A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams

In  A Streetcar Named Desire, Williams presents the clash between old and new America as one which culminates the struggle of a society in which a new social order is being imposed after a significant world conflict. Through the key protagonist of Blanche, Williams is able to personify this clash from the outset,  her immediate incongruous appearance in regard to her setting not only symbolises the disparity between the class system in America, but her gradual journey to pure desperation perhaps represents the crumbling of the aristocratic system within post-war America. Williams also is able to present his setting of New Orleans as a place where a ‘new social order’ is rising in its prominence through the use of conflict; the conflict between Blanche and Stanley allegorizing the struggle between effeminate culture and masculine libido within a society where increasingly dominant male attitudes disable woman within that culture from being viewed as anything other than a ‘sexual object’. It can be argued that Streetcar can be read as a critique of the feminist struggle against the dominant nature of post-war male attitudes, the sexual dominance that drives Stanley, a desire so strong that it inhibits the very fiber of his being, enables him to become dominant over the women in his life, a reflection of the dominant position of men within the new social order of post war America.

From the very first pages is it obvious to see from the stage directions the contrast between Blanche’s appearance and the setting around and her attitude of assumed superiority. Through the use of language, Williams is able to accentuate this contrast, with the words ‘rickety’ and ‘raffish’ not only differing in terms of sound to the words describing Blanche, with the harsh ‘r’ and ‘f’ sounds provoking an uncomfortable feel, while ‘daintily’ and ‘fluffy’s” soft consonance implying a feel of luxury , but the abundance of descriptive language used to describe the setting Williams is able to imply that the luxurious state of being experienced by Blanche will be dominated and overruled by the ‘raffish’ nature of her new surrounding, further exemplifying the idea that the Upper classes will cease to be a domineering force within America and the influence of the working classes will prevail, an idea perhaps also accumulated by the eventual downfall of the privileged Blanche and full domination of the working class character of Stanley. The entitlement of Blanche reflecting the elitism of the remaining upper classes is shown through her relationship with Eunice, with Blanche’s dismissive dialogue alluding to her resentment of the lower classes, for when the bluntness of “No”, “Thanks” and “I wish to be left alone” promoting similarities between a mistress and a maid. Blanche is astonished that her sister has married someone as lacking in refinement or culture as Stanley saying “Well if you’ll forgive me, he’s common!” while also showing her racial prejudice by referring him as a ‘polack”. Williams is aiming to present Blanche as a character who is unable to escape from her past privileges and way of life and is unreceptive to the equalistic culture of Elysian Fields, a gradual equality key to the new social order spreading through America at that time, one that the crumbling aristocracy refuse to accept.

However, the idea of a coexistence between the new and old worlds is also presented by Williams as an aspect of a new social order within the carefree and unconventional setting of New Orleans. This is perhaps a projection of his wishes for the whole of America with New Orleans being a state renowned for, even in mid 20th century America, for its racial integration. The incorporation of the ‘negro woman’ is arguably a reflection of this, with the positioning of her dialogue at the very start of the play perhaps used by Williams to indicate the black populations voice within society, she is not hidden within the novel but is present and vocal from the outset. Williams once said himself that New Orleans was ‘unlike other cities where there is a warm intermingling of races in the old part of town’, with this diversity also seen in Stanley with his polish background.