to minimise — so the generational contrast is visible. The Inspector does not just prosecute; he stages.
Quick Check: Why does Priestley make the Inspector already know the answers before asking his questions?
Priestley shifts the dramatic tension from detective suspense (what happened?) to moral dread (will the Birlings acknowledge what we already know they did?). If the Inspector were genuinely discovering information, the audience would be focused on plot. Because he already knows, the audience is focused on whether each Birling will take responsibility. This is Priestley's theatrical argument: the question was never who did it — it was whether those responsible will admit what they have always known.
Practice questions for Inspector Goole (character)
What does Inspector Goole's name suggest to the audience?
Explain one technique Priestley uses to make the Inspector a powerful moral and dramatic force in An Inspector Calls. [2 marks]