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A Streetcar Named Desire Change And Loss

952 Words4 Pages

The inevitability of change and loss are presented as central and complex ideas in both William’s ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ and Carol Ann Duffy’s poetry collection ‘Mean Time’. Characters in both works of literature struggle with the acceptance of change, an intrinsic human fear. Through setting, characterisation and allegory, Duffy and Williams present relatable characters who cower in the face of change. Loss is also an ineluctable element of life; both Duffy and Williams understand this and intelligently indicate this using a variety of poetic and dramatic techniques.
Point 1: Change and loss are central ideas in the presentation of relationships
MAIN POINT (ASCND): Relationships are used in ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ to expose the …show more content…

His attitude to Stella (and women as a whole) is enduring through the duration of the play. His unwavering misogynistic attitude is demonstrated by the stage direction […his fingers find the opening of her blouse]
TERMINOLOGY: Williams exaggerates the syllables of the proper noun ‘Stella’ which has connotations of aggression and violence, revealing Stanley’s nature to the audience. The latter syllable of the name is naturally stressed with a harsh intonation in the English language. This creates the interjection ‘ahh’ with connotations of fear and pain possibly indicating a more genuine side to Stanley. This possibility is forgotten with the progression of event and the aforementioned stage direction showing him to be a static …show more content…

In response to Stanley’s animalistic cry of her name, [her eyes go blind with tenderness…] showing her deep affection and sexual desire towards Stanley and above all demonstrating her desire to stay with him. However, Williams shows this to be affected by change as after the rape of Blanche, Stella comments that she ‘couldn’t’ believe Blanches story and stay with Stanley.
TERMINOLOGY: Williams uses the adjective ‘Blind’ to show Stanley and Stellas relationship is based on deep desire rather than truthfulness. When coupled with the abstract noun ‘tenderness’ Williams portrays Stella as ignoring Stanley’s faults due to her own infatuation with him. This is shown to morph to denying Blanches accusation- not for selfish needs but for the protection of her child and self. The contracted version of the colloquial phrase ‘could not’ shows an internal conflict between her need to protect her child and love for her sister (as well as continuing the dialect of New

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