[Type text] [Type text] [Type text]
Allison Chu
Lily Grote
Hollie Laferriere
Angie DiMichele
A Streetcar Named Desire
Blanche Dubois takes a streetcar named desire, transfers to a streetcar named cemetery, then arrives at Elysian Fields. She travels to New Orleans to visit her sister, Stella. The people surrounding her know she left Belle Reve and has come from a wealthy background. Throughout the book, Blanche is openly flirtatious, even with Stella's husband, Stanley.
Blanche does not see what those around her see. She covers the light, avoids daylight, and spends a lot of time bathing. When Blanche hides the light, and refuses daylight, it shows the audience that she is insecure about her looks. This, along with the scene from her birthday, shows us that Blanche is afraid of change. Furthermore, Blanche becomes mentally unstable as the play unravels, and this becomes evident through her interactions with other characters in the book.
Cropped screenshot of Vivien Leigh from the traile...
Cropped screenshot of Vivien Leigh from the traile...
1st edition (New Directions)For example, when Mitch discovers the rumors of Blanche's sexual past he becomes infuriated with the fact that she is not the innocent woman she has claimed to be. Her elegant façade protected her from the past, specifically her husband's suicide after she discovered his affair with another man. The Varsouviana Polka and the Blue Piano are songs that she hears in her head. The songs are hidden from the other characters in the book and are only made known to Blanche and the reader. They bring back sensitive feelings and moments that represent her declining mental state. Blanche unknowingly falls into a trap of relying on male figures to satisfy her desires.
Blanche Dubois' mental sate declined as she left her place of desire, and traveled to a streetcar named cemetery. A place where she realized her past was no longer, and she could not go...