David Peraj A Streetcar Named Desire

David Peraj
A Streetcar Named Desire

Journal #1

I’ve started reading A Streetcar Named Desire and from the first three scenes they layout each character and their basic personalities. The first character that grabs my attention is Blanche because of what her initial reaction is to the living conditions for her sister’s house and her conversation with Eunice. On page 16-18 we see how Blanche does not approve of the surrounding area nor does she make an effort to be kind, to the point of being blatantly rude. Her attitude gives off the impression that she was supposedly from a family with some amount of wealth. Yet her sister Stella is completely different as she doesn’t mind living there since she is married and happy. Of course tension begins right there that I believe will continue through later on the book. When analyzing the character of Stella she has some qualities that make her different than Blanche since Stella gives almost a way to balance Blanche. Stella also seems to be the opposite of Stanley as she is calm while Stanly is brash, and rude. When analyzing Stanley at first he is shown as a relaxed person through the dialogue but his actions show otherwise.
In scene two he is shown as being selfish and greedy. This happens when Stella tells Stanley that Blanche lost Bell Reve. That apparently makes Stanley agitated and that makes him burst out and search Blanche’s bag for any indication that she spent all the money which he claims she has by what he believes to be expensive furs, jewels, and clothing. Stanley confronts Blanche by stating the Napoleonic code allows a husband to gain his wife’s property. His obsession with getting the money or land shows a greater concern for material needs than what occurred in Stella’s family. Aside from that he exhibits both a drinking problem and as well as showing a certain level of aggressiveness that leads him to act out to violently and assault his wife. However from what his friend Mitch stated to Blanche, Stanley and Stella always fight and that leads me to wonder why Stella has still stayed with him.

Journal #2

As I continue to read “Streetcar Named Desire” I sense that Blanche fears for her sister’s marriage as Blanche says Stanley is a “madman”. Blanche claims that she will get both her and Stella “out.” This comment reinforces my assumptions that she is a materialistic person. She states that the man she knows will help and get them money in Dallas due to him owning oil fields. From the way she stated her plan to Stella it appears she is desperate for money and needs is as soon as she can get a hold of it. Her actions also reflect that she is promiscuous as she becomes hesitant when Stanley starts asking about Shaw at the Flamingo. From her reaction I suspect that the Flamingo is a hotel were large amounts of prostitution occur. This scene is where we can see Stanley start to look closer into who Blanche really is and whether or not she is telling the truth.
My prediction is Stanley is not satisfied by what he has for Blanche’s answers and will go further into this which might put him at odds with his wife Stella. Her promiscuity is only further enforced when she licks a young man when neither Stanley nor Stella is in the home. This leads to the assumption that someone has to bring their attention with Blanche who indicates she might not have had enough attention growing up or has a superiority complex. Although Blanche has qualities that are unbecoming she does show slight reasons as to her actions and attitude. Blanche states to Mitch the she lost her husband when he killed himself. This scene shows Blanche in a state of weakness that she might exhibit later on. In terms of Mitch and Blanches relationship I feel as though there is some complexity because on one hand Mitch wants to settle with her, on the other she might just be using Mitch until she can head to Dallas. At the end of scene 7 we still see more tension build from Stella and Stanley, Stanley accusing Blanches of wrong doings and Stella who disregards what he said. Stanley goes so far as to get a bus ticket to make her leave.

Journal #3
I have finished the book and the ending is a bit dark but it is expected. Stanley has a problem with Blanche and has done everything in his power to make sure he remains dominant in his household. The actions he takes are to persuade Stella that Blanche is lying and that he has large amounts of evidence to support this. His argument is that she is a prostitute who has reached her age and is struggling to keep herself together. Stanley’s contempt for Blanche is so great that he tells Mitch of her actions around the Flamingo. This causes to have Mitch go to Blanche to call off any engagements however Blanche tries to filter it out by changing the subject. Blanche does her best to try and have Mitch to go back to her by constantly talking up to the point where Mitch has heard enough. She does this by pretending to be preoccupied which starts to wear on Mitch. With her mental instability taking over she admits to all the lies and then screams to make Mitch get out. This leaves Blanche alone and she begins to drift deeper and deeper in losing her mind.
After the ordeal with Mitch, Blanche appears to be in a state of delusion as she is dressed up in old clothes talking to herself. Stanley arrives and only causes her more grief as Blanche claims to have gotten a telegram from a millionaire to go with him on a Yacht to the Caribbean, and that Mitch tried to go back to her. However Stanley can see through lies and state that neither of what she said happened. With the verbal assault she starts to have increasing mental instability. To make matters worse Stanley rapes her while Stella is away and makes Blanche completely fall apart. Stella at first didn’t believe Stanley, but when he suggested their marriage was at risk she quickly knew she had to get rid of Blanche. At the very end she was torn by her decision as she felt that she betrayed her sister in siding with Stanley.