How does Williams present the female characters’ dependence on men throughout “A Streetcar Named Desire”? In the play “A Streetcar Named Desire”, Tennessee Williams utilises a range of characters to expose and critique the way that institutions and attitudes of post-war America placed restrictions on women’s lives. The female characters, Stella Kowalski and Blanche DuBois, play a prominent role in this portrayal of the treatment of women, as while both females demonstrate two different types of femininity, they both find still themselves dependant on men. Additional supporting characters, such as Eunice, also denote a similar reliance on men. The themes I will mention today are Gender Disparity, Transition from Old South to New South and
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‘Pig—Polak—disgusting—vulgar—greasy!’ —Them kind of words have been on your tongue and your sister's too much around here! What do you two think you are? A pair of queens?” (pg. 131). Williams’ use of plosive alliteration and hyphens in order to emphasise the insults conveys how Stanley cannot handle his authority being questioned, and how he believes that his wife should be the embodiment of subservience and submission; this reflects the views of America at the time, as although the gender stereotypes were evolving, women were still seen as subordinate to men. They were not allowed to disrespect them, and had very little say. The use of [He seizes her arm] shows how Stanley resorts to violence, and becomes aggressive when he feels he is being mistreated. We see how he uses physical violence to invoke fear in the women and also to assert himself over them; throughout the play, this motif is often used in order to convey the continuing conflict between men and women, with the men often employing their physical prowess to overpower or to strike fear into the women. “A pair of queens?” relates to the theme of social and class elitism throughout the play, and how Blanche is shown to look down on Stanley. As Stanley represents the New South, and …show more content…
Eunice is Stella’s closest friend in New Orleans and she too exhibits her own deficiency of being dependent on men, as she is dependent on her own husband Steve. Eunice represents for Stella her own low class, carnal life that Stella has chosen for herself. Like Stella, Eunice accepts her husband’s affections despite his physical abuse of her. At the end of the play, when Stella hesitates to stay with Stanley at Blanche’s expense, Eunice forbids Stella to question her decision and tells her “You done the right thing, the only thing you could do. She couldn’t stay here; there wasn’t no other place for her to go.” (pg. 176). Williams uses Eunice to again show that not only Blanche and Stella are experiencing gender disparity, but this theme is inherent for all of the women connected in the
‘Pig—Polak—disgusting—vulgar—greasy!’ —Them kind of words have been on your tongue and your sister's too much around here! What do you two think you are? A pair of queens?” (pg. 131). Williams’ use of plosive alliteration and hyphens in order to emphasise the insults conveys how Stanley cannot handle his authority being questioned, and how he believes that his wife should be the embodiment of subservience and submission; this reflects the views of America at the time, as although the gender stereotypes were evolving, women were still seen as subordinate to men. They were not allowed to disrespect them, and had very little say. The use of [He seizes her arm] shows how Stanley resorts to violence, and becomes aggressive when he feels he is being mistreated. We see how he uses physical violence to invoke fear in the women and also to assert himself over them; throughout the play, this motif is often used in order to convey the continuing conflict between men and women, with the men often employing their physical prowess to overpower or to strike fear into the women. “A pair of queens?” relates to the theme of social and class elitism throughout the play, and how Blanche is shown to look down on Stanley. As Stanley represents the New South, and …show more content…
Eunice is Stella’s closest friend in New Orleans and she too exhibits her own deficiency of being dependent on men, as she is dependent on her own husband Steve. Eunice represents for Stella her own low class, carnal life that Stella has chosen for herself. Like Stella, Eunice accepts her husband’s affections despite his physical abuse of her. At the end of the play, when Stella hesitates to stay with Stanley at Blanche’s expense, Eunice forbids Stella to question her decision and tells her “You done the right thing, the only thing you could do. She couldn’t stay here; there wasn’t no other place for her to go.” (pg. 176). Williams uses Eunice to again show that not only Blanche and Stella are experiencing gender disparity, but this theme is inherent for all of the women connected in the