On The Destruction Of Blanche Dubois's Ego

Blanche DuBois in Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire is a very important character. Her personality and tragic experience have aroused some critical interest and provoked different comments. Some critics take it as a moral play in which a degenerated woman suffered from her own sexual promiscuity, while others believe that Blanche's story is a unique case inapplicable to other people. Besides, Tennessee Williams is often regarded as a playwright devoted to the psychological description of his characters. In conclusion, the play is often regarded as an individual experience in which some memorable characters are presented.The present author argues that the above conclusion is an oversimplification of the thematic significance of the play. Blanche DuBois is by no means unique. Her seemingly unacceptable personality and tragedy spring from the southern aristocratic background which must have produced numerable other Blanches. These* southern gentlewomen may not suffer as much as Blanche does, but in essence their tragic destinies are all derived from a social factor, not a personality defection. In this light, Tennessee Williams is not merely a psychological writer but more importantly a social writer.A sizable portion of the discussion focuses on the character analysis .of Blanche DuBois. Some other characters who constitute the hostile environment in which Blanche is destroyed and their respective relationships with Blanche are also given due attention in the analysis. Stanley Kowalski, in direct opposition to Blanche, receives priority and emphasis in the analysis. Stella Kowalski, Stanley's wife and Blanche's sister, and the gentleman caller Mitch are also indispensable to the overall comprehension of Blanche's personality and tragedy.Following the presentation and analysis of the characters in the social context, we adopt psychoanalysis with its key concepts to facilitate the psychological exploration of Blanche's tragedy. Her neurotic symptoms and the conflict between her id and superego are analyzed so as to present an in-depth view of her psychological dilemma.Based on the above analysis, the paper finally arrives at the conclusion thatBlanche's tragedy is due to her inner conflict between id and superego. The conflict and its externalization finally reduce Blanche to a neurotic patient in the end.