streetcar named desire Flashcards
Williams’ father
an alcoholic - seen in Stanley?
absent father
Williams’ mother
Southern Belle
mother and fathers’ relationship
unhappily married, she resented his drinking and affairs, believing it did not reflect on her well
relationship with sister (Rose)
very close - she was institutionalised for mental illness
Williams’ early life
severely ill, bedridden for 2 years - returned to school to be bullied and ostracised
Williams’ sexuality
homosexual, was seen as mental illness at the time
the setting
aftermath of civil war of Northern and Southern states
reason for racism
The South was anti- abolition of slavery, as they were the plantation foundations. The north won, but image of the “the south” was still very focussed on
New Orleans
characterised by diversity and influx of immigrant population
The American Dream
working class can achieve their goals through hard work, perseverance and individualism
Stanley and WWII
not huge focus in play, but wc had survived and reintegrated into society, so Stanley - hero
Williams’ described his work as
“the one major theme for my work, which is the destructive power of society on the sensitive, non-conformist individual”
Williams often likened himself to which character?
Blanche
women in the war
women in workforce 27% to 37%, then pushed back to domestic spheres
Post- Harlem Renaissance Era
after the point of African American cultural movement of the 1920s, inspired the civil rights movement
music, art, writers that inspred belonging and pride
links to religion
female subservience was linked to the Fundamentalism on which America was born
reception of the play
undesirable in its crude portrayal of sex, desire and morality
admirable in its realistics
audience reception to Stanley in scene 10
justified in his rape, due to her flirtatious advances - some audiences cheered
Marxist reading of Stanley
his rape of Blanche was a wc championing over aristocracy
Feminist reading
Blanche is asserting power through sexual dominance, the rape scene shows male dominance
in the screen play, what happens after the rape scene?
Stella leaves Stanley
changes made in the 1951 version
increased censorship, compared to 1993.
Alan wasn’t gay he was “weak” and couldn’t hold a job
the polka music
when Allan died
represents the beginning of her decline and loss of innocence
plastic theatre
coined by Williams
the exploitation of Expressionist style to mirror internal psyche
poetic realism
film movement, characters did not have perfect lives and dreamt of the lives that eluded them
Southern Gothic genre
often have grotesque characters or setting to mirror the derelict society
examines deeply flawed characters, stemming from poverty, alienation and crime
Huey Long
corrupt politician of 1930s, popular with wc
“every man is a king”
Allan Edgar Poe
used by Blanche to describe Stella’s living situation- conveys decay, new vs old south
his work usually examines madness, seen in blanche
Elia Kazan
the audience should sympathise with stanley
Almedia 2023 production
Allan appears as a ghost
