Tennessee Williams' Use of Dramatic Devices To Create Contrast And Conflict In "A Streetcar Named Desire"

Tennessee Williams' Use of Dramatic Devices To Create Contrast And Conflict In "A Streetcar Named Desire"

Tennessee Williams uses a number of dramatic devices to highlight the

conflicting worlds of the old and new American South. These can be

divided into four categories: staging, character and language, and

props and costumes. I will be using these categories for reference in

this essay. 'A Streetcar Named Desire' is an example of the genre

'realism'. Realism is fiction that is overtly gritty and realistic,

showing real people in real situations, and also comments on the state

of the world at that time. The play is set shortly after the American

Civil War, which was fought over the right to keep slaves; the South

wanted to keep slaves on their plantations, working for free, but the

North wanted them to work in their factories, for a wage. The North

(confederate) won the Civil War and immediately set about

industrializing the South. The play is set in New Orleans, one of

these newly industrialised areas. In this essay I will examine how

Tennessee Williams used these devices to create conflict between the

main characters, to provide a social commentary on a changing America,

and how these changes affect the main characters of the play.

Tennessee Williams stages 'A Streetcar Named Desire' extremely

effectively, with much of the play set in the small, confined room of

the apartment:

Stella: "With only two rooms..." (p.9)

This instantly creates and intensifies tension because all the

characters are forced to be close together; there is no privacy.

When Blanche first enters the play, she is instantly incongruous and

out of place:

'she looks like she is dressed for a tea party' (p.3)

This contras...

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...character; she too is obsessed with the idea of death, and aging.

Tennessee Williams even said once: "I am Blanche," which shows he has

based her character heavily on himself; they both view men as

uncultured brutes, both have an obsession with death. Blanche has this

obsession because she had to witness her family, and her old way of

life, dying slowly. Now it seems to her like that time in her life was

all just a dream of illusion. This is illustrated in the translation

of 'Belle Reve', which means literally 'Beautiful Dream'. Blanche

losing Belle Reve represents her losing an illusion of life and being

brought back down to earth.

In conclusion, through careful use of staging, props, costume and

language, Tennessee Williams creates a powerful portrait of conflict

between the old and new South, between death and desire, and between

Blanche and Stanley.