Marxist Lens: Representations of Power in Streetcar

Blanche's character

Stanley’s Perspective

on Blanche

• He knows that she is untrustworthy
• He despises that she feels as if she is superior towards the other characters

• She tells lies in order to make herself look better
• Stanley eventually exposes the truth about her life

• He also ruins her relationship with Mitch
• He hates the aristocratic past Blanche belonged in

Marxist Lens: Representations of Power in Streetcar

• Hopeless woman who has lost estate, husband and dignity
• An aging southern belle
• Insecure, frail and delicate
• Unsure about the future
• Lives in panic that she wont be able to find a man
• Scared that her beauty will fade

Blanche’s superiority

• She feels like she is better than everyone
• She degrades Stanley by calling him a “Polack”
• She judges the place Stella lives in
• She speaks poorly of everything Stanley loves

"Oh, I guess he’s just not the type that goes for jasmine perfume, but maybe he’s what we need to mix with our blood now that we’ve lost Belle Reve." -Blanche DuBois

Intro to Marxism

Blanche DuBois

<- Karl Marx (1818-1883)

Stanley Kowalski

Marxist Criticism “Into” Activity

-Introduced concept of dialectal materialism, a view that all change

is the product of the struggle between opposites generated in all

events, idea, and movements

• Stanley represents the "new American society" composed of immigrants and workers who were seen as a new brand of American heroes after WWII, because they accomplished things with their own hands & took pride in being an American
• He takes pride in seducing Stella from her aristocratic background: "You showed me the snapshot of the place with the columns. I pulled you down off the columns and how you loved it..." (p 112)
• Hates Blanche partially because she represents the old Southern aristocratic society.

Stanley and Stella Kowalski

Which of the following Marks’ quotes do you think is the most relevant to Marxism?

Argued we lived in a material reality based not on spirituality but

social and cultural circumstances

A) “The lack of money is the root of all evil.”- Mark Twain

-Stated that history is determined by economic conditions and urged an end to private ownership

Stella and Stanley's

relationship

B) “We're running the company to serve more people.” – Mark Zuckerberg

C) “I live a bourgeois life.”- Mark Ruffalo

• Stanley controls Stella and attempts to control her finances (The Napoleonic Code)
• Stanley is aggressive and hits Stella when he gets upset (especially when confronted with Blanche's economic background) or drunk.
• Able to smooth it over with sex and a $10 bill given to Stella
• "There are things that happen between a man and a woman in the dark- that sort of make everything else - unimportant" (p. 70)

D) “If I succeed in business but fail as a father, then I've failed.”- Mark Wahlberg

The poker games evoke Stanley's inner bestial aggression

Stanley's Soft Side

Works Cited

• Stanley falls into sobs when Stella leaves him
• Stella is able to hold some power in their relationship in her ability to provide for his needs as the docile homemaker, but also as his sexual partner
• Stanley grows affectionate and calm at the very mention of their unborn child

Delahoyde, Michael. “Marxist Criticism.” Washington State University. Washington State University, n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2014. <http://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/marxist.crit.html>

Dobie, Ann. Theory into Practice: An introduction to Literary Criticism. Boston: Thomson Learning, 2011. Print.

Karagiorgis, Theologia. "The Arts in New York City: Form, Content, Context." » Group 3: A Streetcar Named Desire. The Arts in New York CIty, n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2014, <http://macaulay.cuny.edu/eportfolios/saslow09/theater/group-3>

Eunice

• Lower class woman
• Stella’s friend who lives with her husband Steve
• Accepts her husband’s abuse like Stella
• “Life has got to go on. No matter what happens, you’ve got to keep going” (133).

Now, with your expanded knowledge, use the techniques you learned to further connect the quote you chose earlier to Marxist Criticism.

<- Frederich Engels (1820-1895)

-Co-authored The Communist Manifesto with Marx

Minor Characters in Streetcar

-Shared basic Marxist assumptions that in a capitalist society, struggle would take place between Bourgeoisies and Proletariat.

Mexican Woman

-Believed work would influence working class to take control of economic production and create a classless society

• Very low class
• A blind woman who sells flowers to show respect for dead during Scene 9.
• Just trying to make a few dollars by selling flowers in the neighborhood
• “Flores. Flores. Flores para las muertos” (119).

Marxism to Marxist Criticism

*Bourgeoisie: The name given by Marx to owners of the means

of production in a society

*Proletariat: The name given by Marx to the workers in a society

-Adopted as a method of literary analysis early on by Russia, where literature was linked to the philosophies of Marx and Engel

Mitch

<- György Lukács (1885-1971)

• Stanley’s friend, coworker, poker buddy
• Sensitive man that Blanche wanted to marry

• Very masculine yet sensitive and was compassionate towards Blanche when she was taken by the doctors.
• Closely associated with masculinity when he assaults Blanche

- First major Marxist critic who developed reflection theory (also known as Vulgar Marxism) with emphasis on determining the true nature of a society by analyzing the author’s text

The Doctor

Louis Althusser (1918-1990) ->

• Initially seemed heartless when he grabbed Blanche, but was actually kind and gentle.
• Perfect fit to Blanche’s image of her heroic, Southern man.
• It was in his power to take Blanche into the mental institution because of his societal role as a doctor

-Asserted rather than literature just being a reflection of society, the opposite was also true

Pointed out the working class’ potential to develop its own power base

Ideas referred to as “Production Theory”

<- Fredric Jameson (1934-Present)

-Defined Marxist critics as those who seek to uncover the political unconscious, which is the exploitation and oppression buried in a work.

*Power Base: a source of authority, influence, or support, especially in politics or negotiations

By: Nicole, Lara, Jasmin, and Kyle