Scene Seven: Summary & Tragedy Ideas

Literature in English: Cambridge International GCSE A Streetcar Named Desire, topic 2.3.3

Scene Seven: Summary

Scene Seven begins with Stella making preparations for Blanche’s birthday, but purposefully Williams does not reveal how old she will be.

Stanley now tells Stella that he has proof about Blanche’s true circumstances, again noting that she is the common one, not him. Stanley appears to be aware of the lies that she has been feeding Mitch.
Whilst Blanche sings obliviously, Stanley fills Stella in with the truth about her sister, including her fame in Laurel, her stay at the Hotel Flamingo and the scandal it generated. All the while Stanley relays this information, Blanche sings of love.

Blanche sings of a "Paper Moon" whilst Stanley says that "she has been washed up like poison".
A paper moon is fragile, which is exactly what Blanche is like.
Stanley then reveals to Stella that Blanche was fired from her teaching job for having sex with a student. The incident created a huge scandal in Laurel.
It has also been confirmed that she lived at a hotel known for prostitution (the Flamingo).

Stella says that she does not believe the stories that Stanley has dug up and asks whether he has told Mitch. Stanley says that he has informed Mitch.
Eventually, Stanley loses his patience with Blanche’s singing and her continually being in the bathroom. He asks her to come out.

When Blanche comes out, the two cross each other and Stanley says nothing to her.
Blanche asks Stella what has happened, but Stella denies there is a problem. Williams has a stage direction where Blanche "stares fearfully".

Here are some key ideas that relate to the idea of tragedy:

This scene provides many of the structural revelations in the tragedy.
We learn that Blanche has been lying and that Stanley’s source seems to offer a truthful account of Blanche’s past. She did have sex with an underage student and she did spend some time at the Hotel Flamingo.

Blanche’s tragic trajectory seems set because of her lies and cover-ups about her past. She has tried to manipulate the truth about her past but this has not worked. Distance from Laurel has not saved her.
Stanley, Stella and Mitch are all confronted by these truths. Mitch is bound to be devastated about the revelations. He put trust in Blanche.

Like in most tragedies, the tragic heroine is running out of options and places to run.

When it comes down to it, what Blanche has done is not that earth-shattering or tragic. She has simply made a mistake, but the community and the society are punishing her for this. This is what she has been arguing throughout the drama.