The role of women in modern society is a contentious topic. Presently, the female gender has become more respected and important in the workplace, with as much women as men achieving successful, admirable lives. But this was not always the case. During the early 20th century, women were severely oppressed, with their identity confined to the likes of a housewife. In wartime, the role of the female gender expanded slightly, with more women being employed into jobs that were previously considered masculine while the men were at war. However, after the war was over and then men returned home, many of these women fell pregnant and resumed the life of the subservient housewife, whilst the men once again dominated. Tennessee William’s A Streetcar Named Desire is a dramatic play written during this time that follows the journey of a distressed young woman- Blanche visiting her sister Stella in New Orleans, who is subsequently tormented by her brutish new brother-in-law Stanley. The play presents the reader with physical, emotional and sexual conflict, and harshly critiques the attitudes and ideologies present in 1950’s American society in relation to the heavy restrictions that were placed on the lives of its women. Through substantial characterization, symbolism and language, Williams creates a representation of 1950’s American society, where the women are oppressed and the men dominate.
Stanley Kowalski is the central male character of the play. He is a violent and animalistic
Although I explored the literature from the prescribed text list for 2017 in depth, upon reading Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire, I was captivated by his brutally honest depiction of the destructive effect of machismo within his society. Williams’ portrayal of the female experience during the 1940’s, especially the physical and emotional violation, was immediately shocking to me as a young, contemporary female. Concurrently, after reading the drama, my ambiguous response to Stanley’s character confused me. Although he had treated women so crudely, I found myself feeling sympathy for him. Samuel Tapp’s critical examination of the play in which he asserts that Stanley is “a victim of a masculine ideology that… dehumanises him,”
As the story progresses, Stanley's barbaric masculinity unveils itself to the reader. Stanley Kowalski is a man's man; he goes to work to provide for his family, goes home to a submissive wife who always has dinner prepared, and spends his evenings hanging out with the boys. However, being the super-masculine character can sometimes have wicked effects. Between card games and drinking, Stanley still finds time to lash out at his wife. In scene three, Stella is pleading with Stanley to call it a night and send his poker friends home, but Stanley is resistant. In a drunken fit, Stanley finds it necessary to strike his pregnant wife in order to get his point across. The outburst is shockingly forgiven almost immediately. Stella explains the episode to her displeased sister Blanche the next day, telling her that it's not a big deal, and that she shouldn't fuss over it. She says, "In the first place, when men are drinking and playing poker anything can happen. It's always a powder-keg. He didn't know what he was doing…" Stanley Kowalski takes the role of masculinity to another level altogether. He serves as the super-dominant barbarian provider who says what he means when he wants to. In spite all of Stanley's flaws, Stella not only loves him, but also appreciates and defends his character.
Established as one of the most prolific playwrights of the 20th century, Tennessee Williams used his writing as a form of therapy. The author came from a troubled background consisting of alcoholism, mental breakdowns, and general unhappiness; Williams exploited these unfortunate events and allowed them to motivate his literature. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche DuBois’ struggles represent the reality of people’s lives, “an enduring concern of [Williams’] throughout his writing career (Henthorne 1). Blanche captures our focus with her seemingly sincere and fragile nature, but it is later revealed that this is just an illusion within her own mind. She resides in a world of fantasy to shield herself against the harsh threats of reality and her own fears. Blanche’s main objective in the play is to keep herself from falling apart in a world of cruelty through alcoholism and illusion. Through the characterization of Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams depicts the coping mechanism of fantasy and its detrimental repercussions by exploring the specific experiences that eventually impede her happiness.
Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire is a web of themes, complicated scenarios, and clashes between the characters. Therefore, it might’ve been somehow difficult to find out who the protagonist of this play is if it wasn’t for Aristotle’s ideas of a good tragedy because neither of the main characters, Stanley Kowalski and Blanche Dubois, is completely good nor bad. According to Aristotle’s Poetics, a good tragedy requires the protagonist to undergo a change of status which only happens with Blanche Dubois.
A Streetcar Named Desire is a widely celebrated play that was written by Tennessee Williams. Throughout this play, Williams uses a significant amount of references to light in order to make an assertion about reality. In A Streetcar Named Desire, light represents the harsh reality that exists in the world, particularly with Blanche. With the huge emphasis that was placed on light, Williams asserts that Blanche’s avoidance of light demonstrates an avoidance of her reality. The author illuminates the harsh realities that exist in the world by using vivid imagery, purposeful foreshadowing, and characterizing metaphors. In this instance, it was Blanche’s desire to stay out of the light in order to hide her age. This desire is quite evident because of her assertive tone when regarding the subject of light. While trying to avoid light, Blanche initiated her own demise by being forced to divulge her true age and appearance to Mitch. Because of this event, Blanche was forced to face the harsh reality that she wished to evade for so long. Williams uses brilliant literary and figurative elements in order to lead up to the inevitable event. Thus, the significance of light in A Streetcar Named Desire is astronomical when placing it in context.
To live in a world of illusion is to live a life of lies.Sometimes people try to escape reality, whether to avoid truths or to avoid their past. A Streetcar named Desire by Tennessee Williams introduces Blanche Dubois as the main protagonist and potential victim of the story. In the story, Blanche leaves her home in “Belle Reve” because it has been destroyed and takes a streetcar to to get to her sister’s (Stella’s) residence. She believes that she will find a new life as well as comfort and acceptance at her sister’s side. Unfortunately she is very wrong about it, in fact, it is the complete opposite. Blanche’s past life was very shameful for her and so in order to forget the tormenting truth, she resorts to living a fantasy life of her own, which causes problems for her later on (self-destruction).
In Tennessee William’s masterful play, A Streetcar Named Desire, the reader meets a middle – aged woman by the name of Blanche DuBois. Blanche lives in her own faerie tale world, one of a young, beautiful debutante, surrounded by admirers, and loved by all whom she encounters. In reality, Blanche is an aging woman who cannot cope with the actualities of life. She makes up wild stories, and when Stanley Kowalski, her brother – in – law, rapes her, the realities of life cause her to drift into absolute lunacy.
The role of women in the 1950 was seen to be repressive and constrictive in many ways. Society placed high importance and many expectations for these women on behavior at home as well as in public. Women were supposed to fulfil certain roles, such as a caring mother, a diligent homemaker, and an obedient wife. The perfect mother was supposed to stay home and nurture so society would accept them. In fact, even if a woman wanted to voice an opinion, her lack of education would not allow it . The play A Streetcar Named Desire is set during the late 1940’s and early 1950’s period where it describes the decline of a fading Southern belle named Blanche DuBois. The women in this play are represented to be dependent and submissive in nature and in addition they are also seen to be manipulative. However, Williams has also portrayed these women to be independent and taking control of the situation. This can be seen through the use of the main characters
Like many people in the world, the characters in Tennessee William’s play, A Streetcar Named Desire, are troubled by anxiety and insecurities. Life in New Orleans during the 1940s was characterized by the incredible variety of music, lively and bright atmosphere, and diverse population, while in the midst of the ongoing World War II. Culture was rich and fruitful because the city developed into a “melting pot” of people from all over the world. Due to the wide-range in population, the people of New Orleans adopted an identity like no other. Instead of their identity being entirely pieced together, almost like a puzzle, the people took on one that was shared by the entire community. However, with this being said, people had the ability to use this to their advantage and mask their true selves. This idea translates well into the play A Streetcar Named Desire, and is exhibited through the character Blanche. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams uses the theme of vanity to reveal the importance of appearance, and the insecurities of Blanche and how they influence her actions.
The play is justly famous due to the strong themes and features of styles incorporated in the plot development. Firstly, the subject of fantasy and reality forms the basis of antagonism between Blanche and Stanley. Having sunk into self-destructive sexual behaviors after losing her husband and her home, Blanche retreats into her fantasy world and prefers to lie about her past life. However, Stanley, who is more practical, unravels Blanche's lies, and in the end, the rape represents a triumph of reality over fantasy. Secondly, a theme of sexual desires occupies an essential
In any great story, one can find a unique trait that sets it apart from all others. Susan Glaspell 's Trifles would be incomplete if not for the lonely farmhouse. Romeo and Juliet is nothing if not a tragedy about star-crossed lovers. The tales that we now know as classics received that label because something about them was just too great to ignore. Although many dramas and stories often find strengths in their story or setting, A Streetcar Named Desire demonstrates the significance of powerful characters. Specifically, Blanche DuBois is arguably the most essential character to the plot. Raised on a plantation among the wealthy, she is a ringing example of sophistication and femininity. The way she speaks and acts portray this, as her words are more often than not poetic in nature and almost too flawless. She 's also able to use her words to manipulate others, especially when it comes to dodging questions about her mysterious past. All in all, Blanche is a truly well crafted character because of how unique and unalike she is to any of the other characters in A Streetcar Named Desire, and most of it can be attributed to her distinctive voice.
In the play, A Streetcar Named Desire, by Tennessee Williams, gender roles were reflected on gender roles in the American Society in the 50’s. The male gender was predominant while the female gender was considered less powerful. Williams really emphasizes this stereotype, yet he focuses on the females in the play the whole time.
Blanche Dubois’ final line in A Streetcar Named Desire is the most important part of the play regarding Blanche as it serves as one her final words before solitary confinement in a looney house, and two as a confession of Blanche really is. Her words say it all and are: “I've always depended on the kindness of strangers.” Here, we see her final and only completely words one could take as completely true as, if there is anytime where she speaks the truth it would be when she is extremely fearful, which Blanche is not really for the entire story except the ending of Scene 11. Furthermore, these words explain why Blanche is the way she is and makes sense with what we know. Anyone reading A Streetcar Named Desire would know Blanche comes from a
Throughout history empowerment and marginalization has primarily been based on gender. In the play A Streetcar Named Desire, this idea of empowerment is strongly flaunted. Tennessee Williams’ characters, primarily Stanley, Blanche, Mitch, and Stella, conform the expected roles of men and women at the time. Although World War Two temporarily allowed women a place in the work force, they were dismissed from such empowerment when the war came to a close. Characters in A Streetcar Named Desire are accurate representations of the social historical context of that time. The power struggle between Stanley and Blanche conveys dominant ideas about gender such as the primitive nature, aggression, and
Especially the American south was an epitome for patriarchal society (90). Women were meant to be inferior to men and had to fit into the “good girl” picture, otherwise they were close to shunned by society. The play “A Streetcar Named Desire”, written by Tennessee Williams in 1947, depicts such a patriarchal society. The main conflict is between the protagonists Blanche DuBois and her brother in law Stanley Kowalski, which ends with Blanche being admitted into what seems to be a mental facility. I will argue that the patriarchy, which is especially represented by Stanley Kowalski, is the cause for the mental destruction of Blanche. In order to do so I will first elaborate what is actually meant by the term patriarchy. Then I will try to explain how Stanley Kowalski can be seen as an epitome for a patriarchal man and how he fits into the attributes attached to such. In the second chapter I will try to define the role a woman had in the patriarchal society of the 1950s and to whether Blanche DuBois fits into it or not. Last but not least I will attempt to connect the dots and show how Stanley, as the representation, and the patriarchy itself lead to Blanche’s mental