Varsouiviana Song
Ever been through a traumatic situation, that you can’t seem to get over? Or there was always something there that reminded you of it? You’re not the only one. The romantic Blanche DuBois is a traumatized protagonist who encounters many crises throughout the play. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams utilizes the “Varsouiviana” (Polka) song in different aspects of the play to reflect the emotional trauma in Blanche’s life.
Williams introduces the Varsouiviana song to associate it with Blanche’s young husband’s death. In scene one, the song plays instantly when Stanley asks, “You were married once, weren’t you?” (28). The Varsouiviana song is the song Blanche and her husband danced to, the night he committed suicide. Blanche memory of her young husband was triggered after Stanley’s question.
The Polka song serves to highlight the guilt she suffers since the night of her husband’s death. In scene six, Blanche is reliving her lost love with Mitch:
[Polka music sounds, in a minor key faint with distance.]
BLANCHE. We danced the Varsouiviana! Suddenly in the middle of the dance the boy I had married broke away from me and ran out of the casino. A few moments later—a shot!
Williams starts the music off in a minor faint, indicating the emotional anguish that is soon to overcome …show more content…
The Varsouiviana plays when the Mexican woman says, “Flores? Flores para los muertos?’ (148). In other words, she is saying “Flowers? Flowers for the dead?”. The woman causes Blanche to recall many disastrous events, including her husband’s death simultaneously. The Mexican woman is symbolized as one of many demons Blanche cannot ditch. Suddenly, the Polka fades. Mitch desires Blanche sexually, however Blanche wants him to marry her first. Mitch rejects her because she is “not clean enough to bring in the house…” (150). Blanche is enraged; his refusal results to her living in the internal world of
Williams introduces the Varsouiviana song to associate it with Blanche’s young husband’s death. In scene one, the song plays instantly when Stanley asks, “You were married once, weren’t you?” (28). The Varsouiviana song is the song Blanche and her husband danced to, the night he committed suicide. Blanche memory of her young husband was triggered after Stanley’s question.
The Polka song serves to highlight the guilt she suffers since the night of her husband’s death. In scene six, Blanche is reliving her lost love with Mitch:
[Polka music sounds, in a minor key faint with distance.]
BLANCHE. We danced the Varsouiviana! Suddenly in the middle of the dance the boy I had married broke away from me and ran out of the casino. A few moments later—a shot!
Williams starts the music off in a minor faint, indicating the emotional anguish that is soon to overcome …show more content…
The Varsouiviana plays when the Mexican woman says, “Flores? Flores para los muertos?’ (148). In other words, she is saying “Flowers? Flowers for the dead?”. The woman causes Blanche to recall many disastrous events, including her husband’s death simultaneously. The Mexican woman is symbolized as one of many demons Blanche cannot ditch. Suddenly, the Polka fades. Mitch desires Blanche sexually, however Blanche wants him to marry her first. Mitch rejects her because she is “not clean enough to bring in the house…” (150). Blanche is enraged; his refusal results to her living in the internal world of