Blanche

While it is easy to dismiss Blanche Dubois as an aging delusional woman obsessed with maintaining the illusion of being a southern belle, readers discover throughout the span of the play that her character is far more complex. At first glance, she can easily appear pretentious. She is obsessed with her heritage and the prestige associated with it. She portrays herself as a young southern belle and constructs elaborate lies to maintain this illusion. Blanche attempts to be seen as refined and genteel, especially when in the presence of potential male suitors such as Mitch. The reality is that the southern aristocracy, this beautiful dream, is becoming obsolete. The new American society consists of people like Stanley, immigrants working towards what is considered the American dream. She and Stanley perfectly contrast each other in many ways, but like Stanley, there are many levels to Blanche. Much like the pretentious lifestyle and codes of conduct that she yearns for so much, that southern belle part of Blanche is also a thing of the past. However, that doesn’t stop her from clinging onto it and still pretending to embody that image.

As the play unfolds, more about Blanche’s tragic history is revealed, providing the reader with more insight into her actual identity. Stanley discovers and exposes Blanche’s lies about her past. She is not a demure dainty woman but rather one that does what needs to be done in order to survive, even if it involves depending on other people. She even says to the doctor in the final lines of the play “Whoever you are—I have always depended on the kindness of others” (1602). The sad truth is that many of the people in her past were only there for her in exchange for sex.

While to others she is delusional, in her eyes, she is merely making “magic” which she tries to explain to Mitch when she states, “I don’t want realism. I want magic! . . . I try to give that to people . . . I don’t tell the truth, I tell what ought to be the truth” (1590). Her reason for lying is because her fantasy world is so much more glamorous than poverty, losing Belle Reve, her fading beauty, and Alan’s death, all of which are reality. She has been hurt by reality in the past and it is understandable that she attempts to escape it through drinking, leaving the lights off, dressing up in expensive clothes, and lying.

One moment in which Blanche does appear to be truthful and faces brutal reality is during her conversation with Mitch in which she tells him about Alan’s death. She seems to get caught up in her story and continues talking until she tells Mitch everything, until she finally gets it all out in the open. Another moment where the reader sees Blanche for who she really is instead of the person she wants to be, is when Blanche breaks down in front of Mitch and admits to her past. She acknowledges that she slept with strangers and her seventeen year old student. She explains that she was “played out” and had nowhere else to go (1590-1591). These two passages allow the reader to gain a better understanding of Blanche and perhaps see her in a kinder more forgiving light.