Context

Question 1

Tennessee Williams

Answer 1

*Mother was a Southern Belle
* Father was abusive and an alcoholic
* Williams was gay
* His sister was lobotomised

Question 2

American Civil War

Answer 2

*War involving the Northern and Southern states of America on the disagreement on the abolition of slavery
* The South benefitted from slavery on the basis of cotton and tobacco industry
* Even though the South lost, there was still great romanticisation of its ‘lost’ values

Question 3

New Orleans

Answer 3

• Champion of diversity and accpetance in the Southern states after the Great Depression
• Immigrants icnreased cultural miscegenation

Question 4

Second World War

Answer 4

• The play is set only 2 years after the war had finished

Question 5

1940s gender roles

Answer 5

• Stanley and Stella represent the accepted societal roles whereas Blanche, Mitch and Allan Gray showcase the opposing masculine and feminine energy.
  *This negatively impacts those characters who do not fit the mould

Question 6

Religion and morality

Answer 6

• Although the play does not explicitly discuss religion, Puritan and Christian culture is what America was founded on, inevitably seeping into the culture and societal moral values
• The struggle with morality is clear in Blanche with her deceit
  *Double standards as Stanley an get away with domestic abuse