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A Streetcar Named Desire
Tennessee Williams
SCENE ONE
- Explain the symbolic importance of the instructions Blanche followed to arrive at Stella’s home in New Orleans: “They told me to take a streetcar named Desire; and then transfer to one called Cemeteries and ride six blocks and get off at – Elysian Fields!”
- What social hierarchy is established in this scene? Why is this in the play?
- Why is Blanche resentful toward Stella? Explain. How does Stella react to this?
- What details does Williams provide on the particulars of Blanche’s past?
- Parallel the Dubois world as opposed to the Kowalski world.
- What is Belle Reve? What does the name symbolize?
SCENE TWO
- Explain the symbolism involved in the action of Blanche’s bathing.
- What is the Napoleonic code and why is Stanley so concerned about it? How does this reinforce the animal-like image of Stanley that Williams is attempting to establish?
- Three times in this scene Stanley says, “I have an acquaintance who…” (just happens to work in the very field they are discussing at that time). What insight is given into the character of Stanley from these lines?
- What kind of woman does Stanley find attractive?
- How was Belle Reve truly lost?
SCENE THREE
- How is Mitch different from the other men at the poker game?
- What seems to be Blanche’s routine of flirtation? What does it suggest about Blanche that she has this routine completely memorized?
- Why is it so necessary to Blanche that the light be covered with a paper lantern?
- In your opinion, do you think this violent scene between Stella and Stanley would have occurred if Blanche were not visiting? Explain.
- What is the basis of Stella and Stanley’s relationship? How do we know this?
SCENE FOUR
- What does the character of Shep Huntleigh symbolize for Blanche?
- Why is it so imperative to Blanche to aid Stella in leaving “this place”? What, in Blanche’s mind, makes “this place” so horrific? Explain.
- Stella says to Blanche, “There are things that happen between a man and a woman .. that sort of make everything else seem – unimportant” to which Blanche responds, “What you are talking about is brutal desire – just – Desire! – the name of that rattle-trap streetcar that bangs through the Quarter…” Stella then asks her, “Haven’t you ever ridden on that streetcar?” Explain the meaning Stella is striving toward. Has Blanche ever ridden on that streetcar?
- Blanche believes that Stanley is an obvious product of Selective Darwinism. Explain that theory and how it relates to the character of Stanley Kowalski.
SCENE FIVE
- What significance does the fight between Eunice and Steve have on the play as a whole?
- What is the symbolism of the astrological signs of Blanche and Stanley?
- Discuss the symbolism of the spilled coke.
- What does Blanche want from Mitch?
- What do we learn about Blanche from the encounter with the young man delivering the newspapers?
SCENE SIX
- What does this scene illuminate about the intellectual abilities of Blanche and Mitch?
- What type of image does Blanche present to Mitch?
- Reiterate Blanche’s past as she tells it to Mitch.
SCENE SEVEN
- In this scene, Stanley tells Stella the truth of Blanche’s time in Laurel. What does he say?
- As Blanche bathes, she sings, “Say it’s only a paper moon, sailing over a cardboard sea – But it wouldn’t be make-believe if you believed in me! It’s a Barnum and Bailey world, just as phony as it can be – but it wouldn’t be make-believe if you believed in me!” Why is it poignant that Tennessee Williams would have chosen this particular song and these lyrics? How do they relate to Blanche?
- What does Stanley tell Mitch about Blanche’s past?
- What is particularly cruel about Stanley’s choice of birthday gift for Blanche?
SCENE EIGHT
- Consider the amusing story that Blanche tells after dinner in an attempt to alleviate the tension in the room (the story of the parrot who swears a blue streak). How does it relate to Blanche and her circumstances?
- What does Stella say about her sister in attempt to have Stanley understand the reason she behaves as she does?
- When Stella demands an answer from Stanley explaining why he has been so cruel to Blanche, how does he respond?
SCENE NINE
- Some critics hate this particular scene. They say Williams uses sensationalism, feeling that Blanche’s past need not be so lurid. Those who like it argue that it actually aids in the understanding of the protagonist’s character. Explain the argument they may have used.
- What is symbolic of Mitch’s action of ripping down the paper lantern?
- “I don’t tell the truth,” says Blanche. “I tell what ought to be truth.” Using examples from the whole play, cite where this is evident.
- When Blanche says, “I didn’t lie in my heart,” what does it reveal about Blanche’s true self?
- Do you think that Mitch hears the old Mexican woman selling flowers or is this, too, like the gunshots and the Varasouviana music, simply a figment of Blanche’s diseased mind? What purpose would Williams have had when he chose to include this minor character?
SCENE TEN
- The figure of Shep Huntleigh seems to embody the ideal man and relationship for Blanche. Describe what seems to be Blanche’s ideal.
- What, according to Blanche, is the one thing that is unforgivable? Has she committed this unpardonable sin?
- Why does Williams include the scene with the prostitute, the drunk and the Negro woman?
- What does Blanche’s rape symbolize?
SCENE ELEVEN
- What are the similarities and differences between the poker game in this scene and the one earlier in the play?
- How has Blanche changed since the beginning of the play?
- What does Stella say to Eunice to justify sending Blanche to an institution? What does this suggest about Stella?
- How does Stanley perpetuate his cruelty toward Blanche in this scene?
- Why does Blanche react so differently to the Matron and the Doctor?
- Briefly summarize Stanley’s actions at the end of the play. What do his actions suggest?
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