Identity In Top Girls

Compare and contrast the presentation of women’s struggle for identity in Top Girls and A Streetcar Named Desire. Consider alternative viewpoints and comment on the dramatic and theatrical aspects of the texts in your response.

Women's struggle for identity is a common issue explored in both A Streetcar Named Desire and Top Girls alike. Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire has been interpreted as both a psychological drama and as social drama, and focuses on the character of Blanche Dubois and her personal journey in finding her identity. This leads to her eventual destruction by Stanley Kowalski, who can be interpreted as a figure of 'hegemonic masculinity'. Churchill's Top Girls is a non-didactic social drama from the 1980s, a significant

time of change in the history of women's rights due to the controversy of Margaret Thatcher's election.
Both Marlene and Blanche are presented as perceiving their class status to be integral to their identity. In Top Girls, Marlene’s desire to leave behind her working class roots and her disregard for people who cannot suggests she feels women can only be successful if they are of a high position in society. Her inherent hatred and apathy towards the lower classes is emphasised through her vitriolic outbursts, ‘If they’re stupid or lazy or frightened I’m not going to get them a job, why should I?’2 Her language is clipped and blunt, suggesting her resentment. This aggression can be perceived by some as stereotypically masculine, and relates to Marlene's adoption of male traits to succeed in the working world. This in turn relates to bourgeois feminism – an ideology Churchill sought to prevent in audiences. As this quotation comes post-retrospective reveal of Marlene's abandonment of Angie, her opinions are positioned to be vilified. This statement becomes harsher in context of Angie's later statement 'Frightening'3 , which suggests the uncertain future Marlene has condemned her to. In contrast, Blanche DuBois of A Streetcar Named Desire uses grandiloquent language in order to construct her high class southern belle facade. This is evident in ‘These are love letters, yellowing with antiquity, all from one boy.’4, as her language becomes more ostentatious in order to assert her wille-zur-macht over Stanley. Tension rises throughout this argument, furthering the divide between Blanche and Stanley as she imposes her delusions of superiority. The importance of her elite identity to her self-perception is evident from the outset of the play. The incongruity of her clothing to the environment of New Orleans, described as 'looking as if she were arriving at a summer tea or cocktail party in the southern district.'5 suggests how out of place Blanche is in the setting. Throughout the rest of the play, this image of her upper class identity is lost, as her costume becomes more dishevelled. As a result, her language becomes more grandiloquent as she attempts to assert herself over the people around her. Through this, it could be argued that Blanche is attempting to convince herself of her identity more than she is other people, using her language as a protective carapace to prevent her destruction. Corrigan suggested that 'The external events of the play, while actually occurring, serve as a metaphor for Blanche's internal conflict.' 7This links to the view of A Streetcar Named Desire as a psychological drama, as her conflict is within her psyche. In comparison to Streetcar's linear play structure, Top Girls features a retroactive structure which is used to condemn Marlene’s classist views. The discussion between Joyce and Marlene offers no solution to the class issues presented, and its placement in the final scene suggests the bleak future ahead for Angie and other women in similar situations. This is supported by the interpretation that compared to A Streetcar Named Desire, psychological development in the characters is not of utmost importance, rather the political issues and opinions that these women discuss that is the focal point of Top Girls.
The concept of a universal female experience of oppression is demonstrated in both texts. In A Streetcar Named Desire, abuse against women is presented as normalised in society, suggesting Willams' opinions on the entitlement and dominance of men. This dismissive attitude is seen in Mitch's amused statement ‘Ho-ho! There’s nothing to be scared of. They’re crazy about each other.’ as it suggests a lack of sympathy for Stella's abuse by Stanley. Stating that they’re ‘crazy about each other’ also portrays the connection between violence and sex throughout A Streetcar Named Desire. This quotation comes after Stella returns to Stanley after he has hit her, suggesting a vicious cycle of violence against women within society. This links to the fact that Williams himself largely sympathised with the female struggle, and so this could be seen as a condemnation of dismissive attitudes towards their struggles. Compared to A Streetcar Named Desire, Top Girls discusses abuse against women freely, but competitively between the historical women. Pope Joan states ‘They took me by my feet and dragged me out of town and stoned me to death.'6describing her abuse in a blunt, visceral way. After this statement, the women stop laughing, which highlights the struggles women have endured over time. This furthers the concept of a universal female oppression, as all the women at the table recognise and sympathise with her murder, suggesting they have all experienced similar violence. Their differences in both time frame and psyche emphasise the concept of oppression being universal, as it highlights the fact that most women throughout time have been subject to violence due to prejudice against their gender. As the first discussion in Top Girls, establishing a universal female experience is important to the effect of the retroactive final scene, as it makes Marlene’s actions and oppression of other women throughout the play appear much more destructive. This allows a further understanding of Caryl Churchill’s feminist socialist standpoint, and condemns this behaviour to audiences. In comparison, tension rises and falls when women are abused in A Streetcar Named Desire, culminating with Blanche's rape in scene 10. This puts audiences in Blanche’s perspective, allowing Williams to demonstrate a sympathetic outlook on violence against women. However, some audiences have rejected this, particularly in Kazan's 1951 adaption of the film, as many audience members perceived Stanley's abusive behaviour towards Blanche as just. Arguably, the audience were living in an era where abuse was as normalised in society as it is in A Streetcar Named Desire, leading to their ignorance towards the issues Williams presents.

The theme of intrasexual oppression, is present in both texts, where women oppress other women in order to further their own success.

Marlene's critical, misogynistic view of Jeanine through a male lens is evident, 'Your presentation’s OK, you look fine, just be confident and go in there convinced that this is the best job for you and you are the best person for the job.’8 Throughout this scene, Marlene scrutinises Jeanine's appearance and censors her personal life in order to get her a job, which reflects both Marlene's and society's expectations of the working woman. This is particularly significant, as it prominently displays Marlene's adoption of a patriarchal attitude in order to further her workplace success at the expense of other women. In this way, Marlene's adoption of masculinity for personal gain is directly oppositional to Churchill's own socialist leanings. Through this, Marlene can be regarded as Churchill's 'straw woman' of bourgeois feminism. However, it can be argued that her scrutiny benefits Jeanine, as Marlene is viewing her as a man would. Although misogynistic, this will ultimately help Jeanine meet patriarchal expectations. Chronologically the last scene in Top Girls, no solution is offered, which is considered a 'feminine' ending to the play. This can be compared to the view of the ending of Streetcar as masculine, due to the fact it provides a clear end to Blanche's story. It is implied that Marlene's selfish, individualist approach towards other women will not change after the events of Top Girls, whereas Blanche's identity and sense of self has been completely destroyed. Marlene's attitude towards work also links to Caryl Churchill's experience of American feminism, which was much more centered around Capitalist gain compared to British feminism, which was largely based on collectivist, socialist principles. In comparison, A Streetcar Named Desire features intrasexual opression in a subtler way. Stella states 'I couldn't believe her

story and go on living with Stanley'9 after condemning Blanche to institutionalised life. Her language becomes more emotional after realising the bleak future of Blanche, however, she still focuses on justifying her actions for individual gain. This is furthered by the fact that in this scene, both Stella and Eunice display an adoption of patriarchal male attitudes to further themselves. In this viewpoint, these characters can be compared to Marlene, as both display selfishness and masculinity in order to further their own survival and wellbeing. This also links to the Darwinian interpretation of the play, where Stella has sided with the stronger Kowalski species and lived on to survive. Marlene abandons Angie in order to secure her own survival. Both texts display this treatment of women, by women, and show the awful consequences of a lack of solidarity. In this way, the authors of both texts condemn this attitude, and call for women in society to work together to make eachother's lives better.

In A Streetcar Named Desire, women's struggle for identity is presented in a more delicate, sympathetic way, traced through the psychological change and development of Blanche Dubois and the presence of other women throughout the play. Female identities in A Streetcar Named Desire are sympathetically written by Williams, a man who understood the issues and struggles that they went through at the time the play was written. Although it is non-didactic, Top Girls is a play that calls for change in society. The characters' psychological development is less important in Churchill's play, while opinion and dialogue form the basis of much of women's struggle for identity. This, however, does not change the impact Top Girls has – it is a play that displays the pressures that a Thatcherite government places upon the backs of working, middle and upper class women alike, and the need for people to work together in society rather than adopting American individualist ideals. Both plays deal with the female struggle for identity in separate but valid ways, and this could largely be due to the differences in the environments and historical settings that both were written in.

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Bibliography:
Caryl Churchill – Top Girls (methuen drama student edition)
Tennessee Williams – A Streetcar Named Desire (penguin modern classics)
Corrigan, 392