Paper #2

Chris Brownstone

Professor Brady

English 102

February 17, 2011

            Tennessee Williams, the Author of the play called A Street Car Named Desire uses many literary elements such as motif and symbolism to help get some of his ideas through to the readers. In the play, Blanche who has recently just moved into her sister’s house is usually the character who is involved with these elements.

            Throughout the play, Blanche tries to avoid people seeing her in well lit rooms or during the day when the sun is out. She feels that if someone is to see her in the light that they will be able to see through her lies and right to her past. When she gets to the Kowalski’s, Blanche sees that there is a naked light bulb so she covers it with a Chinese paper lantern. Williams also exposes that Blanche tries to hide from the light when she is talking to Mitch in her room. In scene, nine Mitch realizes that he has never seen Blanche in the light and says “I’ve never had a real good look at you, Blanche. Let’s turn on the light here” (Williams Scene 9). When Mitch first asks Blanche why it’s always dark in the room Blanche responds with “I like the dark. The dark is comforting to me” (Williams Scene 9). Blanche likes to keep the room dark so that Mitch can’t see the real Blanche since she tries to escape reality.

            In A Streetcar Named Desire, bathing and taking showers which represents cleansing of the past is used frequently by Williams. Throughout the whole play Blanche is constantly taking baths. She feels that the water purifies her and whenever someone brings up something about her past she goes and takes a bath to calm her nerves and forget about it. For example, in the beginning of scene two Blanche is taking a bath because of the conversation she has had with Stanley about her husband. Stanley asked Blanche what happened to her husband at the end of scene one and Blanche replies “The boy- the boy died. I’m afraid I’m going to be sick” (Williams Scene 1). That is why when scene two begins Blanche is taking a bath because she needs to forget about what happened and the water helps her do that. Even Stanley uses water for purification in the play. After he beats Stella, Stanley says “I want water” (Williams Scene 3).He goes in the shower to calm down and then he and Stella make up. Water and bathing is a reoccurring motif throughout the play which the characters use to calm their nerves and feel purified.

            Both Stanley and Blanche drink alcohol in the play. Stanley drinks when he’s with his friends and playing poker. However Blanche drinks to escape reality because she doesn’t want to face the truth and wants everything to be magic. When Stanley drinks he gets angry and sometimes hurts people. For example when he beat his wife Stella in scene three, Stanley was drunk and the alcohol is what caused him to beat her. Blanche tries to drink without anyone knowing by telling everyone when she first got there that she rarely touched it. Throughout the play they both drink for different reasons however the alcohol influences them and the story greatly.

            Blanche hears polka music playing in her head frequently in the play. Whenever she hears the music, it represents her feeling grief about her husband’s death. Usually the music comes on when someone ask her about him. In scene one, when Stanley asks about Blanche’s husband is the first time we hear the music in the play. In scene nine, Blanche hears a Mexican lady hollering “Corones para los muertos”(Williams Scene 9), which is Spanish for “flowers for the dead”. This reminds Blanche about her husband’s death and starts to hear the polka music. The music can also be heard when Blanche panics. At the end of scene eight, Stanley gives Blanche a one way ticket back to Laurel. She doesn’t know what to do and that is why the polka music is playing in her head.

            Throughout the entire play, things such as alcohol, water, music, drinking and lighting are all used to provide a more intellectual way for Williams to convey his ideas to her audience. He uses these motifs and symbols a lot and help get ideas across the audience with out actually saying it in her writing.