gender and power Flashcards
(23 cards)
“E—- m– i- a k— ! A– I a- t– k— a—– h—.”
“Every man is a king! And I am the king around here.”
“P—- s—– n– b- p—– i- , a h—- w— w—-.”-
“Poker should not be played in a house with women.”
- “S—— g—– a l—- w—- o- h– h—- o- h– t—-.”
- “Stanley gives a loud whack of his hand on her thigh.”
- “H- s—– w—– u- a- a g—– , w— s—– c————–.”
- “He sizes women up at a glance, with sexual classifications.”
- “T—- a– t—— t— h—— b——- a m– a– a w——- i- t– d—- -t— s—- o- m—- e——– e—-
s—- u———-.”
- “There are things that happen between a man and a woman in the dark-that sort of make everything else
seem-unimportant.”
- “Y—’– n– c—- e—– t- b—- i- t– h—- w— m- m—–.”
- “You’re not clean enough to bring in the house with my mother.”
Theme: Gender & Power - AO1
Male dominance and sexual power are central conflicts
Theme: Gender & Power - AO2
:Repetition, harsh imagery, physical stage direction, coded sexual violence.
How does Williams use repetition to emphasise Blanche’s instability?
Repetition in Blanche’s speech (e.g., “I don’t want realism, I want magic!”) reflects her fragmented mental state and increasing desperation to maintain illusion over truth.
What’s the effect of harsh imagery in Streetcar?
Williams uses violent, animalistic imagery (Stanley “heaves” packages; “low, animal moans”) to strip away romantic illusions and expose brutal undercurrents of masculinity and survival.
How is physical stage direction used to convey character and power?
Aggressive stage directions (e.g., “Stanley charges after Stella”) reinforce Stanley’s physical dominance and emotional volatility, establishing tension and foreshadowing violence.
What is meant by coded sexual violence in the play?
Blanche’s rape is never directly named, only suggested (“He picks up her inert figure”), intensifying its horror and highlighting 1940s censorship, while also showing society’s complicity in silencing female trauma.
Theme: Gender & Power - AO3
Reflects patriarchal post-war America and gender role anxieties
How does Streetcar reflect patriarchal post-war American society?
The play depicts men like Stanley reasserting control in a world where traditional power structures are threatened. His dominance over Stella and Blanche reflects the post-war return to rigid, patriarchal gender roles.
What anxieties about gender roles are shown through Blanche?
Blanche’s inability to conform to domestic expectations exposes fears about women who resist the ideal of the submissive wife or mother, marking her as socially deviant and unstable.
How does Stella’s character reflect 1940s gender expectations?
Stella’s choice to remain with Stanley, despite his abuse, embodies post-war ideals of female loyalty and dependence — reinforcing the expectation that women find identity through men.
How does Williams critique post-war masculinity through Stanley?
Williams both glamorises and critiques Stanley’s brute masculinity — portraying him as powerful yet primitive, suggesting post-war gender norms are regressive and dangerous.
Theme: Gender & Power - AO4
: Explores toxic masculinity themes
How does Professor John McRae interpret toxic masculinity in A Streetcar Named Desire?
Professor John McRae argues that Streetcar exposes the destructive force of toxic masculinity through Stanley, whose aggression, sexual dominance, and need for control reflect post-war anxieties around male identity. Williams uses Stanley not just as a character, but as a symbol of how patriarchy reasserts itself violently against emotional vulnerability and female independence.
Theme: Gender & Power - AO5
Feminist critics highlight power imbalances and abuse; Marxist readings see class struggle tied to gender.
What do feminist critics highlight in Streetcar?
Feminist critics focus on gendered power imbalances, showing how Blanche and Stella are trapped in a patriarchal system. Stanley’s dominance and Blanche’s downfall reflect a culture where female voices are dismissed and female trauma is silenced.
What is the Marxist interpretation of gender and class in Streetcar?
Marxist readings argue Stanley represents the rising working class overthrowing aristocratic ideals, but also show how this power shift reinforces patriarchy — class struggle and gender oppression become interlinked in Stanley’s assertion of control over Blanche.
what questions could come up for this.
3)Examine the significance of the unnamed characters.
7)Examine the characters’ relationships with the past.
9)What is the significance of the Streetcar?
13)How does the play comment on the changing landscape of America?
15)”Desire will inevitably lead to destruction.” Discuss
