A Study Of Tennessee Williams'Sexist Vision Of Females Through The Analysis Of The Characters In A Streetcar Named Desire

Tennessee Williams is the most extraordinary and the most controversial American playwright. Among many of his works. A Streetcar Named Desire is the most successful.Whether at home or abroad, some studies conducted upon him and his A Streetcar Named Desire mainly lie in his attitude toward women's tragic life, such as those southern belles, represented by Blanche DuBois in particular, who cocoons in the illusion, denies the present, will surely be doomed by the reality. Some else mostly focus on his dramatic techniques, such as the visual elements like symbolism and expressionism. However, a thorough study of his vision of females has not yet been given an adequate attention. What's more, concerning this aspect, the mainstream research so far is limited to the playwright's ambivalent vision of females.In this paper, by referring to the feminist approach and the feminist narratology theory, combined with the previous information about the playwright's growing background and creative career, a comprehensive analysis of the main characters as well as the inevitable and inextricable conflicts between them is earned forward. And from the perspective of male bias, this thesis aims at achieving two tasks. On the one side, try to explore Williams" sexist vision of females in accord with his true gender consciousness. For example, when judging a woman, male's criterion of the patriarchal society is applied by Williams. On the other side, try to interpret the relationship between his sexist vision of females and its reflections and impact on his characters molding, especially the female characters and their tragic fate. For example, from the aspect of narrative perspective, through the vivid description of the conflicts between Blanche and the others, the playwright not only deliberately places Blanche in an embarrassing situation where prejudice against females prevails, but mainly refers to Stanley's side regarding the irreconcilable conflicts so that Blanche is deprived of anything to say in explanation of her behavior and Stanley can therefore always escape from the accusation he laid against Blanche. Thus, Williams'male bias is clearly exposed that he also treats the females as the second sex. However, in the play, his sexism is sheltered from the sympathy and concern he shows toward women under his professional artistic skills in employing theatrical devices to characterize female ladies. Williams who possibly subjectively feels pity on females facilitates the alienation of the female identity. Therefore, Williams just subconsciously acts as the spreader of male chauvinism. And, in this way, we can gain another understanding of Tennessee Williams and his literary creation from a new angle.