Final Entry on A Streetcar Named Desire: Essay Question

2003, Form B. Novels and plays often depict characters caught between colliding cultures--national, regional, ethnic, religious, institutional. Such collisions can call a character's sense of identity into question. Select a novel or play in which a character responds to such a cultural collision. Then write a essay in which you describe the character's response and explain its relevance to the work as a whole.

A Streetcar Named Desire revolves around the idea of colliding cultures. It is not only cultures colliding with each other, but the ideals and morals inside the culture that causes certain responses to opposing cultures cultures. This is the case of Blanche Dubois, the classic southern belle. In A Streetcar Named Desire. It revolves around a culture clash between Blanche Dubois and Stanley Kowalski, but more importantly, the old south vs. the new south. Blanche Dubois represents the dying south; the old morals and ideals, fancy attire, and rich lifestyle. On the opposite side you have Stanley Kowalski, the brawny, blue collared worker who married Stella, Blanche's sister. He represents the new south; the hustle and bustle, the change, the hardworking, and common individuals. Throughout the play, cultural and social issues and collisions have deep and resounding impacts on the characters around them, and Blanche Dubois is a fantastic example in A Streetcar Named Desire and what it stands for in terms of colliding cultures.

Already in Scene One of A Streetcar Named Desire, we get an idea of who Blanche Dubois is and who she represents as a culture and person. We are introduced to a woman of a faded society; Blanche Dubois is a sophisticated, educated, and beautiful woman who has found herself in a mentally and physically rough situation. She lost the family mansion and plantation, Belle Reve. This is immediately where we begin to see a cultural collision. Blanche is forced to rely on her younger sister, Stella Dubois. It is commonly the older sisters job to look out and keep watch of her younger sister because she is the older and more experienced one. However, this is not the case and is setting the scene for the tension that is to arise. Arriving in New Orleans, cultures begin colliding. She is unprotected; she no longer has the gold and the decadence that Belle Reve supplied for her, she is on her own in a society that she is unaccustomed to. She is surrounded by vulgarity, dirt, work, and people she normally would never associate herself with. Another culture clash by Blanche occurs between her seeing Stella's house. She is appalled at the house, it is far too simplistic for Blanche's liking. She looks down upon it. Much like she looks down on changing. Blanche is opposed to change. She was raised upon a certain set of ideals and bred specifically to follow them.

Time and time again in this play it comes down to survival, and even in this case of cultures it occurs there. Blanche slowly starts to slip into madness, but the more and more she begins to slip into madness the more and more Blanche Dubois relies on the past. This is a cultural mistake. The worse thing for Blanche Dubois to do is to sink back into more of her past life when her goal should be focusing on the life in the new south. It is later a detriment to her. The inability of her to forget the past and dwell on the past, much like Jay Gatsby, leads to her demise and fall of sanity.

Another culture clash lies within Stanley Kowalski, he is the definition of a new southern. He is all brawn, hard-working, and vulgar. He doesn't take extravagance or fluff, which is what Blanche is. She represents fantasy and magic, not realism. Stanley is purely realistic. This culture clash between the two leads to constant head butting and accusing, until the sole root of their relationship towards each other is destruction. In the end, Stanley wins; validating the fact in this changing society you can either adapt to the changing culture and survive or die in the old culture that is a fragment of what it used to be.

A Streetcar Named Desire Response #14

Discuss the expressionist elements that Williams uses in Scenes Ten and Eleven. What do they suggest about what Blanche is thinking and feeling?

The expressionist elements that Williams uses focus around violence and aggression, like Expressionist of the time focused on, but as well with the absence of reality and the focus on fantasy. In Scene Ten and Eleven we see both of these expressionist elements come to life. One example I can think that centers around the use if of violence and aggression takes place in Scene Ten, when Stanley rapes Blanche. This scene is extremely vulgar; Stanley doesn't like being evaluated or looked upon as "common", he isn't a "dumb" man, yet Blanche makes that connection with him frequently. This scene has a lot to do with the assertion of power and dominance. Stanley has the impression that Blanche is trying to assert her power and take control of the house. This is Stanley's true way of doing that. Also, a connection to expressionism lies with the idea of fantasy and make-believe. In Scene Ten, Blanche dresses up as if she is attending some formal gala with possible suitors. It is all in her mind however. These elements suggest and lead us to believe that Blanche is slowly unwinding further into her madness.

A Streetcar Named Desire Response #15

The play includes many stage directions referring to music. What music and songs are present in the first three scenes (e.g. "the blue piano")? What is the significance of that music? In what ways is it symbolic? How does the music relate to the characters?

The significance of the music that Tennessee Williams uses in the stage directions and throughout the play are to establish the mood in the scenes. For example, the "Varsouviana", the polka tune, sets the mood of what is happening with Blanche. The more that we encounter the polka tune the more we are aware of how unstable and driven mad Blanche is becoming. It is symbolic in the case that she first heard it when her husband committed suicide. The repeated tune reminds her of her guilt; she feels that she is the reason he committed suicide and that it is her fault he is dead. She can't escape the suicide and she can't escape the haunting polka tune. The other example of music lies in Scene Seven, Blanche is in the bathtub singing "Paper Moon". This is symbolic because the whole song is about fantasy and make believe. Blanche surrounds herself in this fantasy driven life because the real world is too harsh and realistic. The blue piano is symbolic to lust and involved with scenes of intense passion, for example, like in Scene Three where Stella, after getting hit by Stanley, goes back to him and they embrace with intense passion. Or, in Scene 10, when Blanche gets raped by Stanley, the blue piano is playing in the background as she is being assaulted.

A Streetcar Named Desire Response #13

How does Blanche initially respond to the Doctor and the Matron? Why does she later offer her hands to the Doctor? What does Blanche mean when she says, "Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers"? Describe the relationship between Stanley and Stella at the end of the play, after Blanche has left.

Blanche initially responds to the Doctor and the Matron in anger and fear, she was expecting Shep Huntleigh to come and rescue her but instead this woman and man who she has never seen before come to take her away. She refuses to let them take her, until the Doctor talks to her. Once the Doctor talks to her, the dynamic changes. She trusts him because he shows her kindness and attention. Blanche means by the famous quote that she is not an inner confident person, she is vulnerable, fragile and delicate, and whether it be from some young man showing her kindness or an old Doctor that is sealing her fate, depending on kindness has gotten her through life in a world that has constantly been trying to tear her down. Stella is heartbroken; she is crying as Blanche leaves and who is there to comfort her--Stanley. She goes back to Stanley, he consoles her, tells her reassuring things like "love" and she takes his embrace. I think despite everything Stella and Stanley will remain together, for a while at least, because of the passion they have for each other.

A Streetcar Named Desire Response #12

Scene Eleven begins with another poker game. This time Stanley is winning and Mitch is losing. Is this significant? Does the card game also have possible symbolic meaning? Describe how the relationship between Stanley and Mitch has changed.

The significance of Mitch losing and Stanley winning is quite significant. At the beginning, Stanley was losing and Mitch was winning, now after the whole relationship filled with lies and deceit from Blanche, Mitch is now down. Stanley got what he wanted; he wanted to see Blanche destroyed, he wanted Blanche to pay for every time he was insulted, he wanted Blanche out of his house. He got all of those things in the end. Stanley had the pleasure of seeing her leave for the insane asylum and never interfering in his and Stella's life again. The relationship between Stanley and Mitch has changed, initially they were friends but Mitch being a pawn in the game between Stanley and Blanche has caused tension. After seeing Blanche sent to the insane asylum at the end and breaking down, I don't think that Mitch will be the same. Mitch has to know that Stanley arranged that, so I think after that happened they won't be the same.

A Streetcar Named Desire Response #11

What happens between Blanche and Stanley at the end of Scene Ten? What results of this are evident in Scene Eleven? Why has Blanch gone mad? Where is she being sent? Why has Stella decided to send Blanche there? Has Stanley and Stella's marriage changed?

At the end of Scene Ten, Stanley and Blanche have another confrontation, this confrontation has a much different outcome this time. Stanley rapes Blanche at the end of Scene Ten. Results of the rape are evident in how Stella is packing Blanche's belongings, how Blanche yet again is in the bath and bathing herself, checking to make sure the men are in the room playing poker. Blanche has gone mad because of the constant fear of Stanley Kowalski, the environment she has been trapped in, the fading age, the fading beauty, the hardship of life, the prostitution secret, the young boy that she feels that she killed, the loss of Belle Reve, the constant death she had to witness, the lack of protection and money she has. A lot of factors have led to Blanche's madness. She was a bomb waiting to explode. She is being sent to an insane asylum because Stella took Stanley's side over the rape rather than Blanche's and she thinks that it will be the best for her family and Blanche herself. I think that Stella and Stanley's relationship has changed because Stella was a pawn for both Stanley and Blanche. Being a pawn in both of the relationships caused stress between Stella and Stanley, so I don't think that their relationship will ever be the same.

A Streetcar Named Desire Response #10

In Scene Ten, Blanche and Stanley are alone in the apartment. Why is Stella not present? Blanche again mentions Shep Huntleigh. He, too, has taken on a symbolic meaning for Blanche. What does he represent to her? Why does she tell Stanley a lie about Shep Huntleigh? What does Stanley mean when he asks Blanche, "Shall we bury the hatchet and make it a loving-cup"? Why does Blanche say no?

The reason that Stella is not present is because she is in labor and going to have a baby. I think that Shep Huntleigh is an escape for Blanche. He represents the better days of the past, a time where she was still young and beautiful and the world had not tainted her yet. He represents an escape from reality to Blanche. Blanche wants "magic" and "make-believe", while Shep Huntleigh probably did exist, Blanche has not communicated with him in forever. Shep is purely a man who is an escape from New Orleans for Blanche. Blanche lies to Stanley about Shep Huntleigh because she knows that Stanley wants her out immediately, she is threatened by him. Also, it may not be a lie in her eyes, I think at this point her mental stability is gone and she truly believes Shep is going to come. Stanley means sexual advances by "Shall we bury the hatchet and make it a loving-cup?". He doesn't mean to make amends, he knows that Blanche will feel uncomfortable with him asserting his dominance and that is why he makes sexual advances towards her. Blanche says no because in this case she is the prey and he is the predator, she is already terrified of him, and this rape scene pushes her over the edge. She doesn't want to be viewed as a "fallen woman" who gives her love to anyone, especially her sister's husband.