A Streetcar Names Desire: Symbols and Imagery

A Streetcar Names Desire: Symbols and Imagery

1. Symbolism

   • Shadows/Cries
     • Dramatises Blanche's final breakdown/departure from reality in face of Stanley physical threat
   • Music
     • Varsouviana Polka
       • Tragedy of Blanches past (Allan)
         • Moment it evokes represents Blanche's loss of innocence
       • Only Blanche can hear
         • Drives her to distraction
         • Heard whenever she panics/loses grip on reality
     • Blue Piano
       • Callous vitality of Vieux Carré of New Orleans
         • "expresses spirit of the live that goes on there"
       • Stands for depression, loneliness and B longing for love
   • "Paper Moon" song
     • Lyrics about lovers losing their imagined reality similar to Blanche fibbing herself into imaginary world
   • Meat
     • Stanley: Scene 1 throws meat to Stella-stating sexual propriortership her has over her
   • Chinese Lantern
     • Blanche's longing for 'magic'/ dressing up of ugly reality p72
       • Magic represents life as it ought to be
     • Made of paper-like Blanche's illusions it can easily be destroyed

2. Motifs

   • Light
     • Reality of Blanche's past/fading beauty
     • Scene 6: "lets leave the lights off" (to Mitch) doesn't want future husband to see her ageing features
     • Love
       • "it was like you suddenly turned a blinding light on something that had always been half in shadow" Description of love for Allan
         • Light used to represent love for B but now it's destructive-Allan's suicide erased light of love
     • Escape of reality
       • "electric bulbs go on and you see too plainly"
     • Stanley: light shows things for what they are/affection for reality
   • Drunkeness
     • Blanche: anti-social/ secretive, attempt to withdraw from harsh reality
     • Stanley: Social drinker-poker game, birth of child, Blanche birthday
     • Blanche and Stanley: leads to destructive behaviour
       • Stanley: commits domestic violence yet able to rebound from drunken escapades
       • Blanche: deludes herself, alcohol augments gradual departure from sanity
   • Bathing
     • Cleansing ritual

3. Imagery

   • Moth
     • Blanche's fragility
       • Represents attempt to recreate herself/ spring forth a new person from cocoon of lies
     • Lives during the night-creature of darkness
   • Colours
     • Stanley/Males dress in bright colour: "gaudy"
       • Scene 1: wearing blue denim work clothes-blue represents truth/strength/masculinity
       • Williams refers to primary colours worn in context of masculinity/represents their behaviour
       • Variety of colour reflects diversity of New World
   • Streetcar and Traintracks
     • Blanche headlong descent into disaster
       • Scene 4,6,10 rush of locomotive symbol of relentless fate
     • Euphemism for sex in Scene 4
   • Stanley the Ape