Streetcar Named Desire Blanche's Defense

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Blanche’s True Story Is Blanche Dubois in Tennessee William’s “A Streetcar names Desire” is painted as somewhat of a sympathetic character. While to many that may be viewed as a stretch and many have the tendency to condemn her for her actions, to argue in her defense is not all that ludicrous. Each person is responsible for their action and reaction to any challenge that life presents, one has to ask what is one supposed to do when life is just too much? What are one’s options when tragedies roll through one after the other like a freight train? What is a person who has just been concurrent “bad cards” supposed to do? Is it so wrong to try to turn against what one was brought up to believe in order to escape the harsh realities of daily life? Was Blanche then wrong for trying her best to conceal her past and attempt a new life, a new identity? Blanche’s issue is that she is motivated by her desires and those desires lead her to be impulsive. Still she is a product of the sum of all the bad things that had happened in her life, the blunt of which she did not ask for. First the deception and eventual suicide of her husband, followed by the public scandal of her being outed for seeking solace in one of her students compounded by the huge responsibility keeping her family estate up and running, it was just too much for one person to handle. She was a victim of grave misfortune and very few people would be able to think and act rationally given those odds. Blanche’s demise began at a very young age when her husband committed suicide because she found out, confronted and berated him for his homosexuality. As a person motivated by desire it is not hard to imagine the hurt she must have felt upon discovery of his deception and his cowardice resolution of suicide must have further infuriated and humiliated her. Having not willingly entered into a marriage with a
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