Tsvetan's Entries on A Streetcar Named Desire

Journal 1
From the moment that Blanche is being presented, it seems like something about her just isn’t right. Her constant criticism, her stories that don’t seem full, the lack of explanation and her behavior make her very hard to like. One moment she is hysterical and screeching, the next she’s laughing, she lies to everyone around her and acts is if they all owe her in some way. But as the story progresses, I started feeling bad for her instead, her lies began to unravel and all that was left was a hopeless and delusional woman who has nothing meaningful left in the world. Her material positions are the only things that bring her some kind of joy and make her feel like a queen in her made up world.
From the moment she sees Stanley Kowalski, she is threatened by him, because she has never met a man like him before. His power, straightforwardness (most times downright rudeness) and ability to see through her, scare her. They are both very strong characters, which is why they clash into a constant war of words and suspect each other all the time. Blanche is also intimidated by him because she knows that he has the love of the only close person and the closest one she has left in the world, her sister. She doesn’t understand the love and sheer passion that Stanley and Stella have for each other until the night of the first poker game. After that, she knows that she comes second even for her sister and that if Stella had to choose, she would go to her husband.

Journal 2
A moment from the book that has stayed in my mind is when Blanche explains the way she feels about Stanley. Her description of him an animal and a brute is the same, only a bit exaggerated, as my first impression of him. He demands respect and always receives it, no matter if it’s from fear or love. He is the leader of his “gang” of friends and they all listen to him, so does Stella. As much as he is categorized as simple, he is the first and only one that doesn’t believe Blanche’s stories and turns out to be right. You never know what he’s thinking or what he’s going to do, because of his impulsiveness, which is why no one dares to contradict him.
The night of the first poker game, we see him at his worst, when that brutal force is not controlled. Even though he may lose control though, his love for Stella is greater than anything else and his passion is just as primal as his aggression. She feels the same way about him and forgives his mistakes and even when he hits her and even though it’s not mentioned I believe that it doesn’t happen often. Some people, just like Blanche, don’t understand that kind of thing, when there’s only love and no material positions and you have to be happy with whatever you have just because of the person you’re with. From the incident with Eunice and Steve it seems that Stella and Stanley aren’t the only ones to fight, even physically one moment, and at the next laugh and love each other as if nothing has happened, because they only have each other.

Journal 3
The ending was very surprising to me because I didn’t expect it to be so tragic. There’s a big conflict between what is right and what is wrong, what must be done and what mustn’t. Sometimes what’s right doesn’t seem like what’s best, just like sending Blanche to a mental institution. Stella is devastated by that decision, which probably her husband made, but there’s no other option for them. Blanche is sick, she’s not only a pathological liar, but she is delusional, she talks to herself and has severe mood swings. In no way would Stella and Stanley be able to take care of her or have her around especially now that there’s a baby.
What Blanche does is not out of cruelty, hiding the truth from the people she cares about was the only thing she could do if she was to try and live a normal life again. Stanley to some extent ruins that for her, but that’s because his obsession with the truth is stronger than him and maybe in the end it’s better that Blanche will get treatment. Even after the ending filled with commotion, screams and cries, everyone seems at peace in the last scene. Blanche is ready to go with the doctor and accepts it and the Kowalskis have embraced each other, ready to continue their life with the new addition to the family. To me, that scene is a suggestion by the author that what happened was for the best and now everyone can be at peace.