Williams called the streetcar the “ideal metaphor for the human condition.” The play’s title refers not only to a real streetcar line in New Orleans but also symbolically to the power of desire as the driving force behind the characters’ actions .
How effective a title do you think A Streetcar Named Desire is for this play?
The play portrays different characters’ desires of diverse aspects of life. I think the title is very effective because it attracts various readers . This is due to the use of the word “desire”. The use of this word demonstrates many different characters’ desires that they have in their life.
What do you think is the meaning of the play’s title beside the fact that is is the literal name of the streetcar that deposits Blanche at her sister’s apartment?
Literally, the title, A Streetcar Named Desire , refers to the streetcar Blanche rides into town on. Of course, desire plays a much larger role in the play than that. Desire is why Stella stays with Stanley.
What is the streetcar a metaphor for?
The Streetcar Symbol Analysis
Williams called the streetcar the “ideal metaphor for the human condition .” The play’s title refers not only to a real streetcar line in New Orleans but also symbolically to the power of desire as the driving force behind the characters’ actions.
Why is death the opposite of desire?
Throughout the play, the theme of death is the opposite of desire is developed through the main character’s need to be desired or desirable . Blanch wants to be desired. ... Stanley desires a normal life without Blanche so bad, that he completely broke her to get it. Stanley also wants to be desired.
Why is Blanche’s name ironic?
What does Blanche’s name mean and why is it ironic? It means white woods. It’s ironic because white is pure and she is the farthest from pure.
What happens to Blanche at the end of the play?
The ending to A Streetcar Named Desire is all about cruel and tragic irony. Blanche is shipped off to a mental institution because she can’t deal with reality and retreats into illusion —yet Stella is doing the very same thing by ignoring her sister’s story about Stanley.
What does Stanley do to Blanche at the end of the play?
At the poker table, the sound of Blanche’s voice sends Mitch into a daydream , until Stanley snaps him out of it. The sound of Stanley’s voice from the kitchen stuns Blanche. She remains still for a few moments, mouthing Stanley’s name, then with a rising hysteria demands to know what is going on.
Why does Stanley drink?
Drunkenness. Both Stanley and Blanche drink excessively at various points during the play. Stanley’s drinking is social: he drinks with his friends at the bar , during their poker games, and to celebrate the birth of his child.
What is Blanche’s tragic flaw?
Throughout Tennessee William’s play “A Streetcar Named Desire,” Blanche Dubois exemplified several tragic flaws. She suffered from her haunting past ; her inability to overcome; her desire to be someone else; and from the cruel, animalistic treatment she received from Stanley.
What does Stella mean when she says to Blanche haven’t you ever ridden on that streetcar?
She means for good and wants to get rid of Stanley forever . Attempting to break them up. Stanley’s always smashed things. This shows that Stella is used to this kind of behaviour from her own husband and shows what typ of man he is...
Is the opposite of death Desire?
In her tortured soliloquy, Blanche discusses regrets, and then legacies. ... Blanche then begins to speak about death, saying that it once seemed so far from her. She says that “ the opposite [of death] is desire .” And she begins to reminisce about camp of soldiers that used to be near Belle Reve.
What does Blanche’s Desire represent?
“Desire” refers to Blanche’s previous involvement in sexual promiscuity in her hometown of Laurel . Because she has lost her job and ruined her reputation there, she comes for an open-ended visit with Stanley and Stella.
What are you talking about is brutal Desire?
Blanche : What you are talking about is brutal desire. Just desire . The name of that rattletrap streetcar that bangs through the Quarter, up one old narrow street and down another. ... Blanche : It brought me here, where I’m not wanted, and where I’m ashamed to be.
What does Blanche’s name mean?
Bianca, Blanca, Branca, Blandine. Blanche is a feminine given name. It means “white” in French , derived from the Late Latin word “blancus”. It is a popular 20th-century name in England.
What does Blanche DuBois symbolize?
Blanche DuBois appears in the first scene dressed in white, the symbol of purity and innocence . She is seen as a moth-like creature. She is delicate, refined, and sensitive.
