Uncertainty and Ambiguity

The Varsouviana is filtered into weird distortion, accompanied by the cries and noises of the jungle.

The "weird distortion" of music mirrors Blanche’s mental unravelling, reflecting the terrifying uncertainty of her fate

The "jungle noises" suggest chaos and loss of control, reinforcing her descent into madness.

Music as a motif represents Blanche’s unstable grasp on reality, emphasizing her fear of the unknown.

Williams uses this moment to show how uncertainty—whether about identity, security, or love—can lead to destruction.

scene 11

This game is seven-card stud.

• The last line of the play seems unrelated to Blanche’s fate, but its ambiguity leaves the audience questioning what it really means.

• Seven-card stud is a poker game based on hidden and revealed cards—mirroring the play’s themes of illusion vs. reality.

• Stanley and his friends continue playing, suggesting indifference to Blanche’s suffering—but does this mean he "won" the battle between them?

• The ambiguity of the final moment forces the audience to decide: Is this a tragedy, or just the natural order of the world?

• scene 11

I don’t want to be looked at in this merciless glare!

• Blanche fears being seen too clearly, suggesting that her entire identity is constructed and fragile.

• "Merciless glare" refers to literal light, but also truth and exposure—she cannot exist without illusion.

• This ties into the ambiguity of her self-perception—is she deliberately deceiving people, or does she truly believe in her fantasy self?

• Williams presents identity as fluid and uncertain, shaped by how others perceive us.

• scene 1

I can smell the sea air… Isn’t the moon big enough for you to swim in?

• This line, spoken as Blanche is being taken away, makes it unclear whether she fully understands what is happening.

• The sea imagery recalls her past traumas (Allan Grey’s suicide, her romantic fantasies), suggesting she is retreating into illusion.

• "Isn’t the moon big enough to swim in?" creates a surreal, dreamlike quality—does she believe in her own illusions, or is she deliberately embracing them?

• Williams leaves her mental state ambiguous—is she delusional, or just escaping a painful reality?

• scene 11