Places Discussed
New Orleans
The Louisiana city in which the Kowalskis live adds to the tensions inside the apartment. New Orleans just after World War II but before air-conditioning was a hot and humid place to live. Windows had to be kept open, which adds to the noise and sense of overcrowding in the Kowalski apartment. The apartment is in the French Quarter, known for incessant activity day and night. Noises of all sorts, from trains to cats to prostitutes to street vendors, constantly intrude upon the tiny space. Rowdy neighbors, also with their windows open, increase the sense of invaded privacy. Furthermore, music and vulgar merrymaking emanate from neighborhood bars. Indeed, the life outside is so much a part of the life inside that Tennessee Williams calls for a transparent wall so that outside images and activities may be seen through the apartment wall at crucial moments. Stanley, whom Williams describes as a “richly feathered male bird . . . a gaudy seed bearer,” loves the turbulence, and he contributes to it at every opportunity. Blanche, the essence of cultured southern womanhood, is flabbergasted by the endless clamor of New Orleans. Stella, the bridge between the two, is caught between her attraction to the crude and exciting vigor of Stanley and his New Orleans and her loyalty to Blanche and her background of old South gentility.
Kowalski Apartment
The entire action of the play takes place in and around the apartment of Stella and Stanley Kowalski, recent newlyweds. The two are from opposite backgrounds. Stanley is a working-class former army sergeant, who now works for a tool supply company. Stella is from Laurel, Mississippi, where her family for generations owned a large plantation outside town. The days of family wealth have gone, hence Stella’s journey to New Orleans to seek her fortune, where she meets and falls in love with Stanley, a man with little income.
Located ironically on a street called Elysium Fields (heaven), the apartment consists of a small kitchen area, a small bedroom area, and a bath. It is located near the railroad tracks in a poor section of the French Quarter. Blanche Dubois, Stella’s older sister, comes for a visit and is given a daybed in the kitchen. A curtain is hung between the kitchen and the bedroom area. All three must use the same bath. When it becomes obvious that Blanche’s visit will be a long one, tensions erupt, especially over the space occupied by Blanche’s luggage, which symbolizes to Stanley Blanche’s superior attitude to people with a less privileged background. To worsen matters, Blanche is addicted to taking long baths, especially as an escape when Stanley is at home, much to Stanley’s emotional displeasure and genuine physical discomfort.
Desire Street
New Orleans in all its earthiness and quirkiness is so much a motivator in the play that the work’s very title comes from a streetcar that ran along Desire Street. Williams also uses two other actual place names when he has Blanche say she was told to “take a streetcar named Desire, transfer to one called Cemeteries and get off on Elysian Fields.” This reciting of place names ironically contains the whole story of the play. It is the city of New Orleans, however, with its French Quarter’s permissive attitude, that drives Blanche and Stanley to the cultural war that ends in sexual brutality and tragedy.
Belle Reve
Blanche and Stella grew up at Belle Reve, a lovely, graceful antebellum plantation, fronted with white columns, whose name means “beautiful dream.” Located outside Laurel, Mississippi, it is the antithesis of the brawling, urban French Quarter. The two places serve as emblems of the irreconcilable and tragic conflict between Stanley and Blanche. Blanche comes to tragedy because she cannot give up “Belle Reve,” and Stella contributes to Blanche’s agony because she chooses Stanley’s New Orleans over Belle Reve.
Expert Q&A
What is the time span of the play "A Streetcar Named Desire"?
The time span of "A Streetcar Named Desire" is approximately five months. This is indicated by Stella's pregnancy, which progresses from around four months when Blanche arrives to the birth of Stella's baby. Blanche's stay becomes increasingly burdensome for Stanley and Stella, culminating in her being taken to an asylum shortly after the baby's birth.
What is the setting of "A Streetcar Named Desire" and what does it reveal about the characters' lifestyle?
What are the meanings of the settings in A Streetcar Named Desire: Desire, Cemetaria, Elysian Fields, and the “ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir?”
Desire was a streetcar line in New Orleans. Part of its route ran through the French Quarter before ending at Desire Street. The Cemeteries Line is a branch of the Canal Line. Elysian Fields is a five-mile long avenue, on which the Kowalskis live in the play. The “ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir” alludes to a poem by Edgar Allan Poe.
Why is New Orleans culture important in A Streetcar Named Desire?
The culture of New Orleans is central to "A Streetcar Named Desire" as it highlights the conflict between characters and sets a vivid backdrop. Blanche's disdain for the city contrasts with Stanley's comfort in its working-class environment. Stella bridges both worlds, finding her place in New Orleans, which she notes is unique. Tennessee Williams' stage directions reflect his affection for the city, emphasizing Blanche's failure to appreciate its cultural richness.
Significance of Setting in A Streetcar Named Desire
The setting in Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire plays a crucial role in conveying the themes and character dynamics. New Orleans, with its vibrant and decaying atmosphere, contrasts sharply with Blanche's fragile and decayed state, underscoring her alienation. The use of 'plastic theatre' in scenes like Scene 10 reflects Blanche's mental instability through symbolic staging elements. The play begins in May, symbolizing Blanche's fading youth and foreshadowing her decline, as indicated by the blind flower seller's symbolic presence.
Literary Style
Scene Structure
The most notable aspect of Streetcar's dramatic structure is its division into scenes rather than acts. Each of the eleven scenes culminates in a dramatic climax, with the tension in each scene building up to the final climax. This arrangement allows the audience to concentrate on the emotions and actions of Blanche, the only character present in every scene. The audience feels sympathetic towards Blanche because they are privy to more of her inner thoughts and motivations compared to the other characters. For instance, only the audience is aware of the extent of her alcohol consumption. The scene structure enhances the audience's sense of tragedy, making Blanche's downfall seem inevitable and highlighting her inexorable journey towards a breakdown.
Williams' choice to structure the play in this manner may reflect his interest in film and the potential it offers for combining multiple visually dramatic moments into a cohesive experience. Throughout his career, he also wrote several one-act plays.
Motifs
To connect the various events in Blanche's story, Williams employed dramatic motifs and setting details that recur at significant moments, signaling changes in mood and tone, and emphasizing the reemergence of crucial themes.
As the title suggests, the motif of the streetcar is essential, highlighting the growth of suburbs, the urbanization within the play, and the relentless continuation of life itself. To reach Stella's apartment in New Orleans, Blanche must transfer from a streetcar named Desire to one called Cemeteries, ultimately arriving at the slum known as Elysian Fields. These were real names in New Orleans, but their deliberate combination introduces the themes of death and desire that permeate the play. Williams noted that the streetcars' "indiscourageable progress up and down Royal Street struck me as having some symbolic bearing of a broad nature on the life in the Vieux Carre,—and everywhere else, for that matter." Though the streetcar is always heard rather than seen, it significantly contributes to the play's mood and serves as a continual, subtle reminder of the setting.
Music
Music holds a similarly vital role in the stagecraft of the play. Two distinct types of music stand out: the first is what Williams termed the "blue piano"—blues music originally linked to Southern Black culture. This music, which later evolved into the sound of New Orleans' bars and nightclubs, evokes unrestrained physical pleasure, raw strength, and vitality. It appears at key emotional moments in the play, such as when Blanche recounts the loss of Belle Reve and when she learns about Stella's pregnancy. This music also plays during leisure times when characters are drinking and enjoying themselves. However, in a darker context, it surfaces during the rape scene in act ten, symbolizing primal desires, and again at the play's conclusion when Stanley comforts Stella, helping her to forget about Blanche.
Contrasting with the ever-present blue piano that emphasizes the primal emotions of certain characters, the polka known as the Varsouviana, which only Blanche hears, marks pivotal moments in the plot's progression. Once the audience understands that this music reminds Blanche of the ballroom scene where she renounced her husband, its recurrence signals impending disaster, especially in the play's final scene. This music also underscores moments of cruelty, such as when Stanley gifts Blanche a bus ticket back home.
Both types of music highlight the nature of the situations unfolding on stage and emphasize the setting of the play's actions, both in the characters' past lives and within the cultural context of New Orleans.
The play's dramatic structure, with scenes building through recurring themes and motifs to maintain ongoing tension, supports Arthur Miller's observation of Williams' "rhapsodic insistence that form serve his utterance rather than dominating and cramping it."
Expert Q&A
What tones are used in Scene Four of "A Streetcar Named Desire"?
In Scene Four of "A Streetcar Named Desire," the tone is anxious, reflecting the aftermath of Stanley's violence towards Stella. The scene explores varying perspectives on Stella's decision to stay with her abusive husband, creating a tone that can be interpreted differently by readers based on personal experiences. Some may feel understanding and hope, while others may feel anger. The tone is also influenced by the play's overall themes of depression, solitude, and violence.
What is the narrative voice in A Streetcar named Desire?
The narrative voice in Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire is not explicitly from a character but is rooted in the psyche of Blanche DuBois. As the central character, her emotional intensity and life experiences shape the play's atmosphere, permeating it with themes of loss, nostalgia, and inevitability. Blanche's strong desires and controversial nature dominate the narrative style, influencing the plot's development and the audience's perception.
How has Williams crafted Mitch's character in A Streetcar Named Desire using language and dramatic techniques?
Williams crafts Mitch's character as a foil to Blanche, emphasizing his simplicity and inexperience through language and dramatic techniques. Mitch is depicted as naive, with an Oedipus complex, and his dialogue reflects a lower intellectual level, often consisting of short responses to Blanche's verbose speech. This dynamic suits Blanche's manipulative needs, as she seeks escape through him. Mitch's eventual realization of her deception, influenced by Stanley, prevents their relationship from progressing.
Mood and Setting in A Streetcar Named Desire
The setting of New Orleans in Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire significantly influences the play's mood by contrasting the vibrant, raw city with the genteel, lost world of Blanche's past. This setting highlights themes of change and cultural clash, as New Orleans' modernity opposes Blanche's outdated ideals. The primary mood is tension, driven by Blanche's disruptive presence and her conflicts with Stanley. The setting and pacing amplify this tension, creating an atmosphere ripe for conflict and underscoring the play's exploration of desire and mental deterioration.
Analysis of the playwright's style and technique in the opening stage directions of A Streetcar Named Desire
The playwright's style and technique in the opening stage directions of A Streetcar Named Desire are detailed and evocative, setting a vivid scene that establishes the atmosphere and mood. The use of rich, descriptive language helps to create a sense of place and introduces the audience to the environment in which the characters will interact, foreshadowing the tension and drama to come.
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