The Set for "A Streetcar Named Desire"

So, Komali and I worked on the set designs for A Streetcar Named Desire. She came up with the idea of color representation, so for example, Stella and Stanley's bed is red because that's the passionate part, and where Stanley rapes Blanche. I made Blanche's bed white, since her name means white and there is that sort of theme going on with her. Also, it's not easily noticeable and blends into the floor, which parallels the fact that Blanche is not in control of her life. She has a green trunk by the way, since you can't see it in the picture). I also made the alcohol cabinet black, because I felt this is sort of how Blanche acts around it- she needs it, but pretends she doesn't, and so black is subtle and hardly noticeable. Although it's hard to tell in the drawing, I tried to make the poker table the first thing one sees in the room- because that's the main attraction, in my opinion. Everything else has its home in a corner or against the wall: it's only the poker table that stands alone. Also, although it's not visible unless you're up close, I made one of the chairs, the one closest to the liquor cabinet, have armrests, to show that that was Stanley's seat, and that he was the one in charge (of the poker game, of the alcohol- plus he gets drunk the most, of the house).

If you're wondering, there isn't a roof because then it would be too dark to see anything. It was more of a necessary choice. Anyways, the curtain opens and closes, depending on the scene and what the focus of the house should be. The two lamps, above the bed and the table, symbolize the importance of those two objects. The walls and the floor are grey, a dark and cold color, since I wanted to try and make the apartment a bit spartan and enclosing.

On the outside of the house, it's a grey, as I wasn't really sure how to make a dirty falling apart white. I also simplified the setting a bit, because the way I read it, the apartment from the outside was a bit grandeur with cascading white stairs to each of the doorways. I wasn't even sure what that meant, so I stuck with what I imagined. Anyways, I hope you enjoy it.

Setting + characters = themes

Tennessee Williams, author of the play "A Streetcar Named Desire", wrote detailed setting descriptions and actors' movements. Reading just the words in italics describing what was to be performed by the actors brought to light and strengthened certain themes in the play. Here are the themes that I saw when looking only at setting, character description, and their actions.


Blanche's separation:

• Setting and character description:
• Blanche shakes a lot, whispers, and blabbers a lot which reveals how awkward she feels in Stella's apartment. And from the very beginning, Williams contrasts her to the setting and the people. "She is daintily dressed in a white suit with a fluffy bodice, necklace and earring of pearl, white gloves and ha, looking as if she were arriving at a summer tea or cocktail party in the garden district" (5). Her white appearance, along with her white name (literally), creates the separation between her and the world. 
• What I'm not that sure about, however, it that the setting is actually quite similar to Blanche. The setting is a bit run down: "The sky that shows around the dim white building is a peculiarly tender blue, almost a turquoise, which invests the scene with a kind of lyricism and gracefully attenuates the atmosphere of decay" (3). Perhaps the fact that the setting, like Blanche, is old and fading away, compares the two. The modern, "New South" (Stanley), has made his home in the homes. So maybe it's foreshadowing that Stanley will displace Blanche. I don't really know, though...
• Setting and actions:
• Blanche doesn't really belong- after Stella goes to Stanley after their fight, Blanche is frightened, and "looks right and left as if for a sanctuary" (67). She is lost and alone.
• Her first time alone in the apartment, how uncomfortable and out of place she feels is apparent:
• "Blanche sits in a chair very stiffly with her shoulders slightly hunched and her legs pressed close together and her hands tightly clutching her purse as if she were quite cold. After a while the blind look goes out of her eyes and she begins to look slowly around. A cat screeches. She catches her breath with a startled gesture. Suddenly she notices something in a half opened closet. She springs up and crosses to it, and removes a whiskey bottle. She pours a half tumbler of whiskey and tosses it down. She carefully replaces the bottle and washes out the tumbler at the sink. Then she resumes her seat in front of the table" (10).
• Her actions are stiff and "hunched", as if she's afraid to move. Then, when she absorb what's going on around her, she's still on edge. The cat freaks her out. What's interesting here is that while at first she doesn't move at all, she suddenly springs up for alcohol. Her actions then are quite sure- tossing some whiskey down. This certainty and need for alcohol contrasts with her actions in the rest of the setting, foretelling her addiction to alcohol and creating the motif of alcohol as a means of escape for her loss of control.
• Character personality:
• From the very beginning, she is tired, nervous, and paranoid, jumping at little noises and avoiding lights.
• Contrast of Blanche and Stanley
• Everything Blanche does, Stanley undos:
• When Blanche turns the radio on, it becomes clear that Stanley views her as a threat: "[Stanley jumps up and, crossing to the radio, turns it off. He stops short at the sight of Blanche in the chair. She returns his look without flinching. Then he sits again at the poker table]" (55).
• Blanche serves as a distraction to Stanley's friends and undermines his control (to mainly Stella and Mitch. Wen "[Mitch rises as Stanley returns to his seat.]" (56), Stanley yells at Mitch to sit down.

Stanley's position as alpha male:

• Stage directions: Stanley's actions
• It's kind of weird how Stanley can never do anything calmly or with patience. Seriously, he "jerks" (88), "slams", "throws", "snatches" (42), "rips", and "stalks" (131). I wonder if he ever gets tired of doing all that.
• At any rate, it shows his animalistic nature, a lot, and how prevalent it is all the time. Stanley really represents the present, as he lives in the moment.
• Contrast of Blanche and Stanley
• I mentioned this a bit earlier, but I just wanted to say it again- Stanley needs his control in order to function. As soon as Blanche comes in, she undermines his existence.
• Setting:
• Poker night:
• The poker scene is very masculine-
• "The poker players [...] wear colored shirts, solid blues, a purple, a red-and-white check, a light green, and they are men at the peak of their physical manhood, as coarse and direct and powerful as the primary colors. There are vivid slices of watermelon on the table, whiskey bottles and glasses. The bedroom is relatively dim with only the light that spills between the portieres and through the wide window on the street" (46).
• The focus is on poker- the bedroom, the women, are out of sight and out of mind. What's intriguing is that whenever Williams describes a scene, he more often uses the description to describe a mood and an atmosphere. The shirts the men are wearing reflect their masculinity, the air of poker. What I especially like is how he manages to make watermelons seem threatening- "vivid slices of watermelon on the table". I don't know about you, but those watermelons seem quite dangerous.
• All this adds to Stanley's alpha male position, as he deals and controls what goes on during poker night.
• Apartment setting:
• After Stanley and Stella get back together after Stanley hits Stella, when Blanche comes to the apartment the day after, Blanche's outsider position becomes clear. Stella "is serene in the early morning sunlight" (70), with a "narcotized tranquility". (actually, the "narcotized tranquility is interesting since it usually goes along with insanity- and yet Stella is the one who has this.)
• Anyways, the setting seems to be happy, with "a sky of summer brilliance", and a messy apartment. Both of these contrast with Blanche's personality, whose appearance Williams clearly states as contrasting with Stella's. She is nervous and tired.

Role of music/sounds:

• Although I don't always know what's going on in the scene, the music gives the mood.
• For instance, the scene where Stanley grins at Blanche when Stella hugs him after Blanche tells her sister that Stanley is dangerous. As the scene fades, "the music of the "blue piano" and trumpet and drums is heard" (84). It really adds an ominous feel to the whole thing.
• When Stanley is calling Eunice to talk to Stella, he first sobs and then gets angry- "He hurls the phone to floor. Dissonant brass and piano sounds as the rooms dim out to darkness[...]" (65-66). The sounds add tension to the scene and help to characterize Stanley as brash and animalistic.

Blanche's anxiety around Stanley increases as the play progresses:

• In the beginning, he unnerves her, with his weird stares, but she thinks he's normal. However, in the middle, "Blanche registers his entrance with nervous gestures" (87). And at the end, well, she attacks him with a broken bottle. While she may have never really trusted him, their relationship increases in tension.

Sounds in "A Streetcar Named Desire" by Adrienne and Rohit

Overall the sound effects in A Streetcar Named Desire establishes the setting, time period, foreshadows events which are about  to occur, and most importantly emotional situation of characters present.

Here are some of the significant sounds we noticed in the script of the play, written by Tennessee Williams:

Train sound (82- 83)

The train sounds provide the setting of the modern American south and its unique culture. In this scene, the sounds cover Stanley’s movements allowing him to be discrete and deceptive. Since Blanche represents the past and Stanley the present, it shows that Stanley is comfortable in his environment while Blanche is not.

Mexicana (147)

The words of the Mexicana flower lady remind Blanche of the motif of death. The Mexicana lady yells “Flores para los muertos” causing Blanche to panic as she is reminded of her husband’s death and her mother’s death. “…And other things such as bloodstained pillow-slips…” Flowers represent death. Through this scene, we see Blanche’s attitude and outlook on death and its inevitability. “Everything gone but the (…) Death” (148). In addition, Blanche explains that desire can at times be an escape from death as seen from her story about the young soldiers.

Radio (62)

In this scene, Blanche turns on the radio which plays “Wien, Wien, nur du allein.”  Mitch and Blanche are enjoying the song while Stanley reacts negatively. The scene contrasts the differences between Stanley’s modernity and Blanche’s civilized nature as seen through her enjoyment in classic waltzing while Stanley’s animal instincts take over him in disapproval of the song.

Slamming doors

 Stanley, with his intense physicality, slams doors and displays aggressive actions in his everyday encounters with Blanche. These constant sounds reminds the audience of his character and lack of control of his own power.

Neighbor Noises- Steve and Eunice (laughing 133, yelling at each other 86)

“[A disturbance is heard upstairs at the Hubbell's apartment]…” The argument upstairs between Steve and Eunice is a reminder to Blanche about the nature of love in modern society. “[A clatter of aluminum striking a wall is heard, followed by a man's angry roar, shouts and overturned furniture. There is a crash; then a relative hush]” (86). She sees the physical love between Stella and Stanley and this is complemented by the shouting of Steve and Eunice. The sounds in this scene also show how the women of this time period downplayed the aggressive nature of men in their love. In the laughing scene, Steve and Eunice represent the past relationship of Stanley and Stella which has now developed further. This also portrays how the relationship between Stanley and Stella has deteriorated after Blanche’s arrival.

Inhuman Voices

“The night is filled with inhuman voices like cries in the jungle” (159).
Creates the mood between Blanche and Stanley which sets up the intensity for the rape scene.
The whistle which breaks the prostitute and a drunkard. This sound is of importance because it is foresight and almost a warning for what is about to happen to Blanche.

Old love vs. new?

This is a poem by Elizabeth Barret Browning, which is alluded to in William Tenesse's A Streetcar Named Desire. Following the poem is the poem with inserts in red that are my thoughts about what the poem is saying. Then I conjecture what the meaning of the poem could be and how that connects to the play.

from Sonnets from the Portuguese

XLIII

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of everyday’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.
I love thee freely, as men might strive for Right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints,–I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life!–and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.

______________________

from Sonnets from the Portuguese

XLIII

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height

Talking about love being more than just love, but something essential to one's life.
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
This love is eternal, strong, and intense- something that seems perfect.
I love thee to the level of everyday’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.
Love is something the author feeds off of. (But not in a weird way)
I love thee freely, as men might strive for Right;
Love is something that is right, what should happen.
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
What does that mean, "as they turn from Praise"?
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
This mention of past and childhood reminds me of Blanche.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints,–I love thee with the breath,
"With my lost saints"- the person the author loves has replaced all doubts and fears.
Smiles, tears, of all my life!–and, if God choose,
Her love has become her life, and in the end, she will continue to love.
I shall but love thee better after death.

These are several things that came to mind:

• Mitch and the girl who gave him his lighter
• Mitch and Blanche connect over the death of a loved one- both of them seemed destined to live in the past and never marry someone else (Blanche stuck in the past, Mitch living with his mother).
• Blanche and her lost lover
• There are the obvious connections with how powerful Blanche loves her lost lover, and how much it affects her- Stella often remarks about how beautiful Blanche used to be, in love- the sentence  "I love thee to the depth and breadth and height / My soul can reach" (lines 2-3, Browning) really seems to parallel Blanche's emotions.
• But I think it also goes to how Blanche is stuck in the past. The first time I read the poem, the last line, "I shall but love thee better after death", I thought of Mitch and his girlfriend, and how after she died her love still went on- but in Blanche's case, Blanche loves her husband better after death- literally. She was disgusted with him right before he died, and afterwards she devoted (unconsciously) her whole life to him.
• From the poem, lines 9-10: "I love thee with the passion put to use / In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith". Much like these lines, Blanche's love for her husband keep her with her old griefs and thinking about her childhood's faith. She once mentions her blindness about love, her first love, and this contrasts with the present in the play. She looks for security instead. Yet she has a different opinion about love than the "normal" people (Stella and Stanley, Eunice and Steve). So I think she may still have her childhood faith in love that it is something that should be perfect, something she looks for in Mitch, instead of love being practical and with some gray areas.
• Perhaps even Stella and her love of Stanley?
• Stella seems to love Stanley like the author describes it- something real, although she is more practical than Blanche in her love. I guess the irony is that Stanley's love does not seem the same. He loves her, but in a different way- the way I read it, in a more sexual way. Although as were were talking in class, Stella likes Stanley in a sexual way too. The poem seems to talk about something much larger, as in connection with the person him/herself and not just their body...
• So this poem is, from A Streetcar Named Desire point of view, living in the past. Nowadays, love is something practical, that follows a system- somewhere in the play it is said that Stella is following the usual pattern- find a guy, marry, have a baby. Blanche isn't, though.

Anyways, those were just my initial thoughts.

Words, words, words

I love words. So small, so random, yet so large in their meaning! They each have their own significance, along with the unspoken connotations and feelings that accompany them...

So anyways, here are a few words from the play, A Streetcar Named Desire, by Tennessee Williams, that are so much more than they first seem, said or used to describe Blanche or Stanley, two very different people.
______________________________

Blanche, in my view, is an outcast of society trying to fit in or at least pretend that she is needed in the world. Words that represent Blanche depict her as a fragile and childlike girl, without a strong foundation anywhere.

sprays (41): This word particularly contrasts Blanche with Stanley, as with the same object (the atomizer) Blanche playfully sprays it whereas Stanley seizes it and slams it instead. The difference between the actions, Blanche's childlike action to Stanley's powerful one shape each character.

shrilly (77): Blanche's voice gets "shrilly" sometimes, which is something that is quite high and associated with girls. When one thinks of "shrilly" it's usually piercing and overdone. This establishes Blanche as someone who is very emotional and excitable and overdoes things a bit. Surrounded by those who are always practical- Stella, Stanley, Steve, Eunice- she clearly stands out.

inert (162): This reminds me of how in the language packet we read words often give females a passive role. Blanche, despite her attempts to control her future, has little control. Inertness is weakness, and immobility, something that is very unmanly.


daisy (49): Stella describes Blanche as a "daisy", to make her feel better. As the packet remarked, flowers, and plants in general, are often used to describe girls. It may be pretty, but it is also easily unrooted and ruined. This reflects Blanche's character, as someone who strives to be beautiful but feels that she has no other attributes.


snatches (78): Twice I noticed Blanche "snatches" things, unlike Stanley who either takes, grabs, or rips away. Snatching is a furtive movement, one that is nervous, quick, and uncertain, much like Blanche. Also, her snatching implies that she does not confidently own much, a reminder that she is already fading away from the present.


breathlessly (94): This is a very light and weak word; one is breathless when they are exhausted, excited, or nervous. Blanche is all three of those things. She rarely states things loudly and confidently, but flits around from one place to another. She has no constant ground she can stop in.


delicate [piece] (136): Stanley calls here a "delicate piece". Not only does "delicate" establish Blanche as fragile and vulnerable, the "piece" added at the end suggests that she is not even a human or someone worthy- she is merely an object to be moved around to others' advantages. At the end of the play, Blanche is sent off much like this.


whispering (171): Again, this emphasizes the differences between Blanche, who whispers, and Stanley, who bellows. Blanche doesn't want to make a strong impression on anyone, and so she whispers- a light and un-intrusive action. She takes the passive role instead of the active one.
_______________________________

Stanley, on the other hand, has not past, and lives fully in the present, as a person who fits completely in the world. He is very confident and primitive... the words used to describe him are ones that show that he takes an active role, instead of a passive one. He needs power and control.

lordly 29): Not only does this have the masculine root word, "lord", but it is just filled with the connotation of power and righteousness. In the scene where this word appears, Stanley "lordly" accepts Stella's kiss, as if he doesn't really enjoy it at all but bears it for 'his girl'. This is how he acts- Stanley is always the one who gives- he is independent, and doesn't need or want to change.

ominously (30): Oftentimes Stanley says things "ominously", which again has that connotation that one would want to be weary, as well as do what Stanley says or beware of the consequences. It ties into Stanley's power and how he can make others fear him, without having to even move much.

smoldering (37): Another thing he does is give "smoldering" looks- really, Stanley defines himself the guy with control over everything. It's his house and it's his things: and if you do anything that he doesn't really like, out comes the "smoldering" glance. He is taking the active role, judging others. Blanche, on the other hand, is judged by others, and needs others to make herself feel confident and young again.

sub-human (83): Blanche calls Stanley "sub-human", which is interesting. The way Stanley acts, based on his sexual needs and always in the moment, drunk or not, he is kind of like the last survivor of the stone age. Blanche is an English teacher, who believes in proper manners, whereas Stanley views the world in a direct way.


baying (66): This word caries an animal tone to Stanley, which is similar among many of his other actions. Wolves bay at the moon- as Stanley bayed at Stella. He uses Stella, but in the end he is a very independent guy. As a self-proclaimed king, in the play people work around him, even the men who play poker with him.


napoleonic [code] (32): The Napoleonic Code was a code that was created in Bonaparte's time, and this correlates with the tradition of a patriarchy- something Stanley clearly agrees with. Even though it's French (which would seem to side with Blanche), it is a plus for males. Family wise, husbands got the supremacy. Take a look at this website- here's a quote on how marriage should work (among many):

"The husband owes protection to his wife, the wife obedience to her husband."


booming (40): Stanley, whenever he talks, does so loudly and confidently. It's his character. He does what he wants and no one can ever say otherwise. Thinking about it actually, I think Stanley really starts to dislike Blanche because she threatens his way of life- mainly, Stella and poker. He blames her for Stella's comment on his roughness (as Stella tries to show Blanche Stanley in small bits), and I think he also is a bit miffed that he can't have much of a romance with Stella either because Blanche is there.

During discussion in class:::

Stella:

• She is attracted to his animalistic character- which is both passion and violence.
• Is she delusional? Holding on to Stanley and pretending it's perfect.
• or not- she is happy, and loves Stanley despite his violence.
• Blanche's company adds stress- she reminds Stella of a past that wasn't with Stanley. And then Stella has to choose between Blanche and Stanley.

Stanley:

So masculine that he's almost animalistic- much like a code hero. He's the alpha male.
The words (below) have negative connotation- but only nowadays. Back then, this is what a guy should be.

Motivation:

• power
• feels threatened by Blanche, for he loses his power over Stella and Mitch. She is everything he isn't- old blood, educated, vs. primitiveness.
• poker, Stella
• practical.

How is Stanley a good person?

• After he does something bad, he immediately regrets it. He is sincere? In this setting, it's not that uncommon.

How is Stanley a bad person?

• A bit immature.
• He has a habit of bullying, then apologizing, then going on with life, and then back again.

Or is he neither?

• He doesn't really plan anything- he does things on whim. No intentions- he reacts. But is he still responsible for his actions?
• personally, it doesn't matter whether he's manipulative or plans things out before hand- he's still responsible.

• animalistic:
• whelp
• sub-human
• baying hound
• richly feathered (male) bird
• primitive
• hunking
• ape-like
• grunt
• stalk
• slammed
• ideals of masculinity
• rutting hunk
• richly feathered (male) bird
• working
• rough
• manhood
• king
• Unrefined
• clumsy
• unshaven
• working
• straightforward
• comfortable
• simple
• coarse
• madman
• straightforward

Blanche:

She's very self-absorbed. Representative of the old South, a well-turned out (though damaged) aristocracy on appearance, with a complexity behind it that almost "shatters those ideas". She is similar to Stanley who had been raised in a different situation. There's a lot of sexual tension (they recognize that they are similar) between the two.
Blanche feels really guilty. She was attracted to a guy who had very feminine qualities.When she's alone, she's drinking, and anxious, and the music keeps playing in her head. She needs to be someone else, to avoid herself and her past.

What's good about Blanche?

• she wants to get her sister out of Stanley's life.

What's bad about Blanche?

• materialistic
• self absorbed
• manipulative

 Motivation:

• proving her worth

• Brutishness
• liar
• fierce
• empress
• queen
• tiger
• feminine, innocent
• fresh
• honey
• daintily
• delicate [piece]
• daisy
• honey
• sweetie
• feathered
• powdered
• playful
• romance
• glamorous
• dressing
• vivacity
• moth
• doll
• insecurity
• illusion
• dame
• old maid
• slipped
• fading
• desperate
• canary bird
• dame aux camellias