Literary Analysis Of Blanche Dubois

Tennessee Williams is one of the most recognized playwrights that lived during the mid-twentieth-century (“Tennessee Williams”). After finishing college, Williams decides to move to New Orleans, where he writes A Streetcar Named Desire. His career starts to take off as he begins to write more plays (“Tennessee Williams”). A Streetcar Named Desire talks about the life of a woman, Blanche DuBois, who is very secretive about her past and does not expose her true intentions of coming to live with her younger sister Stella. As the play goes on Stanley, Stella’s husband, starts to dig into the dark past that terrorizes Blanche when they begin to have a conflict with each other. In Tennessee Williams’ play, A Streetcar Named Desire Blanche Dubois

Many literary criticisms have been written about Blanche and how she tends to lie about everything in her life. “Blanche disguises her desperation with lies- about drinking, her age, her reasons for coming to New Orleans, her sexual experience.” (Dace n.p.). Dace clearly describes Blanche as a liar and describes the fact how she lied about everything from the smallest thing, like her age to something as big as the reason why she went to New Orleans. “... in spite of the fact she’s somewhat older than I. Just slightly. Less than a year.” (Williams 54). Blanche is lying about her age because she is trying to gain attention to make herself feel better about herself. Throughout the play, the addiction Blanche has to alcohol is revealed little by little. Blanche is the master of liars and lies about the attraction that she has to alcohol. [She springs up and crosses it, and removes a bottle of whiskey. She pours a half tumbler of whiskey and tosses it down.] (Williams 8). Whenever Blanche first arrives at Stella’s house, she makes herself welcomed and decides to take a drink and then hide the fact that she had a drink. After Stella and Blanche meet Stella offers Blanche a second drink, but Blanche rejects the drink so she will not be seen as an alcoholic. “No, one’s my limit” (Williams 11). That is the answer Blanche gives to Stella after she offers Blanche a second

Blanche feels the need to be appreciated by men at all time and seeks attention when she does not receive it, especially from Mitch. “She dupes him regarding her age and declares herself younger to Stella, tries to fool him regarding her drinking habits, avoid going out with him until after dark and manages to avoid being seen in direct bulb-light!”(Kararia 24). Blanche is portrayed as a liar and attention seeker who wants to be showered with compliments from Mitch. She tries to fool and flirt with Mitch so she can secure her future with him. “She sees in Mitch an opportunity to prove her allure and score an easy sexual conquest.”(Kataria 24). Blanche desires to be desired by Mitch. Before Blanche met Mitch, she was trying something with Stanley. “She flirts with him, sprays him with her atomizer asks him to button up her blouse…”(Kataria 27). Since Blanche has not had men attracted to her in a while, when she meets Stanley, she flirts with him. Not only does she want attention from men, but she is willing to obtain it from young boys. “You make my mouth