Full mark essay on Scene 10 of a Streetcar named desire. Written for the short coursework component (1000 words) of OCR English Literature. Essay is a close reading of dramatic and linguistic techniques in Scene 10 of the play. Full title is: “How does Williams use dramatic and linguistic techniq...
How does Williams use dramatic and linguistic techniques in the extract to present this final
confrontation between Stanley and Blanche as a culmination of their conflicted
relationship? (From Blanche ‘But then he came back……’ to the end of the scene.)
Williams’ depiction in scene 10 of a violent and emotionally charged attack is arguably a
culmination of the mounting tensions between the play’s central antagonists, Blanche and
Stanley. The extract begins with the juxtaposition of the psychological states of the
characters- with Stanley in a state of jubilation at the impending birth of his son, and
Blanche “on her knees-“ in an emotional and metaphorical position of submission and
vulnerability. The extract is located after a scene which ends with Blanche hitting rock
bottom- all her hopes of sanctuary shattered by Mitch’s rejection of her and her fabricated
persona of moral purity, with an accusation that she is “not clean enough” to even present
to his mother- a psychological brutalisation which makes Stanley’s physical brutalisation of
her as a culmination of their conflicted relationship all the more horrifying. As well as
portraying the physical culmination of Stanley and Blanche’s antagonism by Stanley’s rape
of Blanche- the most “deliberate act of cruelty”- Williams also seeks to confirm Stanley’s
role as the instrument of Blanche’s tragic trajectory, predominantly through his deliberate
dismantling of the illusion on which she so heavily relies. Williams’ increased use of plastic
theatre throughout the extract is key to emphasising such points, as Blanche’s grip on sanity
weakens at the hands of Stanley, and she is forced to confront the reality of her loneliness
and insanity as Stanley dismantles the protective illusion which acts as the only remaining
source of comfort in Blanche’s life.
From the onset of the extract, Stanley’s domination over Blanche is evidently displayed by
Williams, who similarly foreshadows his physical conquering of her at the end of the extract.
Through the distribution of dialogue in this extract, Williams effectively depicts the
imbalanced power dynamic between Stanley and Blanche. Stanley, intent on exposing
Blanche’s lies and dream world, dominates the dialogue, accusing Blanche of “lies and
conceit and tricks.” Here, Stanley’s accusations are interjected with Blanche’s short speech,
her usually eloquent and dignified speech reduced to only having the ability to exclaim “oh!’
“oh!”, as he tears down her dignified persona and accuses her of “pull(ing) the wool over
(Mitch’s) eyes” and exposing her world as being a figment of her “imagination.” Stanley’s
domination of dialogue here not only foreshadows his later physical domination of Blanche
as he claims a verbal victory, but similarly emphasises the effect Stanley has had on Blanche-
forcing her to surrender her articulate and distinguished persona out of shock and fear.
Blanche’s degradation at the hands of Stanley is similarly seen through Williams’ use of
caesura and disjointed syntax within her later speech; during her call to the operator, her
speech is heavily punctuated with broken exclamations of “I-No! No, wait!...”, which
effectively displays her unstable state of mind and desperation through her inability to finish
a sentence, which is arguably a culmination of how Stanley has brought her anxiety and
nerves to a peak throughout the play. This is further seen through Williams’ use of
repetition in Blanche’s speech, as she pleads with the phone operator, stating she is in
“desperate, desperate circumstances,” a repetition which not only underlines her frantic
state of mind, but similarly highlights how she is on a last resort- with nobody else to seek
help from.
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