Themes in 'A Streetcar Named Desire': Inability to Control Desires
- Created by: Eleanor_kittle
- Created on: 03-02-19 20:47
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- A Streetcar Named Desire Themes: Inability to Control Desire
- 'something about her uncertain manner...that suggests a moth'
- Zoomorphic imagery
- Parallel to Blanche
- Driven by instinct and desire (in Blanche's case, sexual desire), afraid of exposure contributing to B's near photophobia, sense of appetite, death and decay, fragile
- Parallel to Blanche
- Zoomorphic imagery
- 'Streetcar named Desire'
- Central motif
- Lack of control of fate, uncontrollable desires, everyone en route to their ultimate demise due to overwhelming desires
- Central motif
- 'epic fornications'
- Hermatia
- Mistresses, illigitematechidren, inability to control desires resulted in the loss of Belle Reve
- Hermatia
- '[low animal moans]'
- Zoomorphic image
- Primitive behaviour, literally animalistic, driven by desire, which outweighs everything else
- Zoomorphic image
- 'there are things that happen between a man and a woman in the dark - that sort of make everything else seem - unimportant
- Stella's explicit statement that her relationship is solely focused on desire and the physical connection between herself and Stanley
- Desire overcomes all of Stella's problems and worries
- Stella's explicit statement that her relationship is solely focused on desire and the physical connection between herself and Stanley
- 'Haven't you ever ridden on that streetcar?'
- Rhetorical question
- Implies that Stella believes her sister, Blanche, has been driven by desire more than anyone and sees her as hypocritical
- Rhetorical question
- 'Young, young, young, young'
- Repetition
- Recapturing sense of first love, nostalgia of death of Allan Grey, for whose death she still feels guilt
- Demonstrates Blanche's obsession with or desire for youth and her morbid fear of aging
- Recapturing sense of first love, nostalgia of death of Allan Grey, for whose death she still feels guilt
- Repetition
- 'Voulez-vous couchez avec moi ce soir?'
- French preposition
- A revealing image, which hints at the true nature of Blanche
- Demonstrates that sometimes liars are desperate to tell the truth, so she did in a way that Mitch would not understand
- Implies that she is constantly fuelled by desire
- Demonstrates that sometimes liars are desperate to tell the truth, so she did in a way that Mitch would not understand
- A revealing image, which hints at the true nature of Blanche
- French preposition
- 'something about her uncertain manner...that suggests a moth'
- 'sizes women up at a glance'
- Objectifying image
- Presents Stanley as a very shallow man, driven by his instincts and sexual desires like an animal,also implying adultery due to the plural noun
- Objectifying image
- 'grand-fathers and fathers and uncles and brothers'
- Polysyndetic list
- Emphasised that the male relations' lack of control of their desire resulted in the downfall of the family
- Polysyndetic list
- 'thrilled by it'
- Unconventional image
- Stella attracted to displays of alpha male power and dominance, primitive desire, craving female dominance
- Unconventional image
- 'he was in the quicksands...I was slipping in with him!'
- Metaphorical parallel
- The more one struggles against desire, the more one is consumedly their desires
- Implies that people should give into their desires
- Depicts Blanche's struggle with uncontrollable sexual desires and mental instability
- Implies that people should give into their desires
- The more one struggles against desire, the more one is consumedly their desires
- Metaphorical parallel
- '[pounding the bottle cap on the corner of the table]'
- Violent verb and phalic imagery
- A violent method of opening the bottle implies Stanley's easy resort to his ingrained violent nature
- Phallic/sexual imagery foreshadows a violent assault on Blanche
- A violent method of opening the bottle implies Stanley's easy resort to his ingrained violent nature
- Violent verb and phalic imagery
- '[biting his tongue which protrudes between his lips]'
- Serpentine, predatory image
- Insatiable appetite caused by sexual desires, obscene mocking gesture.
- Presents Stanley as sly, cunning and dangerous- potentially dangerous
- Insatiable appetite caused by sexual desires, obscene mocking gesture.
- Serpentine, predatory image
- 'a very young one'
- Obsession with young men, attempt to hold onto youth and recapture her first love with Allen Grey
- '[his fingers find the opening of her blouse]'
- Shocking image, which mirrors the structure of events during the poker night
- Implies that sexual desire transcends everything else, also emphasising Stanley's oppression of Stella, leading to physical and sexual abuse
- Shocking image, which mirrors the structure of events during the poker night
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