This document answers the question "Discuss how Williams uses the loss of Belle Reve to present Stanley's attitudes towards property."
Pearson Edexcel AS & A Level English Language & Literature
A Streetcar Named Desire
(Paper 1)
Syllabus 9ELO
Discuss how Williams uses the loss of Belle Reve to present Stanley's attitudes
towards property
A Streetcar Named Desire
Pearson Edexcel A Level English Language and Literature
Syllabus 9ELO
Williams uses the loss of Belle Reve to Present Stanley's attitudes towards property in A
Streetcar Named Desire. The author also shows Stanley’s attitudes by the way he talks to and
treats Stella, and how he overreacts when people touch his possessions without his permission.
From the extract it is clear that Stanley is irritated by the loss of Belle Reve. For example, “It
looks to me like you have been swindled, baby, and when your swindled under the Napoleonic
code I'm swindled too. And I don't like to be swindled.” The repetition of the verb, “swindled”
exaggerates how much he doesn't trust Blanche's story that the ranch was lost. The fact that he
knows what the Napoleonic Code is shows that he likes to own possessions. In this case Stella is
portrayed as one due to how he takes charge and gets angry over money that she should have
gained from the ranch. The Napoleonic code, that was introduced in Louisiana by the French,
stated that everything that belonged to a man's wife was also his and vice versa. This is how he
justifies that all his wife's possessions are also his. The fronted conjunction and the pronoun, “I”
exaggerates how he likes to take charge over a matter that never involved him. Furthermore, it
shows how Stanley is selfish as he only cares about the money rather than the farm that his
wife grew up on. He doesn't care about Stella’s feelings as he is far more concerned over the
money that he believes Blanche stole from ‘them’.
Stanley’s lack of trust in Blanche is evident in the stage directions, “he pulls open the wardrobe
trunk standing in the middle of the room and Jerks out an armful of dresses” the violent nature
in which he roots through her belongings, without her permission, show his determination to
find the lost money from the ranch. Stanley disregards her privacy which once again shows the
lack of respect that he gives people. Also, the verb, “jerks out” and the countable noun,
“armful” prove that Stanley isn’t even trying to cover his tracks, developing on how he is selfish
and only cares about himself. Furthermore, it shows his violent nature that he possibly
developed while fighting in the war. This violent and selfish personality along with his
prehistoric aggression makes him appear to be the dominant male in the text. Due to this
Stanley believes that his actions are justifiable as he has the most power and aggression which
makes him ‘superior’. This aggression is also a result of the fact that he believes that he will
never receive any of the money which challenges his “Alpha Male” personality.
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