symbolism and motifs

Question 1

alcohol and drunkenness

Answer 1

• often utilised by characters as an escape from their harsh realities and inner turmoil
• symbol of masculinity - Stanley’s dominance and control

Question 2

paper lantern

Answer 2

• hides ugliness and reality
• light unveils Blanche’s true age and fading beauty
• represents the harshness of reality, having nowhere to hide, obsession with appearance
• symbol of illusion

Question 3

moth

Answer 3

• Blanche’s fragility
• come out at night, no substance, not as pretty as a butterfly
• suggests fallen / fading beauty

Question 4

poker

Answer 4

• symbol of raw masculinity and drunkenness
• the ‘four deuces’ - deuces are cards of low value, representing the working class environment of New Orleans

Question 5

desire

Answer 5

• Blanche’s literal journey on the streetcar to Elysian Fields
• mirrors her life path driven by desire and lust

Question 6

Elysian Fields

Answer 6

• symbol of a final resting place of the heroic and virtuous in Greek mythology
• ironic - it is where Blanche becomes defeated and loses all of her power
• initial imagery subverts idea of paradise and heaven

Question 7

white clothing (Blanche)

Answer 7

• in her first appearance, Blanche is dressed in white, elegant clothing to signify her false purity
• her clothing acts as part of her façade, reinforcing her fantasy

Question 8

Blanche’s cleanliness / bathing

Answer 8

• her obsessive bathing represents her desire to cleanse herself of guilt or sinful behaviour
• symbolic attempt at renewal or purification
• ‘You’re not clean enough to bring in the house with my mother’ (s9) - implies that Blanche is unable to be cleansed of her sins, sinful behaviour is irreversible

Question 9

meat package (s1)

Answer 9

• reinforces his role of the provider for Stella (traditional gender roles)
• blunt, physical symbol of Stanley’s raw, animalistic sexuality
• suggests a power imbalance in the relationship of Stella and Stanley

Question 10

Belle Reve

Answer 10

• nostalgia surrounding the loss in relation to Stella and Blanche
• decay of the old south
• illusion vs reality - ‘Beautiful Dream’ in French
• reflects Blanche’s emotional and moral collapse - ties into her deep guilt and trauma of the past

Question 11

shadows and cries

Answer 11

• as Stanley and Blanche begin to quarrel in scene 10, various oddly shaped shadows appear on the walls behind her
• discordant noises and jungle cries also occur as Blanche begins to descend into madness
• acts to dramatise Blanche’s final breakdown and departure from reality in the face of Stanley’s physical threat

Question 12

The Varsouviana Polka

Answer 12

• the polka tune to which Blanche and Allan were dancing when she last saw him alive
• played at various points throughout the play when Blanche is feeling remorse for Allan’s death
• represents Blanche’s loss of innocence with Allan’s suicide triggering her mental decline

Question 13

‘It’s only a paper moon’ (S7)

Answer 13

• the lyrics describe the way that love turns the world into a ‘phony’ fantasy
• speaker in the song says that if both lovers believe in their imagined reality then it is no longer ‘make-believe’
• these lyrics sum up Blanche’s approach to life - she believes that lying is her only means of enjoying a better life