What does Blanche mean she says that a woman's charm is fifty percent illusion and how does this apply to her?
"After all, a woman's charm is fifty percent illusion." And if Blanche cannot function as a woman, then her life is invalid. She therefore tries to captivate Stanley by flirting with him and by using all of her womanly charms. She knows no other way to enter into her present surroundings.
What does Stanley Discover in Blanche's trunk that she doesn't want him to touch?
Blanche takes from her trunk a box filled with papers and hands it to Stanley. Stanley snatches additional papers from her trunk and begins to read them. Blanche is horrified and grabs back this second set of papers, which are old letters and love poems she has saved from her husband.
What does Blanche say about physical beauty?
Physical beauty is passing. A transitory possession. But beauty of the mind and richness of the spirit and tenderness of the heart - and I have all of those things - aren't taken away, but grow!
How does Blanche describe herself?
o Blanche describes herself in a negative way. She describes herself as not “hard or self-sufficient enough” (p. 92) to make it in this world and notes that her beauty is “fading” (p. 92).
Does Stanley sleep with Blanche?
He picks her up and carries her to the bed. The pulsing music indicates that Stanley rapes Blanche.
What is Blanche's fatal flaw?
Blanche's tragic flaw is that she is dependant on men, so much so that she makes choices and does things that are morally questionable. She manipulates and lies to potential suitors to make herself seem more attractive and younger-which in her mind is the only way a man will love her.
Why is Blanche obsessed with light?
Bright light, therefore, represents Blanche's youthful sexual innocence, while poor light represents her sexual maturity and disillusionment.
Why does Blanche compare herself to a butterfly?
Blanche speaks hesitantly to Stella about her attempts to gain the protection of men friends. Her description of her efforts to attract and keep men, dressing in the soft colours of butterfly wings, recalls her moth-like first appearance in Elysian Fields.
What is Blanche obsessed with?
In A Streetcar Named Desire, bathing and the use of perfume are Blanche's central activities throughout much of the play, resulting in a borderline obsession. Just as she arrives at the home of the Kowalskis, upon meeting her sister Stella in Scene One, Blanche insists “now, then, let me look at you.
Who does Blanche flirt with?
Blanche flirts with the newspaper boy because she does not like to be alone but she can't seem to be in a relationship after her husband died. Being with the newspaper boy is feeding into her desire for power over the vulnerability of a 17 year old boy.
What is Blanche's mental illness?
In Blanche's fragile world, Alan's death was immensely significant, the emotional repercussions are her post-traumatic stress disorder, encompassing both neurotic and psychotic qualities.
Is Blanche a villain or victim?
victimBlanche is a victim as the essay will prove in the following. Blanche suffers from expectations she is not able to fulfil because of social change. The family estate Belle Reve was entrusted in her care, “all the burden descended on [her] shoulder” (Blanche, SND 126).
What did Stanley discover about Blanche?
He has found out something about Blanche. While Blanche is singing "It's Only a Paper Moon," Stanley reveals that Blanche has a notorious reputation in Laurel. She was so wild that the low-class Flamingo Hotel asked her to move out.
What is in Blanche's trunk?
The trunk holds things that are real, including Blanche's love letters and documents about Belle Reve, and things that are fake, such as her costume jewelry. This distinction is lost on Stanley.
What does Blanche do when Stanley grabs some letters from her trunk?
Blanche unearths a box filled with papers from the trunk and hands it to Stanley. He grabs another set of papers and begins to read them, but Blanche snatches them away, saying that they are all love-letters and poems from her dead husband.
What did Stanley find in his hole in Chapter 10?
Chapter 10 Stanley's second hole is also very hard to dig. While he is digging he finds the fossil of a fish. He has been told by Mr. Pendanski that if he finds anything interesting he might not have to finish his hole.
Why does Blanche give herself to men?
She feels that she had failed her young husband in some way. Therefore, she tries to alleviate her guilt by giving herself at random to other young men. And by sleeping with others, she is trying to fill the void left by Allan's death — "intimacies with strangers was all I seemed able to fill my empty heart with." And she was particularly drawn to very young men who would remind her of her young husband. During these years of promiscuity, Blanche has never been able to find anyone to fill the emptiness. Thus Blanche's imagined failure to her young husband and her constant encounter with the ugliness of death forced the delicate young girl to seek distraction by and forgetfulness through intimacies with strangers and through alcohol which could make the tune in her head stop.
What does Mitch force Blanche to admit?
Then Mitch forces her to admit her past life. With this revelation, Blanche is deprived of her chief attributes — that is, her illusions and her pretense. She is then forced to admit all of her past. After hearing her confessions, we see that Mitch aligns himself with the Stanley world.
Why does Blanche fail in Stanley?
She refuses to see herself as she is but instead creates the illusion of what ought to be. Thus, in her first encounters, she fails with Stanley, because she attempts to be what she thinks a lady should be rather than being frank, open, and honest as Stanley would have liked it.
What does Blanche realize when she meets Mitch?
When Blanche meets Mitch, she realizes that here is a strong harbor where she can rest. Here is the man who can give her a sense of belonging and who is also captivated by her girlish charms. She deceives him into thinking her prim and proper but in actuality, Blanche would like to be prim and proper.
How does Blanche interact with Stanley?
"After all, a woman's charm is fifty percent illusion." And if Blanche cannot function as a woman, then her life is invalid. She therefore tries to captivate Stanley by flirting with him and by using all of her womanly charms. She knows no other way to enter into her present surroundings. Likewise, she must change the apartment. She can't have the glaring, open light bulb. She must have subdued light. She must live in the quiet, half-lit world of charm and illusion. She does not want to see things clearly but wants all ugly truths covered over with the beauty of imagination and illusion.
Why does Blanche draw Mitch's attention?
Thus, she does draw Mitch's attention by undressing in the light so that he can see the outline of her body.
What is Blanche Dubois' character?
Character Analysis Blanche DuBois. Blanche DuBois appears in the first scene dressed in white, the symbol of purity and innocence. She is seen as a moth-like creature. She is delicate, refined, and sensitive. She is cultured and intelligent. She can't stand a vulgar remark or a vulgar action. She would never willingly hurt someone.
What is Stanley's impression of Blanche?
In scene two, Stanley is under the impression that Blanche has sold Belle Reve and kept the money to herself, which prompts him to approach her and bring up the "Napoleonic code.". In typical Blanche fashion, she laughs at his anger and continues to act charming.
What does Blanche tell Stanley?
It is here when Blanche tells Stanley that, even though she fibs and embellishes things, she has never cheated anyone. She responds,
What scene does Blanche and Stanley go back and forth?
In scene 2 , Blanche and Stanley are going back and forth in a conversation that jumps from the lost home of Belle Reve to Stella's pregnancy to the opinion of Stanley that, in some way, Blanche could be "cheating" him and Stella of what is rightfully theirs, in terms of property.
What is Blanche's understanding of the charm of a woman?
Blanche's comment reveals her understanding that a woman's charm is somewhat based on her ability to appear mysterious and not expose her faults. Her affinity for fantasy is also revealed in her comment to Stanley and corresponds to how she chooses to present herself. As a mentally ill woman suffering from her traumatic life experiences, Blanche relies on delusion and fantasy to protect her emotions. She would prefer to suppress her tainted past and portray the image of an aristocratic Southern Belle instead. In truth, fantasy and mystery are a significant aspect of Blanche's life and keep her from completely losing her mind. As Blanche famously tells Mitch,
Why does Blanche use fantasy?
Her affinity for fantasy is also revealed in her comment to Stanley and corresponds to how she chooses to present herself. As a mentally ill woman suffering from her traumatic life experiences, Blanche relies on delusion and fantasy to protect her emotions.
What does Blanche say about the woman's charm?
In a manner of explaining herself to Stanley, Blanche says, "A woman's charm is fifty percent illusion."
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Why is Stanley annoyed with Stella?
He is annoyed because he has to eat a cold plate which Stella placed in the ice box. She tells him that they have lost Belle Reve and that Blanche is upset and it would help if Stanley could admire Blanche's dress.
What does Stanley want to see in Belle Reve?
But Stanley wants to return to the loss of Belle Reve. He wants to see a bill of sale or some papers. He reminds Stella of the Napoleonic Code which states that anything belonging to the wife belongs also to the husband.
Why does Blanche bathe?
The first part of this scene introduces us to the motif of Blanche's baths. She bathes constantly so as to soothe her nerves. But this is also a cleansing symbol. By her baths, she subconsciously hopes to cleanse her sins away. The baths are also another quirk which annoys Stanley since the hot baths make the apartment even hotter.
Why does Blanche know she fibs a lot?
Blanche explains that she knows she fibs a lot, because "after all, a woman's charm is fifty percent illusion," but when something is important she always tells the truth. Stanley asks her for the papers. She goes to the trunk and hands him a tin box.
What does Stanley look at in the movie?
Stanley looks at all the furs and jewelry Blanche has brought with her and demands to know where the money came from to buy these. Stella tries to explain that it is all just artificial stuff and very cheap. But Stanley is going to have a friend evaluate it all. Stella goes out on the porch so as to end the discussion.
Why does Stella go out on the porch?
Stella goes out on the porch so as to end the discussion. When Blanche comes from her hot bath, she asks Stanley to button her and to give her a drag on his cigarette. He begins to question her about the clothes and Blanche begins fishing for a compliment from him about her looks.
What does Blanche tell Blanche about the other papers?
He wants to know what the other papers are and at the same time snatches them. Blanche tells him that they are love letters and the touch of his hands insults them.
Why is Blanche a social pariah?
Her family fortune and estate are gone, she lost her young husband to suicide years earlier, and she is a social pariah due to her indiscrete sexual behavior. She also has a bad drinking problem, which she covers up poorly.
Why does Blanche marry?
By marrying, Blanche hopes to escape poverty and the bad reputation that haunts her . But because the chivalric Southern gentleman savior and caretaker (represented by Shep Huntleigh) she hopes will rescue her is extinct, Blanche is left with no realistic possibility of future happiness.
What is Stanley's relentless persecution of Blanche?
Stanley’s relentless persecution of Blanche foils her pursuit of Mitch as well as her attempts to shield herself from the harsh truth of her situation. The play chronicles the subsequent crumbling of Blanche’s self-image and sanity.
What does Stanley see through Blanche's act?
Stanley quickly sees through Blanche’s act and seeks out information about her past. In the Kowalski household, Blanche pretends to be a woman who has never known indignity. Her false propriety is not simply snobbery, however; it constitutes a calculated attempt to make herself appear attractive to new male suitors.