Kowalskys And Dubois In A Streetcar Named Desire
In scene two Stanley says, "the Kowalskys and Dubois have different notions". Based on your reading of scene one and two, to what extent do you agree with this statement? Focus on one character
A Streetcar Named Desire is a play founded on the premise of conflicting cultures. Blanche and Stanley, the main antagonists of the play, have been brought up to harbour and preserve extremely disparate notions, to such an extent that their incompatibility becomes a recurring theme within the story. Indeed, their differing values and principles becomes the ultimate cause of antagonism, as it is their conflicting views that fuels the tension already brewing within the Kowalski household. Blanche, a woman disillusioned with the passing of youth and …show more content…
His entrance is, ultimately, a complete summary of his character in all its primitive glory: "Animal joy in his being is implicit in all his movements and attitudes." His crass sexuality, in which "the centre of his life" is "pleasure with women" coincides with the fast-moving rigour of a world dominated by machinery. This vision contrasts starkly against the prude, formalist lifestyles of the southern plantations. He appreciates "rough humour" and has a "love of good drink and food and games, his car, his radio, and everything that is his." These are all emblems of the modern world, a world that Stanley embraces yet Blanche is not a part of. When Stanley greets Blanche for the first time, he merely says, "Stella's sister? H'lo. Where's the little woman?" This greeting is hardly the courtesy that a woman of rich southern parentage is accustomed to, and Blanche's dismay is revealed by her shocked utterings of "I uh" and "Why, I live in …show more content…
Stella instigates Stanley's subsequent backlash against his wife's sister when she says, "She wasn't expecting to find us in such a small place. You see I'd try to gloss things over a little in my letters." This statement clarifies Blanche's superior nature and her incompatibility to anything but the luxury and grandeur of their former home, Belle Reve. During the following conversation between husband and wife, in which Stanley acquires restricted information concerning the befallen fate of Belle Reve, he begins to suspect Blanche of deceiving her sister over the real reason for their loss. Unlike Blanche, who takes most things at face value and wears her heart on her sleeve in view of her sheltered upbringing, Stanley has learned to question everything and use his predatorily instincts in a society founded on corrupt capitalist dogmas and discriminatory ideals. He demands that his wife "open" her "eyes to this stuff", in other words the fanatical lies that her sister feeds her. He is openly resentful towards Blanche's extravagant clothing when he says, "Look at these feathers and furs that she come here to preen herself in!" Evidently he is not accustomed to such extravagance, and thus feels it his duty to condemn Blanche for such financial indulgences. Furthermore, when Blanche tries to incite
A Streetcar Named Desire is a play founded on the premise of conflicting cultures. Blanche and Stanley, the main antagonists of the play, have been brought up to harbour and preserve extremely disparate notions, to such an extent that their incompatibility becomes a recurring theme within the story. Indeed, their differing values and principles becomes the ultimate cause of antagonism, as it is their conflicting views that fuels the tension already brewing within the Kowalski household. Blanche, a woman disillusioned with the passing of youth and …show more content…
His entrance is, ultimately, a complete summary of his character in all its primitive glory: "Animal joy in his being is implicit in all his movements and attitudes." His crass sexuality, in which "the centre of his life" is "pleasure with women" coincides with the fast-moving rigour of a world dominated by machinery. This vision contrasts starkly against the prude, formalist lifestyles of the southern plantations. He appreciates "rough humour" and has a "love of good drink and food and games, his car, his radio, and everything that is his." These are all emblems of the modern world, a world that Stanley embraces yet Blanche is not a part of. When Stanley greets Blanche for the first time, he merely says, "Stella's sister? H'lo. Where's the little woman?" This greeting is hardly the courtesy that a woman of rich southern parentage is accustomed to, and Blanche's dismay is revealed by her shocked utterings of "I uh" and "Why, I live in …show more content…
Stella instigates Stanley's subsequent backlash against his wife's sister when she says, "She wasn't expecting to find us in such a small place. You see I'd try to gloss things over a little in my letters." This statement clarifies Blanche's superior nature and her incompatibility to anything but the luxury and grandeur of their former home, Belle Reve. During the following conversation between husband and wife, in which Stanley acquires restricted information concerning the befallen fate of Belle Reve, he begins to suspect Blanche of deceiving her sister over the real reason for their loss. Unlike Blanche, who takes most things at face value and wears her heart on her sleeve in view of her sheltered upbringing, Stanley has learned to question everything and use his predatorily instincts in a society founded on corrupt capitalist dogmas and discriminatory ideals. He demands that his wife "open" her "eyes to this stuff", in other words the fanatical lies that her sister feeds her. He is openly resentful towards Blanche's extravagant clothing when he says, "Look at these feathers and furs that she come here to preen herself in!" Evidently he is not accustomed to such extravagance, and thus feels it his duty to condemn Blanche for such financial indulgences. Furthermore, when Blanche tries to incite