A Streetcar Named Desire Flashcards
Discuss psychoanalytical literary theory reading of streetcar.
Williams’ childhood experiences of his parents’ social class difference is reflected in the “kowalskis and the Dubois have[ing] different notions”, portrayed through the relationship between Stanley and Stella. The audience’s negative perception of Stanley could also be due to Williams’ dislike of his father. An Oedipal complex could also be noted, as Stanley was close to his mother.
Give some critics’ quotes regarding streetcar.
“Williams has said that he considers Blanche liberated” & “Blanche is both a villain and a victim” - Hana Sombroch
“Everyone loses something” & “the roots of blanche’s trauma lie in her early marriage” - Shirley Galloway
“Williams wrote a script that dramatises the battle between the sexes” - Samual Tapp
Discuss the Marxist literary theory regarding streetcar.
The area of New Orleans the play is set in represents a proletariat environment - it is working class. The time period also highlights the class struggle of 1940/1950s America, an interpretation which is supported by the communist manifesto’s philosophy that “the history of all hitherto existing societies is the history of class struggles”. The play in this reading would also portray Stanley as the sympathetic proletariat, who is the “oppressed” to Blanche’s (&Stella’s) role as the bourgeois “oppressor”. Stanley’s physical threats and actions such as hitting Stella and blanche’s rape could therefore be perceived as a proletariat retaking power. This reading can be supported by the derogatory way in which the educated Blanche treats the uneducated Stanley, calling him a “polack” and “disgusting” and acting like the “queen of the nile”. Even Stella’s attraction to Stanley is based on her animalistic class prejudice of him
Discuss a feminist literary theory reading of streetcar.
The play in a feminist reading would reflect, interpret and challenge the male dominated society of 1950s America. All the characters in the play who suffer, suffer as a result of male action, notably in Blanche, who Stella says was “tender and trusting” until “people like you abused her, and forced her to change”. People here could be referring to all men, or men who abuse their power over women,
I’m a feminist reading. The androcentric environment is also present throughout the play, in a way that excludes and vilifies women. This is particularly evident in the poker night, which results in Stella being hit, with Mitch exclaiming that “poker shouldn’t be played in a house with women”. Equivocating the poker night with male society, it can then be said that femininity in the play is incongruous with masculinity. And yet, even after the events of the poker night, the never ending cycle is reflected by a similar poker night at the end of the play, when Blanche is being taken to the asylum with no conceivable consequences to Stanley. It is also sombrely suggested that with the reveal that Stella’s child is a son that the cycle will just repeat itself, with the boy repeating his father’s behaviour. Mitch is also a victim of this society, who “lunges and strikes at Stanley” but is forced to relent because he is less dominant than him. Moral double standards are also present in this reading, with it being acceptable that Stanley “sizes up women at a glance” but blanche’s promiscuity being condemned. Female support is also evident in Eunice saying that “no matter what, you’ve got to keep going”, though this doesn’t necessarily challenge the societal norms.
Discuss, including quotes, the relevance of Elysian Fields.
Elysian Fields is a parody of the Greek word ‘paradise’. It has a “raffish charm” which can be compared to Stanley. The darkening light “gracefully attenuates the atmosphere of decay” suggesting the town is more attractive during the night/nightly activities, and in concealment. There is an “intermingling of races” which emphasises the working class location and urban setting. Music is often heard, such as “blue piano” in the beginning.
Discuss, with quotes, the relevance of clothes.
Clothes are symbolic of class status. In the area of New Orleans where the play is set, the workers, including Stanley, wear “blue denim work clothes” emphasising their working class nature. Blanche, whose name in French is ‘white’, is “incongruous to this setting” because of her appearance, amongst other factors. Blanche’s “white clothes, that suggest a moth” are evident of her fragility, and attraction to superficiality. Stanley “starts to remove his shirt”, which is evidence of his primitive nature and sexual appeal. Blanche’s “red satin robe” indicates both her aristocratic upbringing and her tendency to incite desire, anger and passion. Nearing the end of the play, Blanche dressing as “queen of the nile” is indicative of her delusion.
Critics quotes
“Williams has said that he considers Blanche liberated” - sambrook
“Blanche is both a villain and a victim” - sambrook
“Everyone loses something” - Galloway
Roots of Blanche’s trauma “lie in her early marriage” - Galloway
“Stanley survives because of sheer physical vitality, not because of any innate superiority” - Galloway
Stanley is “an abnormal member of society” - Galloway
“Williams has written a play that dramatises the battle between the sexes” - tapp
Discuss Stanley
Stanley is largely seen as the antagonist to the story. He is the rival to Stella’s affection with her sister. Immensely masculine, he wears “blue denim work clothes” and carries a “red-stained package from a butcher’s”, solidifying him as the “gaudy seed-bearer” and “survivor of the Stone Age”. Working class, a second/third generation immigrant, poor. “He sizes women up at a glance, with sexual classifications”, believes that “every man is a king” and accepts Stella with “lordly composure”, though he is uneducated as seen when he attempts to explain the “napoleonic code”. Stanley is predatory, foreshadowing his rape of Blanche. Stanley “stalks” and “stalks fiercely” and is “on the primitive side” and is described as having a “little boy’s mind”. He feels threatened by Blanche, who threatens his relationship with Stella and makes him feel “sheepish” due to her being unafraid of him. He screams with “heaven splitting violence” and is described by Blanche as having “animal force” and being “sub-human”. Blanche and Stella call him “pig-polack-disgusting-vulgar-greasy!”
Discuss music
Music is used primarily as a precursor to chaos and Blanche’s mental deterioration. Significantly, nearing the end of the play, the “distant piano goes into a hectic breakdown”. “Paper doll” is played after the poker night. “hot trumpet and drums” are played when Stanley rapes Blanche. “Inhuman jungle noises”. “ lurid reflections”. “Shadows[..] of a grotesque and menacing form”.
Discuss Blanche
Blanche is “incongruous to this setting. She must “avoid a strong light”. She lies and is dishonest ; “I- rarely touch [alcohol]”. “I don’t like pinks and creams and I never cared for wushu washy people”. She intimidates Stanley and is unafraid of him; she “laughs” and looks at him “without flinching”. Blanche was once “tender and trusting” but “people like [stanley] abused her, and forced her to change”. She struggles with mental illness, as is evident from the music. When Stanley rapes her this illness is triggered into a full on psychotic break.
Discuss the significance of light
In relation to Blanche, it can be seen as the truth and reality. Reality is too difficult for Blanche to comprehend, and so she avoids it. “Turn that over-light off!” She must “avoid a strong light”. She “can’t stand a naked bulb”. At the end, she “cries out as though the lantern was herself”.
