Animosity

Animosity The plot of A Streetcar Named Desire is driven by dueling personalities of Blanche and Stanley. The source of their animosity toward each other comes from many sources. These sources include instances where Stanley assumes Blanche sold Belle Reve, Blanche asks Stanley to compliment her, and when Stanley attacks Stella. The first source of Stanley and Blanche’s animosity toward each other is when Stanley assumes Blanche sold Belle Reve. Stanley questions Stella, “she didn’t show you no papers, no deed of sale or nothing like that, huh?” (34). He then brings up the Napoleonic code which states, “what belongs to the wife belongs to the husband and vice versa” (35). Stanley yells and argues with Stella and says how they have been “swindled under the Napoleonic code” (35). Stella insists that it wasn’t sold but Stanley isn’t convinced. He then moves to Blanche’s trunk full of belongings and then asks Stella, “open your eyes to this stuff! You think she got them out of a teachers pay?” (35). After all of this takes place, Stanley assumes that Blanche cheated them out of their share of money, even though Stella insists that it was lost, and all of her belongings were not as expensive and Stanley viewed them to be. Stanley doesn’t care if he offends Blanche because he just wants to know if he and his wife have been cheated out of something that was partly theirs. These series of events clearly show the first source of animosity between Stanley and Blanche. The second source of Stanley and Blanche’s animosity toward each other is when Blanche insists Stanley to compliment on her looks. Blanche is dressing and she asks Stanley, “Would you think it possible that I was once considered to be - attractive?” (39). Blanche is a woman that constantly needs to be complimented. Being from a rich background, she’s used to it. Stanley quickly comments how he “doesn’t go for that stuff” (39), because he never had “met a women before that didn’t know if she was good