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Blanche is a victim of the fact that she is female.

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Blanche is a victim of the fact that she is female

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| quote | a02 | a03
| when Blanche first shows up to elysian fields “her appearance is incongruous to the setting. she daintily dressed in a white suit with a fluffy bodice, necklace and earrings of pearl, white gloves and hat.’ | symbolism of white.
imagery of delicate pearl.
presented as rich.
Fluffy - animalistic, feminine, young like a chick (fragile)
detached from reality. | southern belle
|

Stanley is dressed in ‘blue denim work clothes, carrying his bowling jacket’ | suggesting he is in tune with reality.
reflecting his working class status.
showing a macho persona.
not concerned with the rich spoils of fashion.
blue symbolises cheapness. and denim is quite durable showing that he is from a rough background. | stereotypical of the north and the working class.

‘alpaca’ ‘dancing like a bear’ | animalistic, metaphorically like an animal. |

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9. The costume and appearance of the characters is important for the audience in gaining a first impression of the characters.

The costumes of the character help to represent them before they even start to talk. Stanley and Mitch are the first characters to be described – “roughly dressed in blue denim work clothes” – this shows them as working class men who do manual labour because they are ‘roughly’ dressed, it shows that they have a blue collared job. “Stanley carries his bowling jacket” – this could show how even when he is wearing his dull work clothes, he likes to assert his dominance and power by parading his jacket, which is later described to be vibrant in colour. It could also show how he is the leader of his friendship group as Mitch isn’t carrying his.

Stella is described as the total opposite to Stanley and Mitch. She is a “Gentle young woman” but there is no reference to her clothing. This could be symbolic of the fact that she is constantly over shadowed by her sister Blanche who is always over the top. It could be argued to be symbolic of gender roles in the 1940s as Stanley has detail when it comes to his clothing however Stella does not, however some people may say that Blanche wouldn’t have detailed clothing description however, she doesn’t fit the stereotype of a 1940s woman and she fights for dominance with Stanley.

From the stage directions at the start Blanche is different to everyone else. She is clearly isolated as “Her appearance is incongruous to this setting” – she has come down from being a Southern Belle at Belle Reve and being at the top of the social ladder, to a working-class environment. “She is daintily dressed in a white suit with a fluffy bodice, necklace and ear-rings of pearl, white gloves and hat” – the colour symbolism of ‘white’ could symbolise purity, even though we learn that she isn’t that pure. This could show appearance and reality because Blanche lies about other things and it could be argued that she wants everyone to think of her as pure but she isn’t, she avoids light because she doesn’t want everyone to know her true age. It could be argued that the fact that she wears all the accessories could be because she is trying to hide everything that has gone wrong and make everything seem fine. However, “There is something about her uncertain manner, as well as her white clothes, that suggests a moth”, could help represent her as someone who wants attention.

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"(Lurid reflections)"
"(Inhuman voices like crus In a jungle)"
Embodies Blanche's fragile mental state - represents her inability to separate reality and fantasy by using expressive stage directions that embody the reality of physical elements on stage e.g. Actors and props as well as elements of fantasy and disturbed mentality e.g. Lighting and music.
Uses light in an expressive way e.g. When Blanch talks about her husband and their love - "it was like you suddenly turned a blinding light on something that had always been half in shadow" - followed by the "glare" of locomotive lights - and then "never for one moment since has there been any light that's stronger than than this - kitchen - candle " - across two pages Tennessee uses and expressive light motif and stage directions to represent Blanche and her husbands relationship and how "bright" it was compared to her now dull "glar"ing life without him - the constant contrast between bright and dull may also represent Blanches continual switch between fantasy and reality.

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AO2: "paper lantern" - the motif of lighting in the use of the "paper lantern" to cover the lights remove the hope from Blanche's life.
This could also symbolise that she is insecure about her age, as lanterns, despite use for ornamental purpose in modern culture, were used for functional purpose several years before the introduction of electrical lighting which is used in the play, suggesting that she has been worn and is not relevant in society, and the limp nature of paper could represent how Blanche is fragile and vulnerable.

Visit www.seanlighting.co.uk for more information.

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Blanche is a victim of the fact that she's female.

Agree
AO2: 'funerals are pretty compared to deaths. Funerals are quiet' - feminine language, oxymoron of 'funerals' and 'pretty'
AO3: She's female and should depend on a man, but instead she has to deal with everything on her own
AO4: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof - Brick is the provider
AO5: Gender as a weakness, gender and death as being linked, Blanche had an atypical gender role for the 1940s

AO2: 'What queen do you think you are?' - Blanche is a metaphorical 'queen', who is supposed to have power, but much like many queens in the past, she is seen as weak and needing a male figure to give her power. Since she doesn't have a man, stanley sees her as week and vulnerable, so his perfect victim
AO3: Women were the queens of their houses
AO4:
AO5: Women as weak without men by their side

Disagree
AO2: 'I, I, I, took the blows in my face and my body!' - repetition of 'I' shows she's a strong boss woman. 'Blows' shows her strength - masculine
AO3:
AO4: Arthur Miller - The Misfits
AO5: Strong female boss women

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15. Williams focuses on domestic conflict, finding interest in the minor dramas of common people.

The focus on domestic conflict can be seen throughout the play A Streetcar Named Desire. However, this use of domestic conflicts also seems to highlight more far reaching ideas of conflict between race, and social background rather than just minor dramas between individuals.

The conflict between Stanley and Blanche seems to show some examples of minor and internal domestic conflict. For example Stanley feels Blanche’s presence in his home damages his relationship with his wife and therefore appears to be at conflict, “She’s not staying here after Tuesday”. This could be suggested to be the source of conflict within the relationship and may suggest Williams does wish to focus on domestic conflict. However Blanches conflict with Stanley may also be seen to present a broader conflict between social backgrounds. This is due to Stanley presenting the working class American whereas Blanch seems to present the Southern Belle and suggest Stanley is below her. This is first suggested in Scene Two, “a little bit on the primitive side”. This use of a broader racial and social tension does however appear to be somewhat limited. This is due to Williams suggesting this more traditional Southern attitude to be in decline as Blanche is inevitably overpowered and defeated by Stanley within Scene Ten, “The bottle top falls she sinks to her knees”.

Domestic conflict also appears within the play with the conflict between Stanley and his wife Stella. This is shown by Stanley’s use of violence and physical strength to overpower his wife such as during the poker night of Scene Three, “With a shouted oath he tosses the instrument out of the window”. This could also appear to be linked to American social attitudes of the period particularly among the working classes where traditionally males would have dominance over women in relationships.

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1. Though Blanche is depicted as dishonest and self-deceiving she is depicted as a sympathetic character
a. Dishonest – drinking (‘one’s my limit’/’I rarely touch the stuff’) – outfits (‘costume jewellery’/’rhinestone tiara’ – ‘red satin robe’ is honest to her provocative nature – juxtaposes with her reliance on white clothing) – light/dark motif (‘her delicate beauty must avoid a strong light’/’red paper lantern’)
b. Honest – she is honest about the fact she doesn’t want honesty (‘I don’t want realism… I’ll tell you what I want. Magic!’/’I tell what ought to be truth. And if that is sinful, then let me be damned for it!’) – she does later reveal the truth about herself (‘That’s where I brought my victims’) – but only when forced to by Stanley – she has clearly told Stella what happens with Stanley and Stella chooses not to believe her (‘I couldn’t believe her story and go on living with Stanley’)
c. Sympathetic – she is portrayed as fragile/tragic heroine (‘moth’/’butterfly’) and the victim of the larger Stanley (‘bestial’/’swine’/’richly feathered male bird’) – she is mentally fragile (‘she cries out as if the lantern was herself’) – Mitch attempts to, and Stanley does, rape her (‘what I been missing all summer’/’she sinks to her knees. He picks up her inert figure and carries her to the bed’)
d. Unsympathetic – she potentially victimises herself and others (‘I have to be good and keep my hands of children’) -  she can be seen as leading Stanley on (‘we’ve had this date with each other from the beginning’/’that little boy’s mind of yours’/’your big, capable hands’) – she lies to everyone and then gets ‘caught in a trap’ of her own making – goes against the idea of her being a tragic heroine

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9. The costume and appearance of the characters is important for the audience in gaining a first impression of the characters.

The way the characters are portrayed by their appearance is important, particularly because of the genre of a play, as their appearance will be the first thing the audience has to judge the character by.

Blanche:

When the audience is first introduced to Blanche, she is dressed in “a white suit with a fluffy bodice, necklace and ear-rings of pearl, white gloves and hat” which gives the immediate impression to the audience that she is a higher class than others in the area and the colour symbolism of “white” might suggest innocence and purity.

The fact that she has been immediately portrayed as pure and innocent, could be so that Williams could make this image she is portraying deteriorate over the course of the play.

Her appearance is described as “incongruous to this setting” which also gives a sense of isolation as she is an outsider in this area, even down to her appearance.

She is also described to appear like a “moth” which may suggest fragility. This is also ironic because she is said to “avoid a strong light” yet moths are typically drawn to light.
Blanche's appearance could depict her a Southern Belle because they were usually well-dressed and took pride in making sure they appeared immaculate- could relate to the way she avoids light because she wants to keep up this appearance at all times.

Stella:

Stella is also first portrayed to look different from others living in Elysian Fields because she is said to be “of a background obviously quite different from her husband’s”. The text is slightly vague about how she appears “different” but it later becomes clear that this is because she is of a higher class background- but hasn’t carried it on to the same intensity as Blanche.

Stanley:

The first appearance Stanley makes in the play is where he is “roughly dressed in blue denim work clothes” which makes the audience think that he is working class and this is later contrasted with Stella and Blanche’s appearance as he is “roughly dressed” which suggests there is a class difference. This is significant for making a first impression of Stanley because the class difference between Stanley and Blanche is what causes a lot of the conflict and clashes between the characters. Contrastingly, Stella and Stanley are from different class backgrounds yet this isn’t a problem for them as he “pulled [her] down off them columns” showing that Stella’s appearance may seem different in terms of class to Stanley but she is more like him than Blanche is.

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A03 contextual questions.

17.  in the 1960’s Tennessee William’s suffered from alcohol and drug abuse, due to his poor progressing career. Unfortunately these did not work as coping mechanisms and his own brother hospitalised him in 1969. Relating this to Blanche within ‘Streetcar named Desire’, Stella consciously makes the decision to refer Blanche to a mental institution regarding her poor mental state and loss of the perception of reality. Tennessee may have concluded the play like this in order to convey the severe consequences of which alcohol abuse and deception can have in relation to mental health. Blanches alcoholism is a hidden theme throughout the play, his secretive portrayal of this through motifs such as the “Varsouviana polka” being an analogy of  Blanche's past experiences and loss oh her husband haunting her, therefore in order to cope with her current situation of “The music is in her mind; she is drinking to escape.” To further this notion even more, Scene eleven, structurally the conclusion of the play, could be a metaphoric symbol of William’s own death, as he, very much like Blanche, never entirely escaped his troubles caused by alcoholism. And in 1983, he died in a hotel room, reportedly surrounded by bottles of wine and several pill bottles. In addition to this, ending the play with such a controversial situational factor, such as mental health and it’s consequences, really intensifies the shock felt by the audience, which may either help to create a helpful meaning towards taboo subjects and their need to be discussed and highlighted more openly within society or some audience members may feel the reveal is rather unnecessary and is not appropriate for a modern play during the 1940’s.

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Though Blanche is a flawed character she is the undisputed moral victor of the play.

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Though Blanche is a flawed character she is the undisputed moral victor of the play

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Also consider use of bottle in scene 10. Use of the trunk in scene 2.

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Blanche questions:
Though Blanche is depicted as dishonest and self-deceiving she is depicted as a sympathetic character.

It can be said that the audience is intended to sympathise with her because she cannot cope alone and has no one to rely on, the other view is that she is simply just dishonest and self-deceiving.

Quotes that support this: “[holding tight to his arm]: Whoever you are – I have always depended on the kindness of strangers”. – This presents her as in need which makes us sympathise with her. The stage direction makes it seem as if she cannot be okay alone and relies on others, however she has no one to rely on anymore. Also, women were expected to get a husband who they can rely on, however her husband died which makes us sympathise with her.

“Blanche is seated in a tense hunched position in a bedroom chair that she has recovered with diagonal green and white stripes”. Here, it could be argued that she is portrayed as a victim. She is a victim of Stanley’s actions, however it could also be said that she only has herself to blame as her own dishonesty has caused this. There is colour symbolism of purity in the colour of the chair and the green separating the white could be symbolic of her purity being ruined by her lies.

The loss of her husband makes us sympathise with her; “All at once and blinding light on something that had always been half in shadow”. The light and shadow could also be symbolic of her covering up most of her past which suggests she is dishonest and self-deceiving. Their relationship being a “blinding light” could represent Blanche being oblivious to the consequences of her actions at the time.

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6. Williams’ exploration of the destructive power of sex and desire is the central theme of the play.

One could potentially argue that the destructive power of sex is the central theme of the play A Streetcar Named Desire due to the way in which primary characters use sex and sex appeal in order to manipulate others. Both Blanche and Stanley use sex and desire in different ways throughout the play. Blanche uses her sex appeal in order to manipulate characters such as Mitch, whilst Stanley uses sex and desire in order to assert his dominance over others thus contributing to the complications and eventual climax of the play. However, one could also argue that the power of sex and desire is an important theme of the play but isn’t necessarily the central theme. Elements such as conflict ignited by difference in class and lies and deceit all contribute to the events that occur.

With regards to the way in which Stanley abuses the power of sex and desire, it is clear that he uses sex in order to assert his dominance over others. This is evident in the way he treats Stella and the eventual rape scene in which Stanley over powers Blanche. ‘He picks up her inert figure and carries her to the bed.’ The use of the adjective ‘inert’ emphasises Blanche’s powerlessness within this scene whilst depicting Stanley as the dominant character. The way in which Stanley uses sex also contributes to the extended metaphor used throughout the play in which Stanley is compared to an animal.

Put titles of plays in speech marks. To develop explore more ideas about attitudes towards sex and desire in the 1940s. For eg ideas about a Southern Belle. Blanche may be seen as obsessed about her desire to be seen as pure, even though she is not, due to the importance played on this as a SB, so she could be seen as a product of her class/gender. AL

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In Conversations with Tennessee Williams the play write discusses his concern with the

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Though Blanche is depicted as dishonest and self-deceiving she is depicted as a sympathetic character
Blanche can be seen as both dishonest and self-deceiving as well as a character that we feel sympathy for. Blanche can be interpreted as  being a dishonest character as she lies about her drinking habits, this is evidenced in the quotation 'Open your pretty mouth and talk while I look  around for some liquor! I know you must have some liquor on the place where could it be I wonder?' This quote is ironic as Blanche is already aware of the liquors location.  Autobiographically Williams obtained an addiction towards alcohol and was dependent upon it. The alcohol could symbolise Blanche's desire to live in a fantasy world. This is evidence later in the play when Blanche says 'I want Magic'.

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Williams focuses on domestic conflict, finding interest in the minor dramas of common people

Williams focuses on domestic conflict in scene three devoting the entire scene to domestic violence, the poker game between Stanley and his friends is supposed to be typical of men in 1950's America, the filmic qualities with 'lurid walls' that would be quite difficult to portray in a play however this allows Williams to explore the multiple actions taking place with Stanley being dragged to the shower and Stella being taken to Eunice that help give the scene film like qualities.
Williams also arguably focuses on domestic conflict in scene eight where Stanley smashes a plate and argues with Stella ' pig - polack - disgusting- vulgar.. them kind of words have been on your tongue' these petty dramas are used by Williams as an attempt to show real world conflicts and bring a sense of realism to his play, this is because at the time of this plays publication theatre was in decline and seen as to fictional and not appropriate due to the hardship of the war.

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Though Blanche is depicted as dishonest and self-deceiving she is depicted as a sympathetic character.
-contradicts herself
-start of the play
-"No one, honey, not with my nerves tonight!": cannot trust her
-racist: "In bed with your -Polark!"
-South, her views will not change, stubborn
-Southern Belle: Everything is perfect, depicts a sophisticated character
-Doesn't expand on Belle Reve: "Loss"
She is depicted as a sympathetic character
End of the play after the climax of scene 10: '' She has a tragic radiance in her red satin robe following the sculptural lines of her body''. Shows that she is the victim of the play. Shows how she is broken down as a character to her weakness state and how the North won over the South.  Stella changed her views and developed in the new society whereas Blanche didn't due to the south and having grown up in a society of strict views.

Though Blanche does lie she does this because of the importance or need  she places on illusion. "I tell what ought to be the truth. And if that is sinful, then let me be damned for it!" Here Blanche's motivations for lying and clearly explained. AL

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Blanche behaves like a virginal Southern Belle but in reality the reader perceives her as low in morals and no conforming to genre expectations at the time as the play progresses. This is exemplified in the colour symbolism of her ‘soiled white’ dress and ‘cream chiffon’ which contradicts the notion of the purist personality she is attempting to convey to other characters and the reader (who is unaware of her whorish nature). She is described as having the characteristic of a ‘moth’ but describes herself as a ‘butterfly’ which brings in the theme of appearance versus reality and reinforces the southern Belle attitude of being superior physically. The use of ‘Butterfly’ can be perceived as ironic as Butterfly’s undergo a transformation into something better than before, whereas Blanche has tried to undergo this transformation in a futile attempt to escape the stigma of her past. The fragility of Butterfly’s draws autobiographical parallels with Tennessee’s life linking to Rose, who was institutionalised for her mental well-being, this can be linked to the metaphor of delicacy, a typical portrayal of women at the time as being into a gender position of weakness and inferiority.   On the other hand, the imagery of ‘Butterfly’ being a symbol of beauty linking to her time as a prostitute, the illusion of a Butterfly’s beauty links to the theme of appearance and reality. This is further emphasised by the colour imagery of ‘white’ and ‘red satin robe’ the contrasting colours shows the split between her actual sexual persona which begins to seep out towards the climax of the play’s plot.

Use audience not reader as a play. Also consider if a 1940s audience and a 21st century one may view her differently. AL