genre

• the unities


  time, place, action

  streetcar is typical for place= single setting= Kowalski's apartment or just outside it

  gives the play a tense, claustrophobic feel

  mirrors the readers sense of stanley closing in on blanche

  or the antebellum being overtaken by post-war society
• tragedy, with blanche as the tragic heroine 


  antagonism between blanche and stanley has sexual undertones= for stanley blanches tragic downfall is a triumph of his sexuality

  for blanche it is the ultimate breaking-up of her dream world, which will wreck her sanity

  by focusing on blanche, like other playwrights (e.g. Webster's 'The Duchess of Malfi' centers on the Duchess), Williams disregards the artificiality of the unity of time an adopts the unities of place and action= makes the play seem more realistic= allows Williams to more closely reflect the real world
• morality of desire


  desire= sinful

  streetcar as the driving force of passion= the helplessness of its riders OR suggests the element of choice to board the train

  streetcar of desire (sin) has brought blanche to the elysian fields (death)

  punishment not overt= feelings of guilt

  e.g. stella yields to stanleys authority for most of the play= leaves it until just before the last scene to confront her guilt= too late= now must live with inescapable guilt of the betrayal of her sister
• initial performances of streetcar

  criticised as a morality play as many critics felt that it was too full of immoral behaviour
• typical of a melodrama


  usually has a sensual nature

  promiscuous, deluded blanche

  stanley's violent, suggestive behaviour/ passionate methods of control
• melodrama as heightening a works power


  e.g. Macbeth

  elements of ghosts, madness etc

  emphasises Blanche's distortion of reality= she has broken with the reality of the real world, in which she no longer fits into
• atypical of a melodrama

  despite the plays melodramatic elements, these incidents aren't meant to thrill the audience as usual

  instead, these incidents are introduced to throw a light onto the characters and their motives= highlight complex emotions below the surface, e.g. Allan Grey suicide helps to contextualise blanches dissent into madness= 1st event in which her antebellum ideal was fractured

  also: atypical as streetcar uses subtle and varied language