1. Streetcar named desire
Tennessee Williams

2. Exploring themes
Analyse the passage given to you regarding each theme. Identify and analyse a SECOND passage which also highlights the same theme.

3. Chance, risk, deceit Opening of scene 3 – pg 24-25 – poker game
Scene 11, pg 82 – Stanley talks of luck “you know what luck is…”

4. Truth versus illusion
Scene 9 – pg 73 – illusion of big spider “…my victims..” – black widow / tarantula

5. Violence & cruelty
Scene 3 pg 31 – Stanley smashes the radio / then hits Stella

6. Primitive vs civilised
Scene 2 pg 20 – Blanche tells Stanley he is primitive

7. Desire and passion
Scene 4, pg 40 – Stella and Blanche discuss the streetcar
Scene 8, pg73 – “intimacy with strangers was all ….”

8. loneliness
Scene 3, pg 25 Mitch says you are all married but I’ll be alone when she goes…
Opening scene, Blanche arrives alone…

9. The past
Scene 6 pg, 56 Blanche opens up to Mitch “he was just a boy….”
Blanche’s death speech
Stella says to Stanley “you didn’t know her”.. When she was a child.
Blanche opens up to Mitch about her past…

10. death
Scene 11, pg 85 – the death at sea speech by Blanche

11. The south
Scene 4, pg 41 – Blanche puts down Stanley saying “there has been some progress since then…” – talking to Stella

12. survival
Scene 5, pg 45 – Blanche says to Stella – I was never hard or self sufficient enough …

13. madness
Scene 8, pg 69 – Blanche whispers to herself…. Speaking Spanish…
Scene 10 and 11…

14. Love and romance
Scene 3, pg33-34 – contrasts the kind of ideal romance Blanche wants – Stanley and Stella’s love is visceral / physical / passionate / dysfunctional? Blanche wants romance, fantasy… “magic”…

15. Exploitation of women
Scene 3 pg31 – Stanley goes after Stella
Pg 26 – women excluded from poker night…

16. marriage
Scene 6 pg 56 Blanche tells Mitch about her marriage to Alan..

17. Power and conflict
Scene 8 pg 65 – Stanley shows power –throws his plate, “I am the king around here”…

18. disappointment
Scene 11 pg 86 Blanche disappointed the doctor is not Shep Huntleigh
Stella is disappointed at the end. So is Mitch…

19. Construct your own passage-based essay questions
With close reference to this passage, discuss how Williams’ uses dramatic techniques to present his ideas on _____[insert own theme].
SCENE ___[insert own scene]
__________[insert own extract]_______
Which words in this topic are ‘instructional’ words?
What are other names for ‘dramatic techniques’?

20. Theme explored Presented through techniques Author’s attitude Reader’s
EVALUATING
What does this show about the author’s attitude, in your opinion.
CREATING
In what ways would or could reader’s respond to these ideas
ANALYSING
What dramatic and literary devices are used in the text
UNDERSTANDING
Key idea, meaning, message in the text
Theme
explored
Presented
through
techniques
Author’s
attitude
Reader’s
response