Analysis of Bianche DuBois's Fate in Tennessee Williams's Streetcar

This essay delves into the tragic fate of Blanche DuBois in Tennessee Williams' play, 'A Streetcar Named Desire.' It examines how Williams uses social realism to depict the decay of Southern culture and the clash between illusion and reality. The essay explores the character development of Blanche, her relationships, particularly with Stanley, and the consequences of her actions. It analyzes the societal flaws and Blanche's attempts to create a virtual world to escape her problems, highlighting the deterioration of morality and the impact of societal expectations on her. The essay also discusses the symbolic interpretations of Blanche's behaviors, her relationships with men, and her struggle against contemporary traditions. Ultimately, the essay argues that Blanche's tragic fate is a result of her internal conflicts, societal pressures, and the decay of the Southern culture, as portrayed by Williams.

Running head: ENGLISH
English
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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The purpose of this essay is to discuss on the various issues of the tragic fate of Bianche
DuBois in the play A Streetcar named Desire by Tennessee Williams. The social realism has
been reflected in this play by Williams and she has developed the plot on the basis of the
character development of Bianche and the problems she face over the time. Williams, the author
of the play has shown the differences of reality and appearances throughout the play. The
relationship between Bianche and Stanley and its later outcomes have also been presented. Many
changes were taking place in the southern regions of the United States and all these changes have
been discussed by the author in this play.
In this play, the playwright Tennessee Williams has brought about the reflections on the
society that were taking place in the southern regions of the United States. The culture was
getting deteriorated and it was very much prominent in the characters of the play as well as the
protagonist named Bianche DuBois. During the development of the plot, it has been found that
she becomes a fallen woman and faces tremendous struggles throughout the courses of the play.
The use of the syntax by Williams makes it very clear that her flattery on the different people
like Stanley and Mitch are constantly done to get the attention. All these things are plotted by
Bianche herself and all these incidents represent the decay of culture in the southern states of
America in the mid 20th century.
The plot construction of Williams in this play is terrific and she has brought in front all
the minor and minute details about the southern states. The final conditions of the fallen women
or the protagonist Bianche DuBois is very pathetic to see. The beginning of the plot has been
constituted through the ‘opening situation’. The flaws in the society have been identified because
it is really crucial to note where the characters lost their morality. The catastrophe of the
characters can be connected with the important characters in the play. The circumstances created

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throughout the play are very complicated and Bianche faced several difficulties in overcoming
these problematic situations (Williams: 50). She even faced many difficulties in adjusting with
all these difficulties indeed. She was completely alone in his world and she had to create the
virtual world through which she could hide her flaws.
According to Bianche DuBois, this was probably her apparent success in dealing with
those flaws. As a result of the influence from the southern societies, her behavior began to
change rapidly. This is how she plot has been designed by the author Tennessee Williams. The
overreaching tension has been created in the plot. This is the time when Bianche tries desperately
to make the situation better again for Stella and herself. Amidst these attempts, it is very clear
that the concept of institutionalization has been implemented on her. She is just like all other
Southern Belle who are not able to view their positions in the society properly at all.
Bianche DuBois was not at all able to make the valuation of her current conditions that
she was facing in different circumstances. This is why she found her life to be intolerable and she
was facing lots of troubles in those conditions. Therefore, she decided to create that virtual world
around her so she could live a better life (Williams: 50). There were many flaws in her character
that were found after analyzing the play and going through all the scenes. Flaw is regarded as the
only permanent feature in the character of Bianche. In the Act 11, she uttered the statement in
her speech that she had to depend on the strangers after the death of her husband Allan.
This shows she was completely unable to live on her own terms in her life and she
needed the help of others to meet her needs and desires in life. Though Bianche got her education
in the traditional manner, she was not at all able to live up to the expectations of her family.
When most of her family members died, she was left alone completely. After that, she became

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very rude and her behavior had made Allen to commit suicide. This is the manner in which her
life went through a deep traumatic situation. She at once got hurt and she was completely
astonished to find her husband Allen to be gay. Though, it cannot be denied that her husband was
very much kind and benevolent of a person. The symbolic interpretations of the fate of Bianche
indicate that her behaviors and her mentality was the main reason why she left stranded alone.
One of the critics have opined that Bianche had been condemned for the seducing power of hers.
Through this seduction power she could catch the attraction of the random males and tried to get
the compassion them.
Williams was a very subtle playwright and she did not forget to reflect on the southern
society of the United States through her depictions. The lack and deterioration of the morality
was the primary reason why Bianche was so full of flaws in her behavior. Bianche was
devastated and she needed some medium through which she could exert her pain and suffering.
She used to go into intimate relationships with various strange men in the society like Stanley
and many others.
This was the indication from Williams’ end that southern belles of the mid 20th century of
America did not hesitate to share intimate relationships with random people except for their
husbands (Williams: 38). This was clearly the decay of morality in their characters. This also
showed the decay of morality also. Through these behaviors, it was clearly inevitable that she
was fighting very hard against the contemporary traditions that oversaw sex with other random
people to be a major ethical flaw in the characters of the women (Bedient: 40). In this play, it has
been said that the gayness of Allan was not focused by most critics. Bianche herself was unaware
of the fact but she came to know of it and declared it in the scene six. Most of the critics were

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unable to connect the actions of Bianche when Allan shot himself down at Moon Lake Casino on
a fateful night.
The author also clarifies the fact that the actual personality of Bianche was quite innocent
because she wanted to rely on the men so that all problems in her life could be resolved properly.
She had no intention of keeping her chastity in front of other men. She wanted fulfill her desires
and emptiness that she had in her life (Bedient: 40). Through all these activities, she proved her
intentions but she was noted as a fallen woman in the eyes of the contemporary society. She was
the outcome of the old southern economy and that culture created an immense influence on her
lifestyle, behavior and all other things. Amidst these issues, it must be highlighted that her
attempts indicated that she wanted to punish herself for the previous things that he did. The
marriage of Bianche was done to the happy looking pure man who wanted to retain the spiritual
safety in the whole world (Bedient: 40). Thus, the internal conflicts within Bianche’s mind
completely devastated her nature and innocent personality.
In the concluding part of this paper, it must be pointed out that the author of this play
Williams have discussed on the nature of the southern society in USA in the 20th century. It was
the belief of the protagonist Bianche that she could get over all her grief and monotony through
getting into intimate relationships with the random men. This is why she was perceived as the
fallen woman. Her chastity was completely devastated and she was used by men for sexual
pleasure. Still she was unable to get the solution to all the problems in her life.

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References
Bedient, Calvin. "There are lives that desire does not sustain: A streetcar named desire." Bloom’s
Modern Critical Interpretations (2014): 35-48. https://books.google.co.in/books?
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Homophobia." Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire (2014): 145.
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Williams, Tennessee. A streetcar named desire. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2015.
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