No man feels left out in the test of masculinity. The play, The Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller’s The Death of a Salesman have their male characters’ different perspectives on masculinity yet the same goal on proving they are masculine. Despite all the characters’ differences, they all want to fit into this idea of themselves being masculine to the point of incorporating it into their actions, words, achievements, goals, and frustration. Male characters like Mitch and Bernard are downplayed as un-masculine yet they have their ways in disproving the un-masculine beliefs with their long term achievements. Other characters that are the epitome of masculinity, or of their definition of masculinity, like Stanley
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Stanley is upfront about his masculinity. From Stanley’s view, Mitch is un-masculine simply because Mitch lives with his mother and cares about his mother deeply. Stanley uses his actions, words, tone, and achievements to assure to everyone that he is masculine despite what the extreme consequences could cause him. Very rarely does Stanley show his soft side: “Stella!...Baby doll’s left me… [He breaks into sobs. Then he goes to the phone and dials, still shuddering with sobs.]” (Williams, 65). This moment is one of the very few times Stanley is soft and based on the situation, it was night time so no one was bound to listen to Stanley’s screaming but Stella. For Stanley, his emotional side is presentable to only a female that is deeply loved. In the meantime he would say something along the lines of, “Every man is a king… I’m the king around here, so don’t forget it”(Williams, 131). Stanley’s statement enforces his dominance simply because there is an audience watching him. In this case, Stella does not matter because Blanche creates an audience …show more content…
Based on Stanley’s achievements and current job, Stella says, “A Master Sergeant in the Engineers’ Corps. Those are decorations,” (Williams, 18). Many of these achievements are done instantly considering he quickly got into the military to be able to receive his engineer job and the role as captain not difficult for his group to deicide due to his friends’ passive personality compared to Stanley. Yet, he is ironically questioned whether he is masculine or simply a “pig,” “disgusting,” “ape,” and “animal” by Blanche. This gives the idea that masculinity can be considered primitive but not everyone’s ideologies on masculinity are like Stanley’s. Those that do follow Stanley’s type of masculinity experience more than just
Stanley is upfront about his masculinity. From Stanley’s view, Mitch is un-masculine simply because Mitch lives with his mother and cares about his mother deeply. Stanley uses his actions, words, tone, and achievements to assure to everyone that he is masculine despite what the extreme consequences could cause him. Very rarely does Stanley show his soft side: “Stella!...Baby doll’s left me… [He breaks into sobs. Then he goes to the phone and dials, still shuddering with sobs.]” (Williams, 65). This moment is one of the very few times Stanley is soft and based on the situation, it was night time so no one was bound to listen to Stanley’s screaming but Stella. For Stanley, his emotional side is presentable to only a female that is deeply loved. In the meantime he would say something along the lines of, “Every man is a king… I’m the king around here, so don’t forget it”(Williams, 131). Stanley’s statement enforces his dominance simply because there is an audience watching him. In this case, Stella does not matter because Blanche creates an audience …show more content…
Based on Stanley’s achievements and current job, Stella says, “A Master Sergeant in the Engineers’ Corps. Those are decorations,” (Williams, 18). Many of these achievements are done instantly considering he quickly got into the military to be able to receive his engineer job and the role as captain not difficult for his group to deicide due to his friends’ passive personality compared to Stanley. Yet, he is ironically questioned whether he is masculine or simply a “pig,” “disgusting,” “ape,” and “animal” by Blanche. This gives the idea that masculinity can be considered primitive but not everyone’s ideologies on masculinity are like Stanley’s. Those that do follow Stanley’s type of masculinity experience more than just