Before I even knew A Streetcar Named Desire had won 4 Oscars as a motion picture and was nominated for 8 others, I was looking forward to reading the play. The Pulitzer Prize-winning play written by Tennessee Williams has surely not disappointed, even for my high standards of literature. After having read about a third of the book, I have truly been blown away by its comedy, sarcasm, and drama. The main characters of Stanley, Stella, and Blanche are 3 very thought provoking and unique individuals that help make up the “meat” of this outstanding play. Of the three characters listed above, Stanley is by far my favorite. His wit, as well as his charm have truly made it clear as to why this book has received so much fame. The way he interacts with his wife, sister-in-law and his friends make him a very difficult character to understand sometimes, but I truly feel a connection with him. Stanley, like myself, is a man who tries to work hard, and is comfortable in his own skin. Blanche on the other hand, is the complete opposite. Egotistical, self-loathing, and a little pathetic, she has quickly worked her way down on my list of favorite characters in this play. Despite this fact, she is still a critical character in the story and I’m sure she will have much more significance later on down the road.
Now throughout my reading, I have come across a few things I would like to share. One question I have (that hopefully someone would answer for me), is on page 23, when Stella and Blanche are making sleeping arrangements, Stella proclaims in response to Blanche’s question of whether or not it will be “decent” sleeping near Stanley with no door, “Stanley is Polish, you know”. My question is, what is the significance of Stanley being Polish in this situation? What does him being Polish have anything to do with whether or not Blanche should feel comfortable sleeping so near to Stella’s husband? With this question, I also came across two sequences of dialogue, which I found very comical. The first scene in on page 86 of scene two, where Stanley and Stella are going through Blanche’s personal belongings, supposedly helping her “unpack”. After coming across Blanche’s costume jewelry collection he exclaims to Stella, “And what have we here? The treasure chest of a pirate!” I found that line as well as the dialogue preceding it to be very funny. Another scenario I found funny is on page 48 of scene three, when Blanche is introduced to Stanley’s friends. Upon making their acquaintance, Blanche goes on to say “Please don't get up” which Stanley retorts with “Nobody’s going to get up, so don’t be worried”. I can just picture it in my head how smoothly that scene must have been in the movie, with Stanley not missing a beat and proclaiming nobody will be standing up. I truly hope I am not the only one who finds these scenes to induce laughter, and I hope somebody will be able to answer my question above.
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I'm going to attempt to answer your question, Josh. It's going to be a complete guess, but it's the best I've got.
ReplyDeleteGoing back to our U.S. History class (I know, we're trying to forget those days- Sorry, Mr. Cushing!), remember the surge of 'new immigrants' that happened in the late 1890's to the early 1900's? Well, the Polish were discriminated against, as well as Germans, Irish, and Hungarians. These 'new immigrants' were looked down upon for being "dirty", "un-American", and taking the jobs of pure Americans. They were practically at the bottom of the totem pole (African American Slaves/Blacks being at the lowest level in society.)
A Streetcar Named Desire was set in the time period of the late 1940's, and I believe Blanche was holding these old discriminatory ideals against Stanley. Stanley comes from a lower class than Blanche and Stella, and I'm sure Blanche found him suspicious (possibly thinking he'll try to come after her while she's sleeping, or steal her belongings to make money off of them). However, that's just my guess.
Hah- Ironically, I did not find the lines you enjoyed funny. I found them demurring to Blanche, as well as judgmental. Blanche simply wants to start anew, and Stanley is making it difficult for her. He wants to break Blanche down, and turn his wife against her own sister. My favorite character in the whole play is Stella. She's torn between her husband and her sister. She's constantly trying to please the both of them, and she tries to remain strong the whole time. She wants what's best for Blanche, and never thinks badly of her (in fact, she always seems to come up with excuses for her sister's behavior). Stanley, on the other hand, is an animal. He's demanding, rough, domineering, and well...really mean. He wants his wife to himself, and wants to show the world that he's proud of himself, as well as his background.
I hope I helped you somewhat, Josh. It is a great play, but the ending is disappointing to me.
Well, I'm glad you can take a romantic play, and turn it into a hysterical comedy. Only the most skilled readers can surely do that, so congrats! However i find it quite ironic that you find those specific dialogues to shed humor because having seen the movie, i can inform you that in my opinion those are the scenes with the most tension and gravity. In fact the most humoruos parts of the movie are infact the parts where the actors try to be romantic. For example, the dialogue between Mitch and Blanche when they first may seems suttle, and quixotic, however in the movie, Mitch seems a little to gruff and eager to impress, explaining the humorous output. Another scene that examplifies this would be when Stanley is screaming to the top of his lungs Steeeeeellla. In Mr. Bertero's i recall clearly the humor our classmates felt hearing Tudor play this part, but the movie irnoically fails to give you any other impression besides hilarity. Perhaps its just the adolescence in us that gives it this impression(I Doubt It) Regardless I'm pleased you're enjoying(enjoyed) the book in your own light.
ReplyDeleteJosh, it has come to my understanding that you looked up some information about the play before reading about it. When I read the play the first time, I was unaware of the fact that it was nominated for 12 Oscars and won 4 of them, so thank you for giving me some background information on the play. Now on to some of the comments you've made and questions you've had concerning the play.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more with the things you said when comparing and contrasting Stanley & Blanche. However, you should also know that even though Stanley may have a certain charm to him that makes him seem like he's a pretty swell guy, he isn't always. He also likes to make a point that he's dominant and has the right to do as he pleases. Overall, I'd say that he's like any other human being; a person with both a good and bad side to him. As for Blanche, she may seem pathetic and least likely character to favor, but have some sympathy for her. After all, she just lost Belle Reve. In my opinion, if she's showing signs of these behaviors, then it's possible that she may be somewhat sick as well.
Finally, in answer to your question about page 23, there is one of three possibilities that it could be why Stella brought up the fact that he was Polish. One possibility could be that it was just a mere racist comment made by Stella. Another possibility could be that this comment could foreshadow something that happens later in the play. Lastly, it's possible that during the time in which the play was written or even earlier, there was a conflict between the Polish and the French and both countries didn't see eye-to-eye on the issues (I'm assuming that Blanche and Stella are of French descent because of their last name). Hopefully, this information will help answer any questions you have about the play.