“A Streetcar Named Desire.” Magill’s Survey of American Literature. Ed. Steven G. Kellman. rev. ed.
New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1971. Williams, Tennessee. The Theater of Tennessee Williams. “A Streetcar Named Desire”. New York: Laughlin, 1971.
Jordan Miller. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1971. Williams, Tennessee. The Theatre of Tennessee Williams. New York: New Directions, 1971.
Character Analysis of Blanche Through Text and Symbolism in A Streetcar Named Desire Tennessee Williams was once quoted as saying "Symbols are nothing but the natural speech of drama...the purest language of plays" (Adler 30). This is clearly evident in A Streetcar Named Desire, one of Williams's many plays. In analyzing the main character of the story, Blanche DuBois, it is crucial to use both the literal text as well as the symbols of the story to get a complete and thorough understanding of her. Before one can understand Blanche's character, one must understand the reason why she moved to New Orleans and joined her sister, Stella, and brother-in-law, Stanley. By analyzing the symbolism in the first scene, one can understand what prompted Blanche to move.
Modern Drama 40 (1997) : 454-467. Kolin, Philip, ed. Confronting Tennessee William's A Streetcar Named Desire. Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1993. Miller, Jordan, ed.
Blanche states that she was told "to take a streetcar named Desire, and then to transfer to one called Cemeteries". One can not simply read over this statement without assuming Williams is trying to say more than is written. Later in the play, the reader realizes that statement most likely refers to Blanche's arriving at the place and situation she is now in because of her servitude to her own desires and urges. What really makes A Streetcar Named Desire such an exceptional literary work is the development of interesting, involving characters. As the play develops, the audience sees that Blanche is less proper and refined than she ... ... middle of paper ... ...st into a reality which is not his own, yet somehow seems familiar.
Bibliography: Adler, Thomas P. A Streetcar Named Desire, The Moth and the Lantern. Boston; Twayne Publishers. 1990. The Concise Columbia Encyclopedia, third ed. New York; Columbia University Press.
Works Cited Adler, Thomas P. A Streetcar Named Desire: the Moth and the Lantern. Boston: Twayne, 1990. Miller, Jordan. Twentieth Century Interpretations of a Streetcar Named Desire: a collection of critical essays. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1971.
Williams, Tennessee. A Streetcar Named Desire. Signet: New York, 1947.
Just as the lantern is very fragile, Blanche is the same and the only way she believes that she is able to protect herself is by covering herself up. Blanche kept herself trapped inside a beautiful façade but in actuality all it was, was a flimsy, battered, cheap paper sack that was stripped off by the man who can see who she really is. In the end, Blanche could not stop the paper lantern from being removed and was ultimately left alone and helpless to be her true self.