Explore How Williams Presents Stella

Explore how Williams presents Stella. Choose two or three sections from the play to analyse in detail. In your answer you should consider:
­ Williams use of language
­ Dramatic Technique Stella plays an important role in ‘a streetcar named Desire’, even though she is not the protagonist. Williams presents her in the middle of Blanche and Stanley’s conflict, this is mainly because they both have continuous battles over who gets to have her love and affection. Stella is in the middle of this territorial battle, and is always presented in a situation in where she has to defend either her husband or sister. Williams establishes a contrast between them. For example, when Stella says, in Scene One, that 'the best I could do was make my own living, Blanche', Williams invites his audience to interpret the social transformation which Stella has undergone. This very base image of having to earn a living contrasts significantly with the image of 'columns', which Stanley introduces in Scene Eight. Stella has been forced to adapt her lifestyle in order to integrate in this modern, male­dominated society. Blanche, on the other hand, is self­immersed in a world of fantasy ­ or 'make­believe' as she suggests herself in Scene Seven ­ where she clings on to her past of wealth and comfort. Nonetheless, Stella has a privileged access to her sister's personal heritage: she can sympathise with Blanche's past and thus makes allowances for her, as she encourages
Stanley to do, also. This is important in dramatic terms as Williams encourages his audience to take comfort in this sympathetic relationship, which is tested and shattered by the end of the play. For example, in response to Stanley's revelation of Blanche's somewhat shameful past, Stella is quick to defend her. Blanche, Stella argues, 'had an experience that ­ killed her illusions'. The violent verb 'killed' is suggestive of the devastating ordeal which Blanche went through and therefore conveys Stella's knowledge of it. Her affection for Blanche is also communicated through her reaction to the birthday party, to which Mitch does not come.
Stella describes how upsetting she found 'looking at the girl's face and the empty chair'. The noun 'girl' serves as a reminder of Blanche's child­like innocence, but also suggests a motherly understanding and connection. However, Williams sets­up room for Stella's betrayal, when she says to Stanley, 'there are things about my sister I don't approve of'. The verb
'approve' sounds vague and ambiguous, suggesting an uncertain, almost unstable, quality to their relationship. The dramatic effect of this is that Stella is presented as a character who does not always understand or sympathise with Blanche. This, if the ending of this play can

be seen as tragic, renders Stella's choice to side with Stanley over Blanche regarding the rape more predictable and, in a sense, more shocking for the audience. Williams presents Stella as a platform on which the conflict between Blanche and Stanley takes place. This is effective dramatically because Stella appears not only as a character in the narrative of the play, but also as a symbol of tension and fighting: Blanche and Stanley's battleground becomes the person on whom they both rely and depend. For example,
Stanley's expression in Scene One, 'not in my territory', suggests that Stella is currently in his possession, as though she were the prize of the competitive power­struggle between him and
Blanche. This assertion on Stanley's part poses an initial threat to the relationship between
Stella and Blanche, since Stanley phrases it in such a way that intimidates Blanche. He forces her to feel that her sister is, in fact, not so much her sister as Stanley's wife, to the whole arrangement of which Blanche is quite unaccustomed, thus highlighting her isolation. Later on, Williams shifts the balance of power: in Scene Three, the stage direction 'Blanche guides her' suggests that Blanche is now winning the figurative competition against Stanley. The verb
'guides' connotes kindness and sisterly support; the visual image on­stage, presumably with
Blanche wrapping her arms around Stella, would depict closeness and human intimacy, which contrasts with the image of the much more bestial nature of Stanley's relationship with Stella, vivified theatrically by their coming together 'with low, animal moans'. During the time period Tennessee Williams, author of the play A Streetcar Named Desire, lived in, men were typically portrayed as leaders of the household. Through Williams' usage of dialogue, specific descriptions of each characters, as well as sound, he illustrates to readers of today's society how differently a man and woman coexisted in the mid­1900s, compared to today. Through the eyes of a topical/historical theorist, who stresses the relationships between the story and the time period it takes place, the distinction between today's society and that of five decades past, can be observed with depth and precision. Stanley Kowalski, a main character in A Streetcar Named Desire, is a common man who is simple, straight forward and brutally honest. He treats his wife with no respect, for she does not deserve it because she is a woman. To him, her duties are to obey his commands and tolerate his intolerable actions. If she chooses to disobey or challenge his orders, it is then his duty to abuse her physically if he deems it necessary. He insincerely apologizes for it

afterwards, and expects his wife to learn from her mistakes and to continue with her duties as though he did nothing wrong. During this time period, domestic violence is not uncommon and is widely accepted as a means in obtaining a desired behavior from one's wife. Stanley is clearly aware of this. After an attack, his wife states to her sister, "He was as good as a lamb when I came back and he's really very, very ashamed of himself (Williams, 2309). Due to human nature, he does show that he feels sorry for his wife, in order to make sure she doesn't get any ideas to leave.
Stanley is unaware of this, but the fact that he fears his wife's departure is an insecurity we will never admit to (psychological/psychoanalytic approach). Stella, Stanley's wife in the play, is a passive woman. She is displayed this way through how she responds to the people and situations around her. When she is beaten by Stanley, she understands that his drunkenness takes hold of him and he has no control over his actions.
She knows he never means her harm and his intentions are good. She knows she must obey him in order for their marriage to run smoothly. When she first met her husband, she realized he had a violent temper, and somehow this thrilled her. She was warned of his nature before they were married, but she couldn't help but fall for him. Stanley takes care of her and knows what is best, and she knows she can't take care of herself. She needs her man by her side to guide her. Her slight actions of frustration, yet non­violent situation also demonstrate her passivity. She laughs girlishly and uncertainly, her voice is weary and her face is anxious.
When someone interrupts her, she allows this because everyone deserves a chance to speak. Stella does not enjoy being hit by Stanley, for she is not masochistic, but in the back of her mind she knows she could not subsist if she got any idea to leave Stanley. She would have great difficulty in finding a job because women are supposed to stay home and take care of their husbands. After one of her beatings, she states, "Stanley doesn't give me a regular allowance, he likes to pay bills himself, but ­ this morning he gave me ten dollars to smooth things over" (Williams, 2311). She needs his money in order to survive, especially since a baby is on the way, but she genuinely loves him because she cherishes the times they share between beatings (economic determinist/Marxist approach).

If Tennessee Williams were alive today, he would be very surprised to see the number of
Stellas and Stanleys has decreased a great deal. Women file for divorce if their husbands abuse them, and often times the woman is the abuser and the husband chooses to leave. A woman can be independent and make more money than her husband, as this is common and accepted by society (feminist approach). If Williams had lived in today's society, his homosexuality would have been tolerated more so than when he felt shame in his unusual sexuality. Although the domestic family has changed for the better in numerous ways since A
Streetcar Named Desire was written, the freedom a couple is given is taken advantage of.
Statistics show that approximately fifty percent of marriages end up in divorce. This exhibits that the matrimonial bond between two people is no longer held as sacred and is taken for granted. The following generation follows in the footsteps of their divorced parents and a vicious cycle turns its unfortunate wheel. In the end, no one truly knows if society is better off now or just different and equally flawed (moral/intellectual approach).