A Character Analysis of Blanche Dubois in the Play “A Streetcar Named Desire”

Blanche Dubois is the protagonist of one of Tennessee William’s most famous plays A Streetcar Named Desire. It was first performed on Broadway in 1947. It won a Pulitzer Prize and launched the careers of the playwright, director (Eliza Kazan), and several of the actors (Marlon Brando, Jessica Tandy, Karl Malden, and Kim Hunter).
Blanche Dubois is probably one of the dramatic characters who has called the attention of spectators. However, she seems to be inexhaustible in her complexity, for new perspectives can be applied in an analysis of her downfall. Blanche appears in the first scene dressed in white, the symbol of purity and innocence. “Blanche” means white, the colour signifying essential purity and even innocence but easily stained. In the play, when she tells Mitch the meaning of her name, she puts it as “white woods. Like an orchard in spring.”
Blanche’s appearance does not harmonize with the atmosphere of the French Quarter of New Orleans. Such a setting suggests a harsh and sorrowful environment, especially when we know that it is a place where the Negro homesick “blues” originated. Her family had aristocratic roots and taught Blanche about some of the finer things in life.
She is delicate, aristocratic and sensitive she has a moth –like appearance. She can’t stand a vulgar remark. She would never willingly hurt someone. She doesn’t want realism, she prefers magic. With her nervous