Hunnicutt 1

Alcohols Role in A Streetcar Named Desire

J.D. Hunnicutt

Alcohol, when used as a literary device, can interpret and develop character personality traits. Alcohol can be shown by the author as a unifying social tool, bringing people together in harmony and celebratory union. Alcohol can also be used to demonstrate a characters personal flaws by attempting to conceal the abuse of it. It can reflect the moral and social standings of individual characters, both by the amount and type of alcohol consumed. In A Streetcar Named

Hunnicutt 2 Desire, Tennessee Williams uses aspects of alcohols force in order to define and deepen both his characters and the character relationships he imposes. By examining how the use of alcohol affects Stella, Stanley and Blanche, Williams development of all the characters, their interactions with others and the environment in which they exist can be better understood and defined. Although Stellas personal use of alcohol is limited in A Streetcar Named Desire, her interactions with individuals who are using and abusing alcohol help to define her characters personality traits. From the opening scene, Stella is shown to be an enabler of her sister Blanches abuse of alcohol. As Stella arrives back to her home and reunites with Blanche, she is overwhelmed with the situation. Blanches overexuberance in their reunion leads directly into her desire for a drink (Norton 1164). Stella allows herself to turn a blind eye to her sisters behavior, which in turn allows Blanche to drink more of the whiskey. She even offers Blanche another drink, an offer to which Blanche politely refuses. Stella demonstrates the social use of alcohol as a uniting force, allowing herself instead to enable her sisters alcoholism to develop. She does not even comment when, after Blanches initial refusal of an extra drink, her sister indeed does take the drink (Norton 1165). Alcohol also helps to shape Stellas relationship with her husband, Stanley. The clearest indication of this occurs after the poker game in which Stanley and his friends are involved. Being intoxicated after an evening of beer and whiskey, Stanleys violence rises to the surface and erupts when Blanche turns on the radio (Norton 1181). Stanley, in his alcohol-fueled rage, throws the radio out of the window. This action forces Stella to call her husband a drunk animal thing, to which Stanley begins to physically confront his wife (Norton 1181). Her reaction to this alludes to the fact that this type of confrontation is not unusual for the couple.

Hunnicutt 3 Stanley, in a moment of clarity, realizes what he has done and pleads for Stella to return to him in an iconic reversal of Shakespeares famous balcony scene from his Romeo and Juliet. Instead of the romantic youth, Stanley is a bellowing animal, screaming at the heavens (Norton 1183). Williams blends this eruption of anger seamlessly into the subsequent scene, where Stella excuses Stanley for his violent behavior (Norton 1184). Here again, Williams shows Stella to be an enabler for alcohols use and abuse by those around her. She explains in simple terms to her sister that alcohol-infused rages are just part of Stanleys nature and thus a part of normal male behavior (Norton 1184). It is as part of this accepted male behavior that Stanley uses alcohol to establish himself as the dominant figure in any situation. From his first arrival back home to meet Blanche, Stanley examines his liquor bottle and notices its depletion (Norton 1169). This protective nature of what he considers to be his demonstrates both Stanleys desire for control and also his immediate distrust of Blanche. Unlike Stella, Stanley recognizes Blanches alcoholic nature, telling her in no uncertain terms after Blanche weakly refuses his offer of a shot of whiskey that Some people rarely touch it, but it touches them often (Norton 1169). This insight by Stanley into Blanches true tendencies and need for alcohol illustrates Stanleys natural desire for control. He views Blanches alcoholism as a force outside of his complete control and therefore creates tension between the two. Stanleys use of alcohol and its effects upon his character come to the surface during the poker game he has at his home with his male friends. It is in this setting that Stanley is shown to be the alpha male amongst his social group. Throughout the scene, Stanley is in control, telling his friends what particular game they are to play, when to drink and what to do (Norton 11761177). The drinks of Stanleys choice, beer and whiskey, are also symbols of masculinity and the

Hunnicutt 4 male-driven desire to consume alcohol as part of the social order. Both types of alcohol are considered inherently masculine and therefore desirous to Stanley in order to protect his image as the infallible male. The combination of this alcohol indulgence and the game of poker create an atmosphere intended to establish male bonding and social order while at the same time excluding all aspects of the feminine. The shattering of this exclusion by Stella and Blanches return helps to expose Stanleys desire for order. Without alcohol, Stanley would be more inclined to take a quieter stance on the disruption of his male order. Under the influence of alcohol however, Stanleys base animalistic behavior comes to the forefront. Mitch, one of Stanleys main poker friends, is shown to be second to Stanley in the male order when he takes charge of the disintegration of the poker game and with it, the order of the social group (Norton 1182). As Stanley rages, Mitch, under the affects of alcohol himself, takes control of the group and places Stanley into the shower. This designation of social order is directly related to alcohol being used to unite the male group. Alcohols influence is again witnessed to drive Stanleys aggression when he confronts a drunken Blanche in his home. In a celebratory mood over the birth of his child, Stanley arrives drunk with beer. Here, alcohol is shown as a force of happiness. This force however quickly disintegrates with Stanleys controlling nature again coming to the forefront. Unable to control his disdain for Blanches behavior any longer, he calls her out for the faade she has become. He finally confronts her over her underlying alcoholism, accusing her of swilling down my liquor (Norton 1215). Both characters confront one another under the influence of alcohol, which leads to Stanley physically taking Blanche sexually. Without alcohol, this encounter would lack the violent nature Williams intended (Norton 1216).

Hunnicutt 5 From the beginning of A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche DuBois is the character most consumed with and under the control of alcohol. Her abuse is the most troubling. While Stanleys use of alcohol and its effect over him is clearly in the foreground of his actions, Blanche drinks in secret and lies to everyone concerning her indulgent use. The first sign of this occurs when Blanche arrives to her sisters home. She sees a bottle of whiskey and immediately drinks half a tumbler of the whiskey before replacing the bottle (Norton 1163). When Stella returns, Blanche pours more drinks, her sister oblivious to Blanches previous imbibement of the same liquor (Norton 1164). When Stella offers her another, Blanche politely refuses, informing her sister that ones my limit (Norton 1165). Lying of her alcohol use is an immediate indicator that she is an alcoholic and using alcohol to mask underlying problems. Blanches lying behavior concerning her alcoholism continues to define her as a character that cannot be trusted. Upon meeting Mitch, she asks him to excuse her behavior because two drinks is her limit, but tonight she has had three (Norton 1180). This lie reflects back to the opening, where Blanche has three drinks of whiskey and remains unaffected. Blanche continues to develop excuses for her alcohol use. When she is given a Coke by Stella, Blanche requests a shot of whiskey to be placed into it (Norton 1191). Here Williams demonstrates the casual abuse of alcohol by Blanche, indicating that alcohol has transformed from a mere indulgence into a true addiction and part of Blanches natural behavior. Blanches unwillingness to confront the roots of her dependency and remain tied to her addiction to alcohol eventually leads to her being institutionalized and unable to cope with the reality of her life (Norton 1221). Williams choice of whiskey as the alcohol drunk by both Stanley and Blanche is an important part of their relationship in A Streetcar Named Desire. Traditionally, whiskey is symbolic of masculine alcohol consumption. For Stanley, his use of whiskey demonstrates his

Hunnicutt 6 male poweress. He drinks his whiskey out in the open, for all of his peers to see (Norton 1176). Blanche, however, drinks whiskey hidden away from the eyes of those who might judge her (Norton 1163). Any type of habitual drinking was considered very unladylike in the 1940s, but the abuse of whiskey would be even more so. The nature dichotomy of whiskey creates a great symbol defining what is acceptable by the society of Blanche and Stanley. Being one of the main thematic symbols of A Streetcar Named Desire, alcohol defines all who use it. Whether its use is enabled by Stella, used to define the alpha male status of Stanley or to cover Blanches mental fragility, alcohol drives the base actions and desires throughout Williams play. In doing so, alcohol is shown to be naturally inert, with the characters themselves defining it as a positive of negative force. Alcohol breaks the interpersonal walls it encounters and shows Stella, Stanley and Blanches true nature. Without alcohols use in A Streetcar Named Desire, these walls would remain and the characters involved would never be shown for who they truly are.

Works Cited The Norton Anthology of American Literature: Shorter Seventh Edition, Vol. 2. Ed. Nina Baym. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2008. Print.