Fleur McQuillan considers the impact of Williams’ great play.
One of the plays studied in A-Level English Literature is Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire which tells the story of desire and sex during the decline of the antebellum south and the shift to modern America.
The play is critically acclaimed and has been adapted many times: most famously in the famous 1951 film, directed by Elia Kazan and starring Vivien Leigh as Blanche and Marlon Brando as Stanley. The story unfolds in the French quarter of New Orleans ‘Elysian Fields’ and follows the protagonist Blanche Dubois who has just arrived at her sister Stella’s house after having lost her family home ‘Belle Reve’ (French for ‘Beautiful Dream’) to creditors. Blanche lives in uncomfortably close proximity to her sister Stella and her husband Stanley who doesn’t seem too fond of Blanche’s presence there.
The play explores the idea of the conflict between the set of values and ideas held by old America in the face of the modern, multicultural, evolving America. Williams utilises the characters of Stanley and Blanche to exemplify the power struggle between these two ideas. Stanley comes from a Polish background and can be seen to represent the growing 1940s ideology of the American Dream through his working-class background and ideas of hard work; he can be seen to exemplify modern ideas through his love of bowling (a popular sport in modern America) and his immigrant background. However, in contrast, Blanche Dubois represents the dying southern belle trope, the old south of America before the civil war and the struggle of this set of values in the face of the changing America. Throughout the play there is a distinct conflict between Stanley and Blanche: even in their initial meeting the audience suspects the characters’ distrust of one another.
A Reflection of the Darkness of the Human Condition
Williams describes the play as a ‘ravishment of the tender, the sensitive, the delicate by the savage and brutal forces of modern society.’ This idea can be seen throughout the play particularly in scene three through the image of the painting ‘The Night Café’ by Van Gogh. Williams brings to life the dark and disturbing realities of the human conditions in the play which is reflected through the pulsating energies emitted from this painting.
Van Gogh captivates the dark forces at play through the garish and clashing primary colours of the painting to illustrate the raw, primal and uncivilised nature of humanity. Williams utilises a variety of other symbolism throughout from the motif of the blue piano and its representation of Blanche’s inner thoughts and feelings or the idea of the polka music which begins to play when Blanche is reminded of her tragic past.
Critics’ Opinions
Despite A Streetcar Named Desire gaining popularity from its captivating characters and provoking themes, the ideas within the play have invited criticism through its portrayal of masculinity and presentation of female characters. Felicia Hardison Londre suggested that scene four of the play invites feminist criticism; she describes there being ‘a subtle irony in her reflexive reversion to the Southern belle’s habits of thought.’ There is a sense of ‘dependence on a patriarchal system of male protection for the helpless female.’ In a sense we almost feel sympathy for Blanche as she is trapped within this rigid ideology of male superiority; she is viewed as a victim of the inevitable defeat of the patriarchy. Blanche’s character is incredibly complex so at times it’s quite difficult to feel any sympathy for her character. However, at times you can’t help but feel sorry for Blanche as Tennessee Williams is brilliant at engaging the audience with the characters and their stories to make you feel as though you really are in their shoes.
According to Simon Budd masculinity can not only be portrayed through Stanley and Mitch but also the men from Blanche’s past and how they’re ‘far from positive portrayals of masculinity.’ Allan Grey is the primary example of this and plays a vital role in Blanche’s diminishing mental state; he is Blanche’s ex husband and commits suicide after Blanche caught him having relations with an older man. She is so upset and betrayed that she says to him whilst dancing the Varsouviana polka how he ‘disgusted her’ resulting in Allan Grey committing suicide. Every time Blanche has an encounter and feels a sense of remorse with this bitter memory the faint sound of polka music plays, acting as a taunt to her fragile mental state. Allan Grey is not presented as a celebration of masculinity but rather this tragic figure at odds with his sexuality.
A Streetcar Named Desire is a tragic play which delves into discussions of the inherent suffering of the human condition and dreams that are lost and destroyed.
