Custom «Sympathy in “A Streetcar Named Desire”» Essay Paper Sample

Blanche goes through a lot of mental torture through out the play. Due to the fact and her revelations of the past, one can easily sympathize with her. However, her actions at times do not evoke sympathy as revelations of her past and her behavior cross the readers judgment. She evokes contrasting emotions but in genera, she evokes a lot of sympathy especially in the way the play ends. The story unfolds in a way that at first, one will feel sorry for her. Unaware of her past and inadequacies, her present state is pitiful. She has no place to call home. Blanche is one character whose behaviors contrast greatly creating a paradox. The final view, however, is that she begs a lot of sympathy.

She arrives at the apartment “daintily dressed” and it is clear she has problems. It is clear that some terrible things have led her to her current situation and this is where she is first sympathized with. In the way she talks non-stop and assaults her sister, it is clear she needs some kind of affection. We find out that all her relations are dead and that she has lost Belle Reve, the family mansion that she called home.

It is brought out that something in the past makes her resentful to relationships and men in general. She vomits at the sight of Stanley removing his shirt. We later learn that she was married but it went wrong on realizing that he was a homosexual. The man had also committed suicide. Her emotional turmoil can be based on this tragedy.

The second scene further brings out the fact that she vomits since there are some things in her past that she is not proud of. We see her two sides; the broken woman in pain and the second, what the world has made her into. Her flirting with Stanley can be attributed to her stress. When she meets Mitch, she thanks him for being kind and says it is what she needs. It is sympathetic that she desires so little from people.

The fourth scene brings out sympathy in that Stanley overhears her saying bad things about him. It is clear she will be the target of his fury. The next scene gives a peak into her past where she slept with women. It is clear she did this solely for companion and love. It is sympathetic that Stanley finds about her hidden past and could use it to manipulate her.

The events that follow include Stanley giving her ticket to Laurel, a hint that he knows her secrets. Her blossoming love for Mitch is shattered as he discovers she is not what she pretends to be. Her past comes back and she goes mad. Stanley rapes her at this traumatic time and that fact that even her sister cannot believe her is sympathetic.

The last scene is a special revelation of how she should not be blamed for her actions; rather, she is a victim of her past. She is taken to a mental hospital and the trademark words “Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.” This was when she had been resisting and she accepts since he calls her “Miss Dubois.” To her, she has found the one person who respects her. It reveals that the characters roles have contributed to her downfall. No one had bothered to accord her such respect.

This further reveals that Blanche might have been a better person if overcome had not judged her past so harshly. It is due to her trauma and the revelation that the past will continue to haunt her that she goes mad. This is quite sympathetic and the play ends on that note.