Scene 8

Question 1

“I am one hundred percent American”, “People from Poland are Poles, not Polacks”

Answer 1

“I am” - presents this statemet as fact, objective, despite Stanley having Polish ancestry

Question 2

Stanley ‘hurls’ his plate to the floor

Answer 2

Stanley feels a need to reassert himself in his own home. It may be that many members of the 1940s audience sympathised with this.

Question 3

Stella’s labour as a dramatic device

Answer 3

contributes to the idea of fate as Stella’s body chooses her path for her. Where there was this previous dilemma of Stella being a Kowalski or a DuBois (“The Kowalskis and the DuBois have different notions”), this crucial moment confirms Stella’s position as a Kowalski.

Question 4

“I pulled you down off them columns and how you loved it.”

Answer 4

emphasies Stanley’s need to be level with Stella so that he doesn’t feel inferior. This highlights the theme of social antagonism and the idea of working-class empowerment/equality.