"Blanche is a victim of being a woman." With reference to the dramatic methods used in the show and relevant controversial information, show to what extent you agree with this statement. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The play “A Streetcar Named Desire” written by Tennessee Williams portrays the character of Blanche Dubois who follows her from her hometown of Laurel, Mississippi, to New York. Orleans where she will stay with her sister Stella Kowalski and her sister's husband Stanley Kowalski, starting Blanche's addiction to men, as she is ultimately still dependent on her sister's husband (Stanley) for her mental and economic recovery. Feminists believe that patriarchy not only suppresses women in aspects such as politics, economy, society, culture, education and so on, but also falsely defines women's psychology as unhealthy, irrational, illogical and impulsive . . Under this kind of prejudice and discrimination, women's psychology is easily distorted and cannot develop healthily. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche is a contradictory woman with a very complicated character, illustrated by aspects of sexual desire, fantasy for a bright future, hypocrisy and pretension. In A Streetcar Named Desire, the females, Stella Kowalski and Blanche Dubois, are represented as the weaker sex; women who are overwhelmed by people like Stanley Kowalski, the male, self-congratulatory “hero.” Blanche displays profound psychological instability when she is unable to live up to her expectations as a properly raised Southern belle. Stella represents the classic example of a woman's deference to an abusive husband (which occurs not only in the South during the time of this play, but also resonates throughout much of human history). Stanley Kowalski's personality provides insight into how men dominate women, convince them of their inferiority, and ultimately destroy them if left unchecked. Through this theme Williams presents a negative view on the role of women at the time, criticizing the Old South and the way it treated the female population. Blanche and Stella are depicted as victims of traditional Southern society where women had few choices in life. Both sisters grew up on the plantation, Belle Reve in Laurel, Mississippi, and their primary goal in life, parallel to Southern tradition, was to seek the security of marriage. However, both chose unsuitable husbands. Blanche, who is five years older than her sister, marries Allan Gray for love at a young age only to find her dreams dashed by her husband's infidelity with another man. Stella, who moved to New Orleans at a young age, chooses Stanley Kowalski, an aggressive, heterosexual man from the wrong social class. However, Blanche is portrayed as the victim here, due to the fact that her marriage was unsuccessful. Blanche's inability to save the estate and move beyond her sordid past in Laurel leaves her with only one last hope for the future; to start a new life with his sister in New Orleans. Unfortunately, she arrives at her new destination as a slave to her definition of femininity and feels forced to lie to herself and others in order to be accepted and secure a respectable husband. She is attracted to Mitch who appears as a gentleman and imagines she can capture him by becoming a perfect Southern belle, while hiding her promiscuous past. This involves earning a man's respect by avoidingof "moving on" or moving too quickly, appearing to have never been touched and adhering to old-fashioned Southern ideals. Blanche even tries to recapture the more romanticized gender roles of the age of chivalry. This becomes evident when she asks Mitch to bow while giving her flowers and becomes the "Rosenkavalier" of her affections. After Mitch learns the truth about her past and that she is not the virgin of his dreams, he refuses to show up at her birthday party, for which Blanche later reminds him that his behavior is "utterly contemptuous". Williams represents the fact that our patriarchal system teaches men that women must be pure in order to marry them, but they typically adhere to a double standard when the roles are reversed. Blanche is a victim of this pattern of double standards, as is her promiscuity strongly frowned upon by the characters in the novel, just as it would have been in the period in which the novel was set. Domestic violence is different for each character in this play. This is because each character has a different experience with it, and the consequences of violence in their lives have been so different that each has drawn their own conclusion about what it means to be violent or be a victim of it. Stanley, for example, is by nature a violent man's stereotypical view of women in his mind, and his wife is supposed to be the embodiment of submission and submission. When he drinks, these ideals become more powerful and make him fight even more violently, and then there is the post-fight lovemaking that is meant to right all the wrongs. However, this is a form of aphrodisiac for him and violence is a way to channel his pathological vision of life. Blanche becomes a victim of his violence, particularly during the rape scene. Stella is Stanley's victim. She's the one who takes the hits, survives the fights, and then has sex with him after the fights. However, this is another curious form of sexual solicitation for Stella and she also confesses it. She even expects violence, partly because of the time period in which women were treated as second-class citizens, and partly because Stanley's rough nature is what attracted her to him in the first place. Stanley's brutality is demonstrated in many ways, one particularly obvious way being when he "hurls a plate at the floor". He states, "This is how I'm going to shoot the table!" He then "grabs Stella's arm." This unjustified violence is not a mere consequence of physical inequality between the sexes, but is an example of abuse of power and position by men, in order to further their own domination. Although Stella may be presented as a female victim, it is clear that Blanche suffers more in terms of violence. Blanche, however, is the opposite. She is shocked by the violence, and this is because even in her life of sin and debauchery, there is a lot of pain and emotion inside Blanche. When he sees his sister being beaten, he immediately realizes the horror of the situation and tries to get Stella out of Stanley's life. However, she is shocked when she sees that Stella doesn't want to leave and looks truly glowing after making up with Stanley. After her husband's suicide, Blanche sees nothing positive in violence and this stops her. When she finally becomes Stanley's victim and he rapes her, she goes mad. This is how violence is like napalm in Blanche's life. This ultimately shows Blanche as a victim of patriarchy, as Stanley is the embodiment of male control over women. A particularly complex issue for feminists is the issue of rape: the ultimate outrage. In this invasion of the female body, the woman is particularly vulnerable to male attack, often for the purpose ofdomination, not for sexual release. The rape victim is often depicted as the damsel in distress. In Blanche's case, she flirted with Stanley, engaged him in a verbal fight, and challenged his authority. He faces her in his role as the alpha male facing the pack attacker. It is less lust than power that motivates him. he sees an enemy in her. Furthermore, it is not a gentle maiden who faces this beast. She smashes a bottle and threatens to turn it in his face. She is, as she realizes, a "tiger", a worthy opponent. This explains Williams' difficulties in writing the ending of the play. He knew that the censors would want Blanche to be destroyed, but he was tempted to leave her with a triumphant departure. This is certainly not the attitude of a man who belittles women. On the other hand, it plays in the last offensive defense frequently used in courts; that the rape victim “asked for it.” In the case of Blanche and Stanley, she sparked outrage, he needed the victory. Both have their share of blame, even if Blanche is considered the victim of this situation. “Don't worry, your sister hasn't become a drunk, she's just all shaken, hot, tired and dirty!” This line is extremely ironic and also denotes that alcoholism in a woman is a shameful trait, for which it is necessary to make excuses. This connotation is not shown in respect of the male characters within the text who are drunk quite respectable incident, given that they are men. The fact that Blanche is a woman means that she is expected to always show decorum and that her gender does not allow her to get drunk. Blanche also challenges the typical female stereotype because she has been one. highly educated. Being a professional English teacher - breaking the norm - as women were not considered necessary to be self-sufficient or to do paid work like a man would always be there to rely on. This higher education means he can assert power and supremacy over others by using a more sophisticated vocabulary and speaking style. In scene ten, when Blanche is completely dishonored by Stanley, Stanley immediately assumes power over Blanche by ending her long speeches and leaving her vocalizations reduced to an insufficient "Oh!" Williams states through Blanche that in the context of theatrical society, women who challenge the feminine stereotype would be forced into submission, this would be through a deliberate attack on the area of ​​their personality that allowed them to achieve this unwarranted potential. Blanche's complete disappearance as a rape victim, and indeed her relationship with Stanley, is the opportunity through which Williams represents this concept. During the 1940s, women's roles and expectations in society were changing rapidly. Previously women had very little say in society and were stereotyped to stay at home and be a good housewife and wife. The 1940s were different, women's lives were expanding, men were at war and so women had to step up and take the place of men. Not only did men go to war, the war was so big that in 1942 the “Women's Military Corps” and the “Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Services” were established. After these organizations were accepted, Congress authorized women to serve in the U.S. Navy. In the United States, women worked in factories and performed labor-intensive jobs. During the 1940s the percentage of women in the workforce increased by 25-35%. This was a prosperous time in women's history. Blanche, however, was fired from hers.