A streetcar named desire quote bank

“faded white stairs ascend to the entrance”

“faded white stairs ascend to the entrance”

Scene 1 - colour imagery, theme of death and heaven

“her delicate beauty must avoid a strong light”

Scene 1 - blanches”s contrast to setting, connotations of light

“she is faintly dressed in a white suit with a fluffy bodice, necklace and earrings of pearl, white gloves and hat”

Scen 1 - connotations of purity, costumery

“(he heaves the package at her)”

Scene 1 - masculinity, stanleys aggressivness

“(animal joy in his being is implicit in all his movements and attitudes)”

Scene 1 - animalistic imagery, masculinity

“not in my territory”

Scene 1 - animalistic imagery, masculitinty

“all of those deaths! the long parade to the graveyard!”

Scene 1 - blanches contrast to setting, melodramatic genre, theme of death

“blows in my face and in my body”

Scene 1 - connotations of war, links to context, theme of death

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2

“why the grim reaper had put up his tent on our doorstep”

Scene 1 - theme of death, extended metaphor struggles of blanche ,

“the boy - the boy died”

Scene 1 - struggles of blanche, theme of death, emphasises blanches trauma

“where were you? in bed with your Polak!”

Scene 1 - contrast between sisters, Blanche is narcissistic, racism

“where’s the little woman?”

Scene 1 - masculinity, sexism and de-value of woman

“crude images flashing into his mind and determining the way he smiles at them”

Scene 1 - masculinity, connotations of predator, foreshadows the devalue of women

“roughly dressed in blue denim work clothes…red stained package”

Scene 1 - costumery, connotations of animalism, masculinity

“look at these feathers and furs that she has come here to preen herself in! what’s this here? a solid gold dress, I believe!”

Scene 2 - symbols of wealth, Stanley envies the upper class, meta-costuming southern belle archetype,

“those are inexpensive furs that blanche has had a long time”

Scene 2 - stella challenging Stanley, stanley wants to dislike blanche

“[he hurls the furs to the daybed, he jerks open a small drawer in the trunk and pulls up a fistful of costume jewellery]”

Scene 2 - foreshadows later in play as Stanley destroys everything blanche has, animalistic imagery

“it looks like my trunk has exploded”

Scene 2 - Stanley’s invasion of Blanches space, foreshadows Stanley’s invasion of Blanche herself

“[she sprays herself with her atomizer, then playfully sprays him with it. he seizes it and slams it down on the dresser. she throws back her head and laughs]'“

scene 2 - blanche is invading Stanleys life with femininity, savage masculinity, uncalled for violence

“these are love letters yellowing with antiquity, all from one boy. [he snatches them up] give those back to me!”

Sene 2 - blanches internal suffering, importance of intimacy, Stanleys lack of emotions, links to impact of war

“[he rips of he ribbon and starts to examine them. Blanche snatches them from him and they cascade to the floor]. “

Scene 2 - letters symbolise Blanche, summary of the play,

“belle reeve should finally be this bunch of old papers in your big, capable hands!”

Scene 2 - synecdoche, reference to the working class,

“the blind are leading the blind!”

Scene 2 - foreshadows oncoming tragedy, that we can’t see

“the kitchen now suggests that sort of lurid nocturnal brilliance “

Scene 3 - gothic ideas, colour imagery, animalistic connotations, masculinity

“relatively dim with only the light that spills between the portieres and through the wide window on the street”

Scene 3 - light imagery, unsafe gothic atmosphere, masculinity,

“Stanley gives a loud whack on her thigh”

Scene 3 - sexual violence, threatening nature, masculinity, power

“that one seems superior to the others “

Scene 3 - Mitch as an anecdote to stanley

“"well you can hear me and I say hush up”

Scene 3 - malsculinity, power

“she has slipped on a dark red satin wrapper”

Scene 3 - sexual innuendo, virgin whore dichotomy

“sorrow makes for sincerity”

scene 3 - suffering leading to empathy

“im accustomed to having no more than one drink”

scene 3 - blanches duality

“take it easy stanley. easy fellow.”

Scene 3 - greek tragedy, animalistic imagery

“she backs out her sight. he advances and disappears. there is a sound of a blow”

Scene 3 - zoomorphic, aggressive language, greek tragedy

“her eyes go blind with tenderness”

Scene 3 - stella is blind to stanleys flaws, sexual desire

“catches his head and raises him level with her”

scene 3 -

“thank you being so kind I need kindness now “

Scenen 3 - contrast in relationships

“there is a confusion of street cries like choral chant”

Scene 4 - greek chorus, foreboding

“she has spent a sleepless night and her appearance entirely contrast with stella’s”

Scene 4 - sister contrast, foreboding

“he didn’t know what he was doing”

Scene 4 - violence is the norm in their relationship

“I was sort of thrilled by it “

Scene 4 - contrast in sisters, sexual desire

“honey would I be here if the man wasn’t married?”

Scene 4 - masculinity power, woemn’s status in society

“what such a man has to offer is animal force”

Scene 4 - animalism

“you still have sufficient memory of belle reeve to find these poker players impossible to live with”

Scene 4 - symbolising the contrast of the setting

“Stella has embraced him with both arms…over her head he grins through the curtain at blanche”

Scene 4 - loyalty for stanley and rejection of blanche, power and conflict