Scene Ten - Quotations
Literature in English: Cambridge International GCSE A Streetcar Named Desire, topic 8.1.10
Key Quotation from Scene Ten
Stanley has returned home to the apartment because Stella is not yet ready to give birth. The audience recognises the sexual danger of Stanley and Blanche being alone together.
"Fireman's ball"
- Stanley jokes about Blanche attending the "fireman’s ball" – obviously a reference to her cries at the end of Scene Nine.
"Casting her pearls"
- Blanche continues to refer to the fact that she is cultivated and intelligent, and that she has been "casting her pearls before swine" before.
"Walking papers"
- Blanche explains that she has given Mitch his "walking papers" – an ironic reference to the papers from earlier on in the play.
"Queen of the Nile"
- Stanley calls Blanche a "Queen of the Nile". This seems to imply that she is Cleopatra-like and a temptress.
Test yourself on Scene Ten - Quotations
What does Blanche say of herself in Scene Ten?