Friday, 12 November 2021
A Streetcar Named Desire
Scene 11
Scene 7, 8, 9, 10 all same night, 11 is a few weeks later.
- Starts with Blanche bathing (again) - holy imagery, water is cleansing, penitence.
- Recalls back to scene 3 - cyclical structure, Catholic imagery [The atmosphere of
the kitchen is now the same raw, lurid one of the disastrous poker night].
- Sky is [turquoise], contrasts lurid inside, links back to scene 1 [peculiarly tender
blue].
- Stanley believes he is here because God anointed him, inherently American ‘by
God’.
• American Dream ‘to hold front position in this rat race you’ve got to believe you
are lucky’.
• Defensive, American phrase ‘What’s the matter with him/her?’: undermining.
• Pablo speaks in Spanish, Stanley is discriminatory: ‘greaseball’.
• Pablo damns Stanley’s luck - Hell? Judgement audience passes on Stanley too?
- Plastic, over the top emotion: Stanley [prodigiously elated], he has won the game
(the play? life?)
- Mitch’s reaction: angry because of Stanley, he did what Mitch couldn’t (in game,
Blanche’s rape). ‘bull’, implied profanity, animalistic imagery. First time he directly
challenges Stanley.
- First time we are introduced to the baby, ‘Sleeping like a little angel’: pure when
born, corrupted by Elysian Fields (sex, alcohol, gambling). Stella - “Madonna” but
isn’t even looking after the baby…
- Stella lies to Blanche throughout the scene ‘rest in the country’.
• Blanche still focused on chivalry: ‘Shep Huntleigh’, inherently Southern name, Old
South; her grip on reality is gone, her choice to believe it?
• Aversion in Stella’s actions.
- Blanche trying to distance herself from Elysian Fields, her new costume
‘yellow’ ‘silver’ ‘turquoise’ ‘violets’ (arti cial violets - arti cial modesty, purity,
faithfulness).
• Nevertheless, she is stuck in Elysian Fields: ‘amber light’, ‘red satin robe’, ‘tragic’.
- ‘Varsouviana’ represents her pain; mocking her?
- Stella questions her decision, Eunice ‘What else could you do?’: powerlessness
of women, Stella’s choice: no other option, strength/intentional weakness,
ignorance?
1
fi fi
A Streetcar Named Desire
Scene 11
Scene 7, 8, 9, 10 all same night, 11 is a few weeks later.
- Starts with Blanche bathing (again) - holy imagery, water is cleansing, penitence.
- Recalls back to scene 3 - cyclical structure, Catholic imagery [The atmosphere of
the kitchen is now the same raw, lurid one of the disastrous poker night].
- Sky is [turquoise], contrasts lurid inside, links back to scene 1 [peculiarly tender
blue].
- Stanley believes he is here because God anointed him, inherently American ‘by
God’.
• American Dream ‘to hold front position in this rat race you’ve got to believe you
are lucky’.
• Defensive, American phrase ‘What’s the matter with him/her?’: undermining.
• Pablo speaks in Spanish, Stanley is discriminatory: ‘greaseball’.
• Pablo damns Stanley’s luck - Hell? Judgement audience passes on Stanley too?
- Plastic, over the top emotion: Stanley [prodigiously elated], he has won the game
(the play? life?)
- Mitch’s reaction: angry because of Stanley, he did what Mitch couldn’t (in game,
Blanche’s rape). ‘bull’, implied profanity, animalistic imagery. First time he directly
challenges Stanley.
- First time we are introduced to the baby, ‘Sleeping like a little angel’: pure when
born, corrupted by Elysian Fields (sex, alcohol, gambling). Stella - “Madonna” but
isn’t even looking after the baby…
- Stella lies to Blanche throughout the scene ‘rest in the country’.
• Blanche still focused on chivalry: ‘Shep Huntleigh’, inherently Southern name, Old
South; her grip on reality is gone, her choice to believe it?
• Aversion in Stella’s actions.
- Blanche trying to distance herself from Elysian Fields, her new costume
‘yellow’ ‘silver’ ‘turquoise’ ‘violets’ (arti cial violets - arti cial modesty, purity,
faithfulness).
• Nevertheless, she is stuck in Elysian Fields: ‘amber light’, ‘red satin robe’, ‘tragic’.
- ‘Varsouviana’ represents her pain; mocking her?
- Stella questions her decision, Eunice ‘What else could you do?’: powerlessness
of women, Stella’s choice: no other option, strength/intentional weakness,
ignorance?
1
fi fi
