Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire: A Reaction, Assessment Of

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was told "to take a streetcar named Desire, and then to transfer to one
called Cemeteries". One can not simply read over this statement without
assuming Williams is trying to say more than is written. Later in the play,
the reader realizes that statement most likely refers to Blanche's arriving
at the place and situation she is now in because of her servitude to her
own desires and urges. What really makes A Streetcar Named Desire such an
exceptional literary work is the development of interesting, involving
characters. As the play develops, the audience sees that Blanche is less
proper and refined than she might appear or claim to be. Her sexual desire
and tendency to drink away her problems make Blanche ashamed of her life
and identity. Desire was the "rattle-trap streetcar" that brought her to
her pitiful state in life.
Blanche is the most fascinating character in A Streetcar Named
Desire. One reason for this is that she has an absolutely brilliant way of
making reality ...

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about Blanche's scandalous past. The
reader is as drawn into Blanche's illusion as much as Stella is, and just
as Stella refuses to believe Stanley's harsh words, the audience also does
not want to accept that the view they have had of Blanche for a good deal
of the play is nothing more than a story made up to hide her unpleasant
history. The clearest example of this is also one of the most intense and
involving scenes of the entire play. In scene nine, Blanche is confronted
by Mitch, who has learned the truth about her past. Mitch tells Blanche
that he has never seen her in the light. He tears Blanche's paper lantern
off of the plain, bright light bulb, and tries to see her as ...

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