A Streetcar Named Desire Response- Laura Glucksman
A Streetcar Named Desire is a good representation of New Orleans during the mid 1900’s. It shows the people and the atmosphere of the French Quarter while having an interesting plot twist.
The main characters are all very different from each other in the film. Blanche Dubois is an interesting character. She is an extremely lost person because of the struggles she has endured through her life. She has delusions about an admirer who she thinks is going to pick her up and take her away from her life. Blanche also is very insecure about her looks. She refuses to be seen in the light, and would not go out on a date with Mitch until after six p.m. Also, she frequently sought compliments by asking people how she looked. She was worried about her age and that men would not be interested in dating a women as old as her. Her sister, Stella, is a strong woman. Stella has an abusive husband, Stanley Kowalski, but she never seems to back down from him during their arguments. At the end of the movie, she makes the strong, but difficult, decision not to go back to Stanley. The contrast between Blanche and Stella is clear. Stanley is a stern man who never backs down until he gets his way. His stubbornness makes people not like him. For example, upon meeting Blanche, the first thing he does is ask for her “papers,” and he does not do it gently. He uses power to try to get his way. For example, when Stella asks him to help her clean up the dishes, he throws the dishes on the floor. Mitch is a character who wants the best for himself and his dying mother. However, he picks the wrong lady when he thinks Blanche will be the one. Mitch is the nicest character in the play. For example, after Blanche is taken away, Mitch fights with Stanley because he blames Stanley for having her sent away. Blanche had been dishonest and deceptive to Mitch, but Mitch was angry that Blanche had been treated that way. The characters’ personalities are shown very well in this film.
Stella and Stanley live in a nice part of New Orleans where all of the activity is happening. However, they live in a beat-up house. They do not even have a door between the two rooms; instead they have a curtain. They are not living the luxurious lifestyle they want to live.
Stella and Blanche are devoted to each other and do not want anything bad to happen to each other. For example, Stella sticks up for her sister when Stanley is giving her a hard time. Stella also does not want to believe that Blanche is a bad person even though Stanley found evidence that she is. Stella is always trying to help her sister.
A Streetcar Named Desire shows the viewers what it was like to be in New Orleans in the mid 1900s. It also had great character development, which makes it an entertaining movie.