A Streetcar Named Desire

1. By Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desire

2. Genre and Plot Structure • Tragedy – a serious drama in which the problems and flaws of the central characters lead to an unhappy or catastrophic ending • Tragic hero meets with an unhappy end as a result of a combination of outside forces and his or her own fatal flaws • Blanche – social pretension, alcoholism, dishonesty and fixation with the past • Stanley – antagonist who pursues, exposes and destroys her

3. Three Unities (Aristotle) • Unity of place • Single-interior setting (Kowalski Apartment) • Unity of time • Chronologically over the course of a few months • Unity of action • One plot (conflict between Blanche and Stanley)

4. Plot Line/Story Arc • The dramatic premise – conflict between Stanley and Blanche • The dramatic situation – incompatible characters being thrust together • Inciting incident – Blanche’s unexpected arrival • Plot point 1 – Stanley’s abuse of Stella creates conflict and forces Stella to chose sides

5. Plot cont’d • Obstacles – events, character traits, or circumstances that prevent main character from achieving his or her goal • Blanche has no money • Emotional and of her own making • The first culmination – point when success seems within reach of main character -- Relationship with Mitch

6. Plot cont’d • Plot point 2 – second major turning point (protagonist’s darkest hour) • One way bus ticket • Climax – zenith of action • Destruction of Blanche’s delusions • The denouement – wrapping up of loose ends or the calm after the storm • Plans for Blanche • The catastrophe – the denouement of ending action of the play • Blanche is taken away

7. Costumes • Blanche’s incongruous appearance underscores the conflict between Southern gentility (good manners, pretensions, lost plantations, etc.) and the rough masculinity of urban society (bare-chested men, loud poker players, coarse language) • Men’s strong, loud, primary colors (mirror personalities) • Women’s softer, muted pastels (again mirror personalities)

8. Setting • Elysian Fields Avenue – allusion to where the heroes of Greek Mythology found their final rest and spent their afterlife • Symbolic irony • Streetcars – “Desire” leads to “Cemeteries”, which takes one to “Elysian Fields”

9. Music • Varsouviana Polka – psychological deteriorization • Blue piano – ambiance and mournful notes (7 of 11)

10. Themes • The Old South cannot survive in an industrialized modern world • Desire leads to sorrow, loneliness, and death • Fantasy and reality are incompatible • Human beings are animals

11. Motifs • Light • The moth • Bathing • Drinking • The poker game

12. Symbolism and Imagery • Sexual symbols (raw meat, seven-card stud) • Animal imagery • White/Blanche

13. Literary Terms to Know • Irony • Tone/mood • Farce • Catharsis • Apostrophe • Symbolism • Existentialism • Humanism • Romanticism • Realism • Naturalism