What Is Blanche's Illusions In A Streetcar Named Desire Reality

The inevitable extinction of the morals and values of the aristocratic society that Blanche, the main protagonist has come to represent is clearly implied through the course of scene 10. Her illusions, the very foundation of her life, are destroyed and this reflects the decay in her power, status, and mental capacity. Symbolically, this scene is used by Williams to show the death of the aristocratic values of Blanche. Blanche herself realises this and believes she is in “desperate circumstances” as she is “caught in a trap” and needs “help”. The “trap” is reality as Blanche feels that her dreams are dying before her eyes and she can no longer protect herself. This is further explained when she “presses her fists to her ears”, thus highlighting the sounds of reality which is like an ‘approaching locomotive’, passing by her.
However, by Scene 10 she has become fully aware that this is a delusion. In this scene, Blanche‘s illusions completely fall apart and she is forced to accept the reality of her age and the situation that she is living in, which is what drives Blanche insane. Furthermore, Blanche is shown to have a very good understanding of reality as she “slams the mirror” down, breaking it at the start of the scene because she cannot bear to live in the real world. The broken mirror also has connotations to bad luck, further creating a sense of menace which foreshadows her encounter with Stanley, leading to her rape. This is what makes Blanche such a tragic character and Willian utilises this to make the audience sympathise with