Power

Blanche demanding orders from Stella (Scene 1)

Blanche: “You hear me? I said stand up! [STELLA complies reluctantly]”

Stanley hitting Stella at the poker night (Scene 3)

[STANLEY charges after STELLA]

…

[She backs out of sight. He advances and disappears. There is the sound of a blow. STELLA cries out.]

Stanley calling out for Stella, and Stella returning back to him (Scene 3)

Stanley: “Eunice, I want my girl to come down with me!”

…

Stanley [with heaven-splitting violence]: “STELLL-AHHHHH!”

[STELLA slips down the rickety stairs in her robe. Her eyes are glistening with tears and her hair loose around her throat and shoulders. […] He snatches the screen door open and lifts her off her feet and bears her into the dark flat]

Mitch attempting to find out the ‘truth’ about Blanche + have sex with her (Scene 9)

Mitch: “What it means is I’ve never had a real good look at you, Blanche.”

Blanche: “What are you leading up to?”

Mitch: “Let’s turn the light on here.”

[MITCH crosses to the switch. He turns the light on and stares at her. She cries out and covers her face. He turns the light off again.]

Blanche telling Mitch to leave (Scene 9)

Blanche: Go away, then. Get out of here quick before I start screaming fire! [Her throat is tightening with hysteria] Get out of here quick before I start screaming fire. […] Fire! Fire! Fire!

[He springs towards her, overturning the table. She cries out and strikes at him with the bottle top but he catches her wrist.]

Stanley: “Tiger - tiger! Drop the bottle-top! Drop it! We’ve had this date with each other form the beginning!”

[The bottle-top falls. She sinks to her knees. He picks up her inert figure and carries her to the bed]

Thesis statement

Williams presents power in A Streetcar Named Desire as being a result of societal expectations and norms in the 1940s, particularly of the patriarchy and sexual violence, between the characters Stanley and Stella, and this not being acknowledged or dealt with accordingly. However, through the character of Blanche, these conventions are subverted at times in order to gain back power to restore self-dignity.