Interpretation Of A Streetcar Named Desire From Polyphonic Perspective

American dramatist Tennessee Williams’ masterpiece A Streetcar Named Desire,is acknowledged as one of the most famous theatrical works in the 20 th century America.It wins readers’ favor and the audience’s heart with its unique style and rich connotation.There are numerous studies on Streetcar but merely few research employs polyphony theory.“Dialogic poetics” or “polyphonic poetics” is the literary theory constructed by Russian form upholder Mikhail Bakhtin when studying novels.Dramatic text is more “dialogic” or “polyphonic” than novels to certain extent.Except for the verbal dialogues,the non-verbal dialogues— action,scene,music,light and other symbols are also elements of “dialogue”.The invisible dialogues which are based on these non-verbal symbols usually function a lot in the works.This research intends to interpret the form and meaning of Streetcar by employing Bakhtin’s polyphony theory.This thesis includes six parts: introduction,four body chapters and conclusion.The introduction part introduces the playwright and his play Streetcar,literature review of Streetcar,polyphony theory,the research questions and research significance.Chapter One analyzes the polyphonic narration of Streetcar by exploring setting,plot and characters so as to disclose the dialogic levels of narration.Chapter Two discusses dialogicality of the stage presentation by analyzing the juxtaposition and blending of dialogues with action,with visual images and with sounds respectively so as to reveal the “interaction” and “communication” between linguistic symbols and non-linguistic symbols.Chapter Three explores the polyphony of Streetcar’s aesthetic style by analyzing the dialogicality of tension,defamiliarization and tragic beauty respectively so as to uncover its aesthetic feature.Chapter Four focuses on “meaning” projected by polyphonic form.The polyphonic form functions as the renewal of the drama form,the reveal of the modern motif and reflection of the social culture as well.The conclusion part summarizes the main idea of the thesis by emphasizing the study of Streetcar from polyphonic perspective can rediscover this play’s artistic value,literary value and cultural value,and even the significance of Bakhtin’s polyphony theory itself in drama study.