The characters make A Streetcar Named Desire an undeniable landmark in both American literature and film. Sometimes buried in symbolism and yet at other places blatantly explosive, they show a deep level of complexity that is yet to be rivaled. I have no bias towards either medium of expression, but instead feel like the two complement each other and have helped me develop a further understanding of the play. .
The title explains the heart of the piece. By being associated with a streetcar, desire is taken off its pedestal (where people crave it and submit to its demands) and is placed with an unfortunate vulgarity of the world. In the play, Williams works us through the outcomes of giving in to desire. The three main characters have no self-control and sell their souls to have their desires fulfilled. This ultimately leads to their destruction; as it creates, or perhaps merely brings to light an ugliness in them which has previously been masked. .
Blanche is the most explicit example of this. The play is not about the gradual sacrifice of her own character (morals) in order to fulfill her desires, but instead about how this aspect becomes a chaotic revelation that ultimately leads to the paranoic breakdown of her psyche. While Stanley plays a large part in uncovering this, Blanche doomed herself by weaving her disguise back and forth so cheaply that it was inevitably destined to unravel. Her alcoholism is an obvious expression to Stanley and Stella of her desire to drown the destitution that has become her character. .
In the opening scene of the film, Leigh emerges from the train station through a cloud of smoke, representing the mystery from which she hails. The viewer recognizes through this symbol that Blanche wants her old self to remain anonymous. However, it is soon found that Dubois is a time bomb waiting to explode. The desire of denial may delay the explosion, but ultimately serves to only complicate the issue.
Tennesee Williams' Use Of Stage Effects And How They Change A Streetcar Named Desire Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire is mastery of the use of lighting, setting, and sound to add to emotion and meaning to a play. ... It seems that the minor details of music, sound effects, lighting, and setting were actually some of the most important points of A Streetcar Named Desire. ...
In A Streetcar Named Desire the part that Tennessee Williams' life plays in the text is fairly large. ... His father withdrew him from university to work at the International Shoe Company, where he met Stanley Kowalski, who Tennessee Williams' has plastered all over A Streetcar Named Desire. ... Quoting A Streetcar Named Desire: The Playwright (http://hipp.gator.net/scarplaywright.html): 'He was noted for bringing to his audiences a slice of his own life and the feel of the southern culture. ... A personal interest/experience in the themes/issues and characters would not have...
The purest language of plays" - just by studying 'A streetcar named Desire" the reader can identity the numerous symbols Williams' uses to add depth to the plot as well as unveil his characters' personalities, strengths and weaknesses. ... Light, animal characteristics, music and the streetcars Desire and Cemeteries are symbols that Kazan puts emphasis on in the film just as Williams does in the play to lead up to the climax of Blanche's disintegration into insanity and Stanley's brutal triumph over her. ... "They told me to take a streetcar named Desire and then tr...
Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desire- Tennesse Williams is known as one of the greatest American playwrights. ... Among his most notable and successful plays were "The Glass Menagerie-, which he refers to as "memory play-, "A Streetcar Named Desire-, "The Rose Tatoo- and "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof- for which he was appreciated winning the Pulitzer Prize. ... "Streetcar Named Desire- which was firstly entitled "The Poker Night- emerged right after the theatrical success of "The Glass Menagerie- when the authour learned to play poker game. ... The moment Blanche appea...
That play was A Streetcar Named Desire. ... It is no surprise that Williams again turned to Mielziner to design A Streetcar Named Desire. ... Thanks in large part to A Streetcar Named Desire, the duo of Mielziner and Williams helped to change theatre. ... At the time of A Streetcar Named Desire, "it was more like an accusation" (Murphy 1). ... When it came to A Streetcar Named Desire, Kazan's collaboration did not come cheap. ...
" A Streetcar Named Desire" by Tennessee Williams Bruce, Smith. ... "It's a French name. ... She tells him the origins of her name, which she treasures. ... "A Streetcar Named Desire" did not grab my attention at all. ... "A Streetcar Named Desire" was written in 1933, and many things have changed since then. ...
Viewing of A Streetcar Named Desire Although the basic story line is the same in both the book and the live play of A streetcar Named Desire, some things were different. ... For the most part, reading A Streetcar Named Desire was very similar to the live performance. ...
In the play "A Streetcar Named Desire" by Tennessee Williams, there are several prevalent themes. ... This is allegorically represented through Blanche DuBois's riding of the streetcars named Desire and Cemeteries. ... In "A Streetcar Named Desire", Tennessee Williams states that one can not shield himself from the harshness of reality by creating a fantasy alternative. ... This desire for physical relationships brought her to a more troubled state of reality. ... Tennessee Williams uses his play "A Streetcar Named Desire" to demonstrate the problem one faces with creating a fantasy...
Tennessee Williams uses symbols to help communicate his ideas in A Streetcar Named Desire. ... Clothing is a recurring symbol in A Streetcar Named Desire. ... Death, as told by Blanche, is the opposite of Desire, and Blanche wishes to be desired. ... The streetcar named Desire leads to a streetcar named Cemeteries, and both of the most important characters suffer death in one way of another. Without this desire, this play would be completely different and have less meaning. ...