Aaalysis of Stanley:
- Physical Characteristics
o twenty eight to thirty years old
o Medium height (5 foot 8)
o Strong Compact Build
o Roughly dressed
- Apparel
o Blue Denim work clothes
§ Hes from a lower class. Juxtaposition to Blanche’s white frilly clothes.
o Bowling Jacket
o Coloured Shirts
§ Stanley is colourful both in personality and in his apparel. The colours are in contrast to Blanches white clorhes.
o Oiled clothing
o Silk pyjamas
§ Uses them on marriage night and rape night and
- Stage directions Descriptions
o Peacock
o Gaudy Seed-Bearer
§ Gaudy – extravagant
§ Seedbearer - male
o Appreciation of rough humour, love of good drink and food and games, his car, his radio, everything that is his.
o His life has been pleasure with Women
o Straight forward
o Puts cards on table
- Animalistic references
o Throws
o Animalistic Joy
o He is a “feathered male bird” to the “hens”
o Slams watermelon on the floor
o Violence towards Stella and animalistic moans
- Actions
o “He heaves the package at her. She cries out in protest but manages to catch it: then she laughs breathlessly”
§ Our first impression of Stanley, we get to know what hes about.
o Goes Bowling
§ A Freudian symbol. Bowling ball knocks down the pins…
o He removes his shirt several times throughout the play (when Blanche first comes in being the first time)
§ Puts him in a very sexual as well as a masculine light. When he removes his shirt, words such as “rips” and “tears” are in the stage directions, making him seem animalistic.
o He rumbles through blanche’s things then “he kicks the trunk partly closed”
§ He lacks regard for Blanche’s stuff or feelings
o He turns off the music that Blanche plays during the poker game
§ He wants everything his way. He controls the men’s world as well as the women’s world.
o The rape of blanche
§ Assertion of authority
o Sending blanche to institute
§ He revels in his victory
- Dialogue
o His very speech is sexual innuendos, the best example comes from the very first scene of the play when he says: “catch!” “Meat!”.
o He references animals in his speech. E.g. Whats this monkey doings? This is part of William’s attempt to compare Stanley to an animal.
o He cares only about material rather than sentimental values. Despite the fact that Blanche is noticeably upset, he harrangs her for details of the mansion.
o He states he will get appraisals of blanches furs and “solid gold dress”. This tells us he doesn’t understand Blanche’s world whereas Stella knows Blanche’s things are cheap and nasty.
o He uses colloquialisms such as Subjeck, which help establish his class.
o During scene 2, he talks a lot about the Napoleonic code. The Napoleonic code basically states that anything that belongs to a wife, belongs to the husband and Stanley will use this as justification for prying into Blanches life.
o He likes to be the man incharge and wont let stella or blanche order him around.
o In contrast to Blanche, Stanley likes to “lay his cards on the table”. He also picks up on blanche from the start and instantly notices the fact that she lies about drinking the liquor.
o “I pulled you down from that pedestal and how you loved it”…During a confrontation with Stella regarding blanche
o He mentions that he is the king of the house. “every mans house is his castle”
- Indirect Characterization from others
o He is constantly being demeaned by Blanche. She calls him “an ape from the jungle”, “a relic from the stone age”. Constantly she is comparing him to animals.
o In the scene 4 after the poker night, when Stella moves from Blanche to Stanley, this tells us that Stanley has gained victory over Blanche.
o He is also demeaned by Stella in their final confrontation and called a “pig”