Compare And Contrast A Streetcar Named Desire And Death Of A Salesman

Comparing the play versus, the movie versions of A Streetcar Named Desire has been entertaining and enlightening. Originally written as a play, Tennessee Williams later adapted it into a screenplay for the film version. Consequently, both versions were extremely popular in their own right. Drama and social taboos create an emotionally charged viewing adventure. Williams characters are complex, exciting and just crazy enough to keep the audience spellbound. The DuBois sisters are complete opposites sharing only their love for each other as common ground. Blanche, the older sister, shows up for an impromptu visit with her sister Stella Kowalski. Stella and her husband Stanley live in New Orleans, in the French Quarter. Blanche has become destitute and has lost the family plantation. Stanley, incensed by the idea that Blanche has taken the plantation from him, sets out to destroy her by any and all means. The characters and performers provide a riveting and consequently soulful performance that is hauntingly unforgettable. Williams writing moves the audience to tears with dynamic characters, conflict and catastrophe of unimaginable depth.

Based on Tennessee William’s A Streetcar Named Desire, Elia Kazan creates an award winning movie that helps readers visualize Stanley’s primal masculinity, the inner torments of the Kowalski women and the clash of the other characters’ problems which create a chaotic mess. Using stage directions in the play, William hints that Blanche is not who she appears to be while the movie subtly sheds light on Blanche’s strange little habits that suggests a bigger issue. The movie also censors many of the main themes in Williams’ play but makes up for it by having its actors flawlessly portray the characters’ emotions, allowing the readers to see the

The characters of A Streetcar Named Desire and The Glass Menagerie are bound to their own hold on illusions as a means of coping. In A Streetcar Named Desire, the character of Blanche exemplifies the hold of illusion when she says, “I don 't want realism. I want magic!” Blanche exemplifies the idea of delusion as a means of coping. In The Glass Menagerie, the character Tom Wingfield sets the tone of the play with his opening monologue in which he says, “I give you truth in the

Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams are each widely considered to be two of the most illustrious and groundbreaking modern American playwrights, and their signature work -- Death of a Salesman and A Streetcar Named Desire – respectively, are also their most tragic pieces. Miller’s Death of a Salesman is, ultimately, a play focusing on the tragic consequences of Willy Loman’s unwavering belief in the American dream and its associated progress and success, where he is tragically too human, believing the values that matter in family are equally important in the world of business. Similarly, Blanche DuBois in Tennessee William’s Streetcar feigns her appearance and refuses move on from her past life of luxury, holding onto and creating new desires

Tennessee Williams’ ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ is set in the ‘Roaring Twenties’ when America was going through a great deal of change in the order of society. The three main characters; Blanche DuBois, Stella Kowalski and Stanley Kowalski jostle claustrophobically in a small apartment, set in Elysian Fields in New Orleans, Elysian Fields is an ironic name as it evokes the sense that the apartment is heaven, when in reality it is very much the opposite. Stella and Blanche are sisters, but during the course of the play, we notice very clearly that Blanche is stuck in the in the Old World of plantations and inequality, with very large social divides. In contrast, Stella has almost seamlessly evolved to live in the New

“Stella has embraced him with both arms, fiercely, and full in the view of Blanche. He laughs and clasps her head to him. Over her head he grins through the curtains at Blanche.” (Williams 73) A Streetcar Named Desire written by Tennessee Williams exemplifies the theme of a struggle to attain happiness. The play not only portrays this theme in its characters and setting, but through the literary devices of Foil, Imagery, and Intertextuality. Williams took great care in applying each of these literary device techniques to the theme as he presents an intriguing contrast between Blanche and Stanley, vivid images both animalistic and broken, and imploring the use of the Odyssey to further

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.

In Tennessee Williams’ play A Streetcar Named Desire, Williams explores the internal conflict of illusion versus reality through the characters. Humans often use illusion to save us pain and it allows us to enjoy pleasure instead. However, as illusion clashes with reality, one can forget the difference between the two. When people are caught up in their illusions, eventually they must face reality even if it is harsh. In the play, Blanche suffers from the struggle of what is real and what is fake because of the difficult events of her past. Blanche comes to her sister Stella seeking aid because she has lost her home, her job, and her family. To deal with this terrible part of her life, she uses fantasy to escape her dreadful reality. Blanche’s embracement of a fantasy world can be categorized by her attempts to revive her youth, her relationship struggles, and attempts to escape her past.

As years go by in American history many things come, go, and change in people, but one that which never seems to flee the spirit is the so called "American Dream". The idea that something greater exists for everyone becomes an obsession for most, and lives are formed around it. This being true in real life, there would be no hesitation to put it forth through literature. More often than not it is portrayed through someone, a character, striving to achieve that which the rest of the country hold so dear. They search for a way out of their sad disposition, into a new light. Along the way, many things help guide them to their destination, some representing what they yearn for more than others. In the plays "A Streetcar Named Desire" by

Everyone has fantasies but most know that is not the true reality. Defining dreams and reality are two different things. Some want to escape the real world and make their own dreams become true, due to seeking happiness. The author portrays Blanche, Stella, and Stanley as characters that are fixated on what they want to believe is the truth; however, the reason being is because they do not want face their fears. Stella and Blanche both desire to make their past non-existent and live in a perfect world, rather than accept the truth and move forward. Stanley does not let his fantasies take over his life as much as the two women. In Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar name Desire the three protagonists Blanche, Stella, and Stanley exist in a fool’s paradise by using denial and fantasy to display a public facade in desire to obscure the truth; however, the characters want to escape their undesirable reality through their more desirable fantasy.

In the opening two scenes of ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ by Tennessee Williams, the audience has its first and generally most important impressions formulated on characters, the plot and the mood and tone of the play overall.

Both Gatsby and Blanche are vulnerable because of the illusions they create that form part of their identities. In the beginning of their respective novels, The Great Gatsby and A Streetcar Named Desire, they are cunning, calculating, and self-aware of their illusions. They try to escape from their barren pasts and create entirely new, magical lives for themselves, ones that they are able to control. Gatsby exudes power, status, and confidence, “picking his words with great care” at his party so that he can attain Daisy. Blanche is equally careful, telling herself to “ keep hold of [my]self” and restraining the amount of alcohol she drinks. But as the novel progresses and they unravel their true selves, they forget where they stem from and begin to believe in the magical world they are creating. Gatsby becomes so infatuated with Daisy that he completely forgets about the impracticality of their relationship as Daisy is already married to Tom; he thinks that he can “fix everything just the way it was before” with the power of his persona. Similarly, Blanche begins to believe that she can marry Mitch and achieve her dreams of being wealthy, being respected, and having an ideal relationship but without telling anybody about her past. But once they are close to achieving their dreams, their illusions are shattered by more powerful characters in the novel. Daisy openly admits her love for Gatsby, and they begin to regain the love they once shared, but Tom shatters both Gatsby’s

A Streetcar Named Desire 's original drafts were started in the early 1940s by playwright Tennessee Williams, who prepared and tested numerous titles for the work. Eventually, the completed play opened on December 3, 1947 in New York City staring Marlon Brando as Stanley Kowalski and directed by Elia Kazan. This run of Streetcar lasted 855 performances until 1949 and won Williams a Pulitzer Prize and the New York Drama Critics ' Circle Award. Later, in 1951, the film version was adapted and stared Brando along side Vivien Leigh as Blanche with Kazan holding the seat as director once again. Both the play and film adaptations of A Streetcar Named Desire have received critical acclaim and much success, so much so that Williams work is both

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.

As actors are the most influential block of the Academy, it is easy to understand why both films, “A Streetcar Named Desire” and “Network” are so successful. Both films featured outstanding performances, arguably none more outstanding than that of the female lead in “A Streetcar Named Desire” Vivien Leigh. While the performances off all the actors in each of the films are notable, to accurately discuss how the actors, distinguish themselves, some context of the plot of each film must be noted, so that the characters (and therefore the actor’s performances playing said actors) can be fairly observed. The emphasis on the explanation of plot will be geared to focus on actor