May 30, 2011 Response - A Streetcar Named Desire

People who undergo tragedies and lead an unstable, difficult life often have trouble coping and maintaining their sanity. This idea holds true for Blanche, one of the main characters in the play A Streetcar Named Desire. As an insecure, self-conscious woman who lost her husband, Blanche is driven out of her home in Mississippi and travels north to stay with her sister, Stella, in New Orleans. When Blanche first arrives, she is very snappy and, in the way that I read it, seemed abrupt and somewhat obnoxious. Despite her abrupt behavior, however, she is extremely insecure and displays a façade in order to pretend that she leads a perfect, “easy” life. She is very critical of her sister, Stella, and she consistently fishes for compliments in order to keep any last bit of confidence.
     In my opinion, Blanche is the only person that leads herself to her own demise. One of the first things she says when she walks into Stella’s home is, “Let me look at you. But don’t you look at me…not till I’ve bathed and rested! And turn that over-light off! I won’t be looked at in this merciless glare!” (19). Immediately we can tell that Blanche has very low self confidence, attempts to hide her age, and only displays herself through false, unrealistic lighting in hopes of masking her true self. This is Blanche’s biggest flaw and ultimately what leads her to going crazy and getting taken away in the end. She continuously avoids standing in light throughout the entire play, she is appalled at her sister’s living arrangements, and she gets excessively dressed up for every occasion. These are all indications of insecurities. I remember at one moment she was asked if she wanted to smoke a cigarette and she states, “I’m not properly dressed” (61). Nothing seems to reach her expectations, and she consistently puts down her sister’s life and her sister’s husband in hopes of feeling better about her own situation. Not only does the light imagery parallel Blanche’s life (she becomes obsessive about being in darkness because it masks her life’s reality), but the music also seems to parallel Blanche’s life. She has a constant polka tune in her head ever since her husband died, and whenever she gets nervous or starts to feel vulnerable, the music comes back. The narrator describes her insanity, “The music is in her mind; she is drinking to escape it and the sense of disaster is closing in on her” (113). Blanche, who previously refused alcohol, starts to drink more and more as the play goes on in an attempt to ease the pain of reality. Even though Stanley gets under Blanche’s skin and isn’t very welcoming, I ultimately think that Blanche is responsible for her downfall. If she weren’t insecure, or didn’t portray a façade, or didn’t try to have a perfect, “magical,” “southern belle” lifestyle, Stanley’s comments would not have irritated her. The tragedies that happened in Blanche’s life, although were difficult, would not determine her overall success or failure as a person if she didn’t have so many insecurities. Thus, she is the only person responsible for her demise.

     If I were to rank each of the main characters, I would rank Stella as the most likeable, Stanley somewhere in between, and Blanche as the least likeable. I feel that Stella consistently tried to mediate the tension between Stanley and Blanche and make everyone happy. When Stanley initially asks Stella about Blanche “swindling” them out of money and a place to stay, Stella plays devil’s advocate and defends her sister. When Blanche starts criticizing Stella and Stanley’s relationship, Stella states, “You’re making too much fuss about this” (63) and nonchalantly eases the tension. Stanley, however, isn’t quite as likeable. Blanche describes him as “bestial” (71) and he is often depicted with animalistic, inhuman qualities. For example, when he got angry at Stella and went to hit her, Stella cried, “Drunk-drunk-animal thing, you!” (57). However, despite Stanley’s negative qualities, at least he is realistic. He understands that happiness does not stem from materialistic things, and he leads a realistic life, opposed to a fantasy-oriented, fake life (like Blanche). Finally, Blanche is the least likeable because she does not have a single nice thing to say about anyone, she is insecure to the point of annoyance, and she lives such a “fantasy” lifestyle that you never really know who she is as a person. Did anyone choose a different order? Did anyone think Stanley was the least likeable character? I thought he and Blanche were relatively even.

     To some degree, I feel that justice was served in this play. The fact that Blanche was taken away by the doctor portrays that Blanche has reached some sort of fulfillment and solution to all her conflicts with realism. However, I was disappointed that Stella and Stanley’s life was somewhat unresolved. In my opinion, I think there should have been some resolution with Stanley’s wild, animalistic behavior. Do you all think that Stella and Stanley’s life was somewhat unresolved as well?

     This play reminded me of false images in the media. The same way that Blanche tried to portray her life is the same way that the media tries to portray people. The modeling industry in particular alters people to the point where they are inhuman. Today’s society is frustrating to live in because of the emphasis placed on the media. Sometimes people don’t realize how much advertisements influence their decisions. It’s important to not let the media affect your decisions and to stay honest and true to who you are!