欲望号街车中布兰奇的悲剧命运分析-毕业论文

1、【标题】欲望号街车中布兰奇的悲剧命运分析 【作者】余琴华 【关键词】欲望; 布兰奇; 悲剧; 文明; 野蛮 【指导老师】张 亚军 谭 佳 【专业】英语 【正文】I IntroductionTennessee Williams (March 26, 1911  February 25, 1983) born in Thomas Lanier Williams, was an American playwright who received many of the top theatrical awards for his works o

2、f drama. He moved to New Orleans in 1939 and changed his name to "Tennessee", the state of his father's birth. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for A Streetcar Named Desire in 1948 and for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in 1955. 1 In addition, The Glass Menagerie (1945) and The Nig

3、ht of the Iguana (1961) received New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards. His play The Rose Tattoo received the Tony Award for best play. In 1980 he was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Jimmy Carter.After a severe mental and physical breakdown in the 1960s, Willia

4、ms plays were more or less unsuccessful. Williams examined in his controversial and poetic plays turbulent emotional and sexual forces, physical and spiritual needs, and created such unforgettable characters as Maggie in Cat on A Hot Tin Roof (1945) and Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Des

5、ire (1947).The story in A Streetcar Named Desire takes place right after World War II, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Williams takes the audience to New Orleans where the relationship of Blanche Dubois, her sister Stella and brother-in-law Stanley is being illuminated. Blanche Dubois, who was a ari

6、stocratic woman before, now come here to find her sister called Stella Kowalski. Stella has left home many years ago. That time, the south is the representative of the decadent aristocratic civilization; the north is rough and full of vitality. In the house of Stella, Blanche met her antagonist, Ste

7、llas husband named Stanley Kowalski. He is a descendant of Polish immigrants, a salesman, brutish and pragmatic. He suspected that Blanche embezzled his wifes property. Although the facts are clarified later, Stanley was always unfriendly with Blanche. Blanche gradually adapts to the new life in New

8、 Orleans, she takes this place as her own home. Later she falls in love with Stanleys friend Mitch. When Blanche prepares to begin a new life, however, the disaster is also close to her at the same time. Stanley has never recognized Blanche. He hates Blanche all the time. He is always thinking about

9、 how to make Blanche left this place. One chance, he learned that branch had become a prostitute before, he decided to take this opportunity to revenge on her, so she can get away form their life. Stanley told this fact to Mitch first, Mitch could not accept this. In the struggle of dignity and love

10、, Mitch chose to abandon Blanche. Because losing the support of life and spirit, Blanche began to be lunatic. When Stella was in hospital, Stanley raped Blanche, it pushed her into completely collapse. When Stella went home, although she believes Blanches words, however, for herself and her childs s

11、urvival, Stella agreed to send Blanche to a lunatic asylum.II Several Aspects of Blanches Tragic FateA. Disillusion of love 1. The Death of AllenAt the age of 16, Blanche was a gentle, beautiful and pleasant girl, she was full of hope to love. She looked forward to the coming of romantic love.

12、She loves literature, poet and something romantic. Perhaps that is why she falls in love with Allen and marries him finally. Because Allen is an extraordinary, young and hansom poet. She loves Allen so much. However, once time, Blanche found that Allen was a homosexual, she couldnt accept this. Her

13、romantic love has been evaporated. Whats more, she can not face reality. Her love is full of degeneration and ad disillusion. She shouted at Allen:“I see! I understand! You make me sick! 2 Blanche had never considered that Allen would commit suicide. Allen got out and committed suicide. Allens death

14、 makes her indulge into regrets and remorse. She had not considered that her impulse would end Allens life. Blanches beloved person disappeared. After Allens death, Blanches every night become so long. The music played in that night when Allen committed suicide is always replaying in her mind, tortu

15、ring her conscience again and again. She repeatedly condemned herself. She thought that she is the executioner of her husbands death. Pain and stress from death of her young husband is too strong.2. The Decline of the BelleReve And this moment, the great BelleReve of Blanches family was indulgi

16、ng into crisis. The whole family has several hundred years in the south, but because of the extravagance and dissipation of the ancestors, the whole family was broken. Stella chose to leave the family and got married, but Blanche stayed on, sparing efforts to protect their BelleReve. Blanche stayed

17、behind to care for their dying family while Stella left to make a new life for herself, and Blanche is clearly resentful by her sister's abandonment of the family. She has been living in her hometown in recent years. But what she had experienced was a nightmare. Her relatives passed away one by

18、one. She accompanied with them all the time. She watched them die and buried one after one. In the play, she said to Stella:“Stella, every time, you just come back to attend their funerals. But in comparison with the death, the funeral was quiet, but death is different. Sometimes their breathing sou

19、nd hoarse, sometimes screaming “I'm not going!" Funeral was quiet. You only on the ground personally heard them shouting: “Hold me!" You can understand how they are desperately struggling for the last breath.  The shadow of death are hanging over Blanches life, the remor

20、se of Allens death and the pain of relatives death gave Blanche too much stress and hurt.B. Failed Desire to love Set in the French Quarter of New Orleans during the restless years following World War Two, A Streetcar Named Desire is the story of Blanche Dubois, a fragile and neurotic woman on

21、a desperate prowl for someplace in the world to call her own. After being exiled from her hometown of Laurel, Mississippi, for seducing a seventeen-year-old boy at the school where she taught English, Blanche explains her unexpected appearance on Stanley and Stella's (Blanche's sister)

22、doorstep as nervous exhaustion. This, she claims, is the result of a series of financial calamities which have recently claimed the family plantation, BelleReve. Suspicious, Stanley points out that "under Louisiana's Napoleonic code what belongs to the wife belongs to the husband."

23、; Stanley, a sinewy and brutish man, is as territorial as a panther. He tells Blanche he doesn't like to be swindled and demands to see the bill of sale. This encounter defines Stanley and Blanche's relationship. They are opposing camps and Stella is caught in no-man's-land. But Stanley

24、and Stella are deeply in love. Blanche's efforts to impose herself between them only enrage the animal inside Stanley. When Mitch - a card-playing buddy of Stanley's - arrives on the scene, Blanche begins to see a way out of her predicament. Mitch, himself alone in the world, rever

25、es Blanche as a beautiful and refined woman. Yet, as rumors of Blanche's past in Auriol begin to catch up to her, her circumstances become unbearable.1. The New Orleans EnvironmentThough a difficult journey, Blanche reached Stellas apartment. Blanche was surprised at the surrounding. The contras

26、t between the ideal and reality are so obviously. She had never knowed that her beloved sister was living in such a terrible place. Her sister grows up in good situation. But there, this is a mixed area, including black, white and other color people. Here is full of casinos, many robbers and prostit

27、utes. It is full of vulgar excitement. Stella lived in a cheap rented place, two small rooms are separated only by a curtain, without a door. For Blanche, growing up in great situation can not recognize everything here. Even though this is a so terrible environment, Blanche also dreams the coming of

28、 better life. 2. Several Important FiguresStella is now completely become someone else. She just likes a princess in the past, slender, beautiful and smart. But now, she becomes fat and clumsy, wearing vulgar clothes. She was completely lost the traditional southern women's character. When

29、she knew her old sisters terrible life firstly, she remembered of sister before, she said:“ You did not know her when she was young. At that time, she was gentle than anyone. 3 Stanley always wears gaudy clothes and speaks vulgarly. He likes to say coarse language, slang and bad words. His rude beha

30、viors have no signs of civilization. At the first time when he met Blanche, he rummaged Blanches suitcase without any permission.Blanche meets her sister's husband, Stanley, for the first time, and immediately she feels uncomfortable. We learn that Blanche was once married, when she was very you

31、ng, but her husband died, leaving her widowed and alone.Character Analysis of Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire revolves around the association of Blanche with Stanley, who represents contemporary social values driven by male dominance. He is violent and barbaric throughout the play, both

32、 in costuming (an element of spectacle) and in dialog (in this case, an expression of both diction and character). As the play progresses, Stanley uses every possible tool available to him to subjugate Blanche, including destroying any possible healthy relationship, ostracizing her, and fi

33、nally raping her. In his first encounter with Blanche, Stanley is irritated because he knows she has been drinking his liquor. He senses an invasion of his territory by Blanche, who has taken something that belongs to him. Stanley welcomes her into the Kowalski home; however, that acceptance require

34、s that Blanche acknowledge his authority. When he removes his shirt in this scene, it is not so much to titillate Blanche as to demonstrate his masculinity. Stanley's desire to dominate everyone around him finds its ultimate expression in his relationship to Blanche.He suspected Blanches everyth

35、ing. Forced to have a new life, Blanche dwelling in her sisters house down, and gradually adapted to heres life. When summer comes, she falls in love with Mitch, one of Stanleys card friends. Mitchs manners is unnatural, giving her impression of weak. He is 30 years old, but still relies on his moth

36、ers decision. However, Mitch is different from Stanley. He has a tender heart and loves his girlfriend very much.  He still retains a cigarette case bought by her girlfriend. Blanche is still yearning for love, Blanche appears to have been touched by Mitch in this manner. In the first date with

37、 Mitch, Blanch confided her husbands death to Mitch. That is the biggest lie in the shadow of her heart. Mitch gave deep sympathy on Blanches experiences.Blanche thought she found a new life to rely on, she hopes the new place can let her forget the past. There is sisters companionship, loneliness a

38、nd pain wouldnt swallow her life, perhaps she can re-discover a way of life, maybe here is her really life.3. Something Happened in OrleansStanley initially distrusts Blanche, thinking that she has cheated Stella out of her share of BelleReve - but Stanley soon realizes that Blanche is not the

39、swindling type. But the animosity between the two continues. Blanche takes long baths, criticizes the squalor of the apartment, and irritates Stanley. Stanley's roughness bothers Blanche as well, since he makes no effort to be gentle with her. One night, during a poker game, Stanley gets too dru

40、nk and beats Stella. The women go to their upstairs neighbors' apartment, but soon Stella returns to Stanley. Blanche is unable to understand Stella and Stanley's powerful (and destructive) physical relationship. That night, she also meets Mitch, prompting an immediate mutual attraction

41、. The next day, Stanley overhears Blanche saying terrible things about him. From that time on, he devotes himself fully to her destruction. Blanche, herself, has a shady past that she keeps close to the vest. During the last days of BelleReve, after the mansion was lost, she was exceptionally l

42、onely and turned to strangers for comfort. Her numerous amorous encounters destroyed her reputation in Laurel, leading to the loss of her job as a high school English teacher and her near-expulsion from town. Tensions build in the apartment throughout the summer. Blanche and Stanley see each ot

43、her as enemies, and Blanche turns increasingly to alcohol for comfort. Stanley, meanwhile, investigates Blanche's past, and he passes the information about her sexual dalliances on to Mitch. Although Blanche and Mitch had been on track to marry, after he learns the truth, he loses all interest i

44、n her. On Blanche's birthday, Mitch stands her up, abandoning her for good. Stanley, meanwhile, caustically presents Blanche with her birthday gift: bus tickets back to Laurel. Blanche is overcome by sickness; she cannot return to Laurel, and Stanley knows it. As Blanche is ill in the bathroom,

45、Stella fights with Stanley over the cruelty of his act. Mid-fight, she tells him to take her to the hospital - the baby is coming. That night, Blanche packs and drinks. Mitch arrives unexpectedly. He confronts her with the stories of her past, and she tells him, in lurid detail, the truth

46、about her escapades in Laurel. He approaches her, making advances, wanting what she has denied him all summer. She asks him to marry her, and when he refuses, she kicks him out of the apartment.C. Betrayal of Love Fate makes a mockery on Blanche once again. On her birthday, Stanley gave her a o

47、ne- way ticket. This gives her a big hit. She cant feel the warm relationship from them any more. At last when Stella was in hospital, Stanley raped Blanch. When Stella came back, Blanche told this to her, however Stella choose to believe Stanleys words and sent her sister in to hospital.Perhaps, St

48、anleys violation gave Blanche an important impact, but Mitch and Stellas betrayal is the real reason that makes Blanche indulge into the madness of despair. Stanley had knowed some bad experiences of Blanche. On Blanches birthday, Stanley told everything to Stella and Mitch. Mitch feels that Blanche

49、 betrayed their love. He abandoned Blanch ruthlessly. He did not arrive at Blanche's birthday party on time. During the midnight after the party, he asked Blanche relentlessly, and declared “I no longer want to marry you, because you are not pure, you are not the woman I need to love, you c

50、an not live with my mother. This declaration of Mitch completely break Blanche dream of love. So that her desire would like to find a rock to escape the desire to live could not be realized. Blanche was sent to a lunatic asylum.D. Helpless Self-redemption1. Blanches fallenWhat happened in the past a

51、lways more or less plays an important role in our real life, particularly for women.  Something Occurred in the past life (Aaron Bell Reeve and the farm family died frequently), is a strong impact on her life, "the opposite side of death is desire. She began to abandon the South

52、and lost the family tradition and propriety, indulging his own emotions, the pursuit of carnal desires! She believes that sex could be spared from death; lust can fill the spiritual emptiness. She moved to a second-class hotel, and the advantage is no one can interfere her private life. The mayor of

53、 the city have learned her celebrity manner, and then ordered her to get out of Laurier. When her life is to be suffocating, she wants a new life and fresh air, and begins to self-salvation. 2. RedemptionWith a desire for love, home and understanding, she makes a journey to New Orleans. For Bla

54、nche, this is not just a simple trip, but a way to abandon the gray of the past and to pursue a new life. However, the first sentence of the play indicates her fate. Blanche said that:“ They told me to take a street-car named Desire, and then transfer to one called Cemeteries and ride six blocks and

55、 get off at Elysian Field.” 4 This sentence reveals a profound experience of Blanche's life, but also indicates that Blanches tragic fate.Blanche dressed in white, appeared in her sisters shabby apartment, compared with the surrounding, she seemed out of tune. First, white is linked with immacul

56、ate, fresh and elegant. Blanche tried to bring out the Southern white ladys noble and elegant temperament, but she does not know that white is the most easily tainted, the most vulnerable color. 5 Blanc hes hypocrisy under the guise of "purity" will be vulnerable! Water in the salvati

57、on of Blanche plays an important role. First, in order to restore the body's clean, calm nerves, Blanche was particularly fond of a hot shower. Blanche's obsession with hot water bath in the main roots of a psychological hint. she hopes to wash with water to the body of the dirty, thus purif

58、ying his soul, it seems that only in the bath when she can escape the fact that dirty, but this is also precisely reflects Blanches lingering guilt and atonement hearts desire. However, water baptism can only give a moment's comfort to Blanche; bathing became helpless Blanche under the spiritual

59、 victory. After the bath, Blanche likes to have a glass of wine and said "I was so fresh, washing a hot bath and drink a large glass of cool wine, with a total let me create new view on life." 6 Blanche likes the feeling of drunk, because her nerves are no longer tense, as if still fe

60、lt that she was still dignified Southern lady, rather than a woman of homeless .But no matter how she did, she cant save herself. Analysis of Blanches Tragic FateBlankets tragic fate has direct and indirect causes; these causes are closely linked with humans weakness and the social environment. Blanche lives in a complex time. The moral hypocrisy of the old society and the new era of the common cold materialism strangle her all the time, Human nature is complex and changeable, and it is f