What is the Old South?
rural slave reliant states in southern US
What is a Southern Belle?
A beautiful, upper class, white woman from the Old South
Expected to be innocent and fragile, and submissive to their fathers
Supposed to be virtuous and sexually innocent
Grow to be charming ladies who were elegant in speech, feminine and gentle
Often educated
What was significant about William’s characters in his plays?
they can be seen to represent his family members
what do we know about williams mother and father
Father - alcoholic and abusive
Mother - southern belle who resented her husbands behaviour as it didnt reflect well on her status
what did williams suffer from?
alcoholism and depression
what is ‘plastic theatre’?
where the settings, music and visual effects combine to reflect action, themes and characters
what happened to his sister rose?
She was diagnosed with schizophrenia, subjected to a prefrontal lobotomy and permanently institutionalised
what was williams’ sexuality and what did this mean
He was gay
Lived in a time where this was frowned upon and seen as an illness
However the relaxed culture of New Orleans allowed him to explore his sexuality, which contrasted to his conservative puritanical upbringing where he suppressed his desire
He even lived with his (male) partner in the French quarter
New orleans was a _______ where different ______ intersect/interact
cosmopolitan city
cultures and races
New orleans was seen to have a new idea of the ________ about ________
American dream
equality
wha is significant about the racism in the play?
williams doesnt address the racism against african americans, and instead focuses on the racism faced by european immigrants
How were people with mental health problems seen?
seen to be defective and were sent to asylums
seen to be dangerous and unpredictable
Give some examples of treatments used for mentally ill people?
artificial fever therapy
electroshock therapy
lobotomies
what were the problems with mental institutions?
there were over crowded and under staffed
mental illness was seen as a …
mystery as doctors couldnt find an explanation behind it
how many polish people immigrated to america from 1820-1914?
2.2 million
How were the polish people drawn to america? what was the reality
drawn in by the promise of work, however work was hard to find, hours were long and pay was meagre
when was the biggest wave of polish immigration?
after ww1 (stanley was meant to have been one of them)
What character was partly modelled after Williams’ father and how?
Stanley
Excessive drinking, gambling, womanizing ways, abuse
How did Williams help his sister rose
After he became more successful, he provided for her care of a more pleasant private hospital. He often visited her, and took her to see some of his shows
Which character does rose parallel?
Blanche
Rose often detached from reality to cope with stress or abuse, but was very charming to others, and had a habit of talking incessantly when nervous - like Blanche
Blanches worsening symptoms and forced hospitalisation parallels roses life
What is significant about gender roles in the play
End of ww2 caused a resurgence of old family values and gender roles
With men returning from war to reclaim their powerful roles in the home, it meant that images of female empowerment during the war reverted to pre war ideas of marriage and motherhood
Seen through Stella and Stanley’s relationship
What other genre can the play be classed as, what does the this mean and why can the play be classed as that?
Southern gothic (dark controversial stories set in in the southern states of the US)
Tensions between romance and violence in the play
