1.2.2

Social Issues

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Social Issues Raised in A Streetcar Named Desire

Here are some key ideas about social issues found in A Streetcar Named Desire:

Sexual frustration

Sexual frustration

  • The play suggests that modern society is underpinned by sexual frustrations of all kinds and types because society appears to repress people - particularly women - as seen in Blanche DuBois.
Class struggle

Class struggle

  • In this play, class struggle is connected to sex. Sexual encounters happen across class barriers. For example:
    • Middle-class Stella’s union with the more working-class Stanley.
    • Blanche DuBois' fantasies and relationship with a student.
Violence

Violence

  • Violence is usually seen within the domestic setting in A Streetcar Named Desire.
  • Cultural violence is also present, forced upon the mixed-race characters and the "Polacks" as migrants.
Rejection and longing

Rejection and longing

  • Several characters seek out longing (eg Blanche herself, Mitch and Stanley) but often, they do not find it or they are rejected from the process.

Social Issues Raised in A Streetcar Named Desire

Here are some key ideas about social issues found in A Streetcar Named Desire:

Cruelty and suffering

Cruelty and suffering

  • The suffering and cruelty in tragedies like A Streetcar Named Desire is not usually physical or very horrific. Characters tend to suffer psychologically.
Aberrations

Aberrations

  • Aberrations are distortions in a society that cause conflict and hurt.
  • Blanche’s choices cause aberrations, but social aberrations also caused her situation.
Fantasies

Fantasies

  • In A Streetcar Named Desire, fantasies about social refinement and grandeur are undercut and destroyed.
  • Blanche and Stella have these sorts of fantasies.
Jump to other topics
1

Context & Overview

1.1

The Author

1.1.1Tennessee Williams
1.2

Social Context & Setting

1.2.1Social Context1.2.2Social Issues1.2.3Setting
1.3

Tragedy

1.3.1Overview of the Tragic Genre1.3.2Modern Domestic Tragedy1.3.3End of Topic Test - Author, Context & Tragedy
2

Scene Summaries

2.1

Scene One

2.1.1Scene One: Summary2.1.2Scene One: Tragedy Ideas
2.2

Scene Two

2.2.1Scene Two: Summary & Tragedy Ideas2.2.2End of Topic Test - Scenes One-Two
2.3

Scene Three

2.3.1Scene Three: Summary & Tragedy Ideas
2.4

Scene Four

2.4.1Scene Four: Summary & Tragedy Ideas2.4.2End of Topic Test - Scenes Three & Four
2.5

Scene Five

2.5.1Scene Five: Summary & Tragedy Ideas
2.6

Scene Six

2.6.1Scene Six: Summary
2.7

Scene Seven

2.7.1Scene Seven: Summary & Tragedy Ideas
2.8

Scene Eight

2.8.1Scene Eight: Summary & Tragedy Ideas2.8.2End of Topic Test - Scenes Five-Eight
2.9

Scene Nine

2.9.1Scene Nine: Summary & Tragedy Ideas
2.10

Scene Ten

2.10.1Scene Ten: Summary & Tragedy Ideas
2.11

Scene Eleven

2.11.1Scene Eleven: Summary & Tragedy Ideas2.11.2End of Topic Test - Scenes Nine-Eleven
3

Character Profiles

3.1

Blanche DuBois & Stanley Kowalski

3.1.1Blanche DuBois - The Past & Illusions3.1.2Blanche DuBois - Relationship with Men & Breakdown3.1.3The Dynamic Between Blanche & Stanley3.1.4End of Topic Test - Blanche & Stanley
3.2

Stella Kowalski & Harold Mitchell (Mitch)

3.2.1Stella Kowalski3.2.2Harold Mitchell (Mitch)
3.3

Minor Characters

3.3.1The Hubbels & Other Characters3.3.2End of Topic Test - Stella, Mitch & Others
4

Key Ideas

4.1

Sex & Gender

4.1.1Sex & Desire4.1.2Masculinity & Femininity4.1.3End of Topic Test - Sex, Desire & Gender
4.2

Appearances, Fantasy & Reality

4.2.1Outer & Inner Appearances4.2.2Fantasy & Reality4.2.3End of Topic Test - Appearances, Fantasy...
5

Writing Techniques

5.1

Structure

5.1.1Structure & Stage Design5.1.2Linking Devices5.1.3Recurring Motifs
5.2

Genre, Form & Language

5.2.1Genre5.2.2Form & Language5.2.3End of Topic Test - Writing Techniques
6

Critical Debates

6.1

Early & Modern Reception

6.1.1Interpreting Blanche & Self-Pity6.1.2Contemporary & Modern Reviews
6.2

Feminist, Psychoanalytic & Marxist Approach

6.2.1Feminist Approach6.2.2Psychoanalytic Approach6.2.3Marxist Approach6.2.4End of Topic Test - Critical Debates
7

Ideas About Tragedy

7.1

Ideas About Tragedy

7.1.1Tragic Ideas & Villain7.1.2Tragic Structure & Language
8

Recap: Main Quotes

8.1

Main Quotes by Scene

8.1.1Scene One - Quotations8.1.2Scene Two - Quotations8.1.3Scene Three - Quotations8.1.4Scene Four - Quotations8.1.5Scene Five - Quotations8.1.6Scene Six - Quotations8.1.7Scene Seven - Quotations8.1.8Scene Eight - Quotations8.1.9Scene Nine - Quotations8.1.10Scene Ten - Quotations8.1.11Scene Eleven - Quotations

Practice questions on Social Issues

Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.

  1. 1
    What derogatory term is used of Poles in _A Streetcar Named Desire_?Multiple choice
  2. 2
    Who experiences cultural violence in _A Streetcar Named Desire_?Fill in the list
  3. 3
    What is the term for distortions in a society that cause conflict and hurt?Multiple choice
  4. 4
    Which two characters have fantasies about social refinement and grandeur?Fill in the list
  5. 5
    How do characters tend to suffer in _A Streetcar Named Desire_?Multiple choice
Answer all questions on Social Issues

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Social Context

Setting