THEMES - Old South v New South Flashcards
(18 cards)
What does the “Old South” refer to in the play?
A romanticized, aristocratic past rooted in plantation life, gentility, and social hierarchy — represented by Blanche.
How is Blanche a symbol of the Old South?
She’s educated, refined, and clings to illusions of class and decorum, despite the collapse of her world.
What is Belle Reeve?
The ancestral estate lost by Blanche’s family — a symbol of the decay of the Old South’s grandeur and economic power.
What does the “New South” represent?
Industrial, urban, multi-ethnic, modern, and working-class America — represented by Stanley.
How is Stanley symbolic of the New South?
He’s assertive, practical, working-class, of Polish descent, and proud of his role in the new meritocratic America.
How does the conflict between Blanche and Stanley represent the clash between the Old and New South?
Their personalities and values clash — Blanche clings to tradition and illusion; Stanley asserts modern realism and power.
What does Stanley’s destruction of Blanche symbolize?
The victory of the New South over the old — brute force and pragmatism triumph over fading gentility and romanticism.
STELLA AS A BRIDGE:
How is Stella caught between the Old and New South?
She is from the same aristocratic background as Blanche but chooses a life with Stanley in the New South.
STELLA AS A BRIDGE:
What does Stella’s choice to stay with Stanley suggest?
That survival in modern America requires compromise — she chooses desire and security over family and tradition.
“I pulled you down off them columns and how you loved it.” — what does Stanley mean?
He mocks Blanche’s aristocratic airs and reminds Stella of her rejection of the Old South’s ideals for sexual and emotional fulfillment in the New South.
“Her delicate beauty must avoid a strong light.” — what does this reveal about Blanche?
Symbolizes how the Old South’s values and ideals (beauty, gentility) cannot survive under the harsh light of modern reality.
“A different species.” — what does Blanche say about Stanley?
Reflects her sense of superiority and inability to accept the values of the New South.
HISTORICAL & SOCIAL CONTEXT:
What historical events led to the decline of the Old South?
The Civil War and the abolition of slavery destroyed the economic base of the Southern aristocracy.
HISTORICAL & SOCIAL CONTEXT:
How did post-WWII America contribute to the rise of the New South?
Industrial growth, immigration, and a shift to urban, modern values made traditional Southern ideals obsolete.
CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES:
How might a Marxist critic interpret the conflict between Old and New South?
As a class struggle — the fall of the elite and the rise of the working class (Stanley’s victory over Blanche).
CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE:
How might a feminist critic see this theme?
As a reflection of changing gender dynamics — women like Blanche lose social power when class status declines; men like Stanley dominate in the new order.
GENRE & SYMBOLISM:
How does the theme tie into Southern Gothic?
It shows decay, madness, and the grotesque as remnants of a dying culture — Blanche embodies the fall of the Old South.
GENRE & SYMBOLISM:
What is symbolic about the setting of Elysian Fields?
Ironic name — not a paradise but a place where the Old South’s illusions are shattered by harsh, urban reality.
