Streetcar - masculinity Flashcards
‘He heaves..
the package at her’
Scene 1 to Stella
The game the men play
‘Poker’
Stanley
‘Animal joy’
‘Sizes women up with a glance’
(Scene 1)
‘Ape-like’
‘Beastial’
(Scene 4)
Stanley demeaning
‘What’s all this monkey doings’
Scene 2 - Blanche bathing and Stella completing her toilette
‘It makes me so…
mad when he does that in front of people’
Scene 3 am- Stella about Stanley slapping her thigh
Stage direction
‘Stanley gives a…
loud whack of his hand on her thigh’
Scene 2
‘Poker shouldn’t…
Be played in a house with women’
Scene 3 - Mitch
Stanley throwing package at Stella
‘He heaves a package at her’
‘She cries out in protest’
‘Laughing breathlessly’
Meat symbolises
Stella being controlled and carelessly chucked around by her husband
How does the setting of the Kowalski’s flat hint at women being used for sex and house chores
Description of the flat is just the ‘kitchen’ - housewife
and ‘bedroom’ - sexual pleasures
There is no sense of love or relationship, the flat has no living space. Stella’s love life revolves around sex and being a submissive wife.
Blanche is described as what when she find out Stanley
doesn’t know she is coming?
‘Frightened’
Because traditionally men were in charge of the house etc’
Stanley’s lust
‘Early manhood..’
Since ‘earliest manhood the centre of his life has been pleasure with women’
How Stanley describes Stella
‘Little women’
Williams’ own father was a…
His mother called him a …
Alcoholic
and Williams’ mother called him a ‘man’s man’ who liked to gamble and drink
Williams as a child
Fragile and bullied a lot
One of the original titles of Streetcar?
‘The Polker night’
How did Williams’ father treat his mother?
She was often abused by his aggressive, alcoholic father
When Blanche realised Stanley doesn’t know she is done she is deceived as
‘Frightened’
Patriarchy context
Territorial Stanley
‘You’re damn tootin’ I’m going to stay here’
‘This is my house and I’ll talk as much as I want to’
Which scene has the only title in the whole play
Scene 3
‘The poker night’
Description of the poker night
Lurid nocturnal brilliance Raw colours of a childhood’s spectrum Yellow linoleum Vivid green Solid blues, purple, green
Diminishing linguistic strength of poker boys
‘Two cards. You. I’m out. One’
Stanley hitting Stella’s thigh quotes
“Stanley gives a loud back of his hand on her thigh’’
“It makes me so mad when he does that in front of people.” - alludes to it being common
Avian imagery Stanley vs Stella and Blanche
Stanley is a ‘richly feathered male bird’
And the women are ‘hens’ - ‘you hens cut out that conversation in there’
Stanley hitting Stella
‘Sound of a blow’
‘Stella cries out’
Mitch quote
“Poker shouldn’t be played in a house with women”
Vulnerable Stanley after Stella leaves
‘My baby has left me’
‘Stell-aaaah’
‘I want my baby’
Staging device allowing Stanley to rape Blanche
Stella going into labour
Stanley yelling at Blanche to get out of the bathroom
Territorial
‘Canary bird’
‘Get OUT of the BATHROOM’
Stanley reaction to Stella insulting his eating
‘Hurls the plate’
‘Seizes her arm’
‘Every man is a king around here’
‘Hurls a cup and saucer to the floor’
Huey Long - trying to seem educated
Ego has been bruised
After Stanley’s king rant he returns to Stella and …
‘Takes her clumsily in his arms’
And says it will ‘be okay’ and when Blanche is gone they can ‘get the coloured lights going.
Stanley returns to Stella interested in sex and physicality, doesn’t comfort her mentally, whole relationship based on physicality
Stanley reaction to Stella going into labor
‘Supporting her with his arm’
Gentle verbs ‘murmuring’
When Stella tells Stanley he was cruel to Blanche he returns to idea of physical sex and life before Blanche
Okay till she
Together
Coloured lights
‘All okay till she showed here’
‘Happy together’
With those ‘coloured lights going’
Mitch on feeling like he deserves sex from Blanche
Mitch replicating Stanley’s behaviour
Product of patriarchal society
Interested in physical sex - Williams’ commenting on society
Stanley rape scene quotes (5)
Mouth slowly curving into a grin
Biting his tongue which protrudes between his lips
springs towards her
Catches her wrist
Picks up her inert figure and carries her to the bed
Description of Stanley to do with clothes in rape scene (two)
He starts from removing his shirt
Silk pyjamas
Stanley dialogue quotes rape scene (three)
Tiger Tiger
We’ve had this date from the start
Just me and you Blanche
Description of Blanche just before a Stanley picks her up to rape her
‘’Sinks to her knees’’ - Stanley reduced her in status and physically, position of helplessness (praying begging for mercy)
Submissive reaction
Mental state given up so she has physically
‘Tiger Tiger’ analysis
Sadistic
Mocking tone
Knows she can’t overpower him
What does Blanche not want to pass in front of on her way out to ‘Shep’ (matron)
I don’t want to pass in front of those men
Stanley tearing paper lantern
‘Seizes’
‘Tearing it off lightbulb’
End of play when Blanche breaks free from matron and all men are against her
‘Tries to break past matron’
‘All the men spring to their feet’
Stanley emasculating Mitch at end of play
‘Bone headed cry baby’
Doctor presented as a gentleman
Gentle
Crouches
Crying
Respectful
‘Gentle and reassuring’
‘Crouches’
Blanche’s ‘crying is calmed’ and noises ‘die out’
Child like imagery suggesting comforting and warmth / doctor is protective figure
‘Miss DuBois’ - maintaining her status - referring to her by her name
Stanley sexual after Blanche has gone for good quotes
‘Voluptuously soothingly’
‘Fingers find the opening of her blouse’
Academic way of saying life goes back to normal
Physical relationship based on sex
Baby is wrapped in
‘Pale blue blanket’
Essence of Stanley
Last line of play
Men go back to poker game as normal, they haven’t been effected
‘’This game is seven card stud’’ - Steve
Modern audience reaction to Stella siding with Stanley about rape
Shocked
Presented as a traitor to Blanche
