An Analysis Of The Characterization In A Streetcar Named Desire Through Interpersonal Meaning

Based on the framework of interpersonal meaning in Halliday's systemic functional grammar, the main purpose of this thesis is to explore the characterization and relationships in this play through the analysis of dialogues between the main characters in A Streetcar Named Desire.In this thesis, the writer intends to make a study on the interpersonal meaning in A Streetcar Named Desire by using of mood, modality and appraisal systems and theories from other scholars in this field. Through mood, which is realized by all kinds of sentence patterns, the interaction between the speakers can be realized. Through modality, which is realized by the modal auxiliaries and modal content elements, the speakers'characters can be reflected. Through the appraisal system, which is realized by affect, judgment and appreciation, the speakers'attitudes and opinions can be reflected.Based on those systems, we can find the personalities and relationships between Blanche and Stanley clearly through their dialogues. Blanche is a self-centered, hypocrisy woman and overly concerned with her appearance, while Stanley has little education, but is extremely passionate and handsome. As Blanche and Stanley have different backgrounds and ideas, their confrontations go through the whole play.This research gives us a new perspective to the study of characters in a play. Meanwhile, this research is also valuable to our future researches on interpersonal meaning in discourse analysis.