The loss of traditional values can be seen at the beginning of the drama by the portraiture of the attenuation Southern beauty, Blanche, in Laurel, Mississippi. Her place, Belle Reve, and household lucks were gone. It reveals that she is holding a fiscal trouble. Since she lost her immature hubby to suicide old ages before, she has a strong demand for human fondness. Subsequently, she was fired from her occupation as an English instructor because she had an matter with a adolescent pupil. Finally, she has no pick but to travel to New Orleans at the Kowalski flat. It triggers the struggles and forces between traditional values and modern beliefs.
Blanche is an upper-class adult female whose societal position is higher than that of Stanley who is a low-class working adult male. Blanche ‘s high quality can be seen from her visual aspects and attitudes. She is dressed in a all right white suit when she arrives at the Kowalski flat and is transporting a bag with a expression of incredulity at a piece of paper in her manus and so at the edifice ( pg. 1142 ) . She does non experience comfy life in the shabby and crowded Kowalski ‘s two-room flat and she is annoyed with the noisy and working-class vicinity. It shows that she is out of topographic point in the vicinity. She is surprised to larn that Stella has no amah. She criticizes the topographic point and societal environment where Stella lives and convinces her to go forth Stanley for a better adult male whose societal position peers Stella ‘s. Blanche is an educated and civilised adult female. Her cognition of literature can be seen from her talk of the poetic lettering of Mitch ‘s coffin nail instance ( pg. 1160 ) .
On the other manus, Stanley is the representation of the modern and industrial universe which suggests pragmatism. He is a adult male who represents the new American and the lower-class. Stanley ‘s lower-class position is apparent in Blanche ‘s remark. She describes Stanley as an “ apelike ” animal from the Stone Age and a crude adult male who has non yet come to “ the phase of humanity ” and does non cognize how to appreciate art such as poesy and music ( pg. 1169 ) . Stanley says that he is a “ societal leveler ” and it is apparent in his hate of Blanche as a individual with a more esteemed household name. The different beliefs Blanche and Stanley clasp and the fact that the latter wins the former one show the loss of traditional values in a modern and industrial universe.
The loss of traditional values is apparent in Stanley ‘s rude abuses to Blanche ‘s good mode. Stanley is impolite and barbarous, “ He sizes adult females up at a glimpse, with sexual categorizations ” ( pg. 1149 ) even at his married woman ‘s sister. He offends Blanche by altering his sweaty T-shirt in forepart of her and impolitely asks what happened to Blanche ‘s matrimony. During the card game, Stanley, ramping into Blanche ‘s sleeping room, throws the wireless out of the window and crush his pregnant married woman ( pg. 1162 ) . He pulls all of Blanche ‘s properties out of her bole and looks for anything valuable for sale ( pg. 1152 ) . Stanley snatches up Blanche ‘s documents, which are old letters and love verse form from her immature hubby, from her bole and begins to read them ( pg. 1155 ) . His inhuman treatment can besides be seen in his probe of Blanche ‘s yesteryear, the one-way coach ticket back to Laurel for her birthday present and his revelation of Blanche ‘s secrets to Mitch ( pg. 1188 ) .
Furthermore, the loss of traditional values can even be proved by Blanche ‘ words. She remarks that blending their old and blue blood with Stanley ‘s immigrant blood may be the lone manner to see the endurance of their line of descent in the universe, “ Oh, I guess he ‘s merely non the type that goes for jasmine aroma, but possibly he ‘s what we need to blend with our blood now that we ‘ve lost Belle Reve ” ( pg. 1156 ) .
Another cogent evidence is that Blanche ‘s love of idealism is destroyed by Stanley ‘s love of pragmatism. Blanche hates world and prefers imaginativeness and love affair. She tells Mitch to feign that they are on a day of the month at an creative persons ‘ cafe in Paris ( pg. 1176 ) . She dances attractively and speaks Gallic. She has “ antique ideals ” ( pg. 1178 ) . Subsequently, she begs Mitch non to turn the visible radiation on and calls that “ I do n’t desire pragmatism. I want charming ” and believes what “ ought ” to be true instead that what the universe truly is ( pg. 1191 ) . A contradiction to Blanche ‘s fantasy universe is brought in by Stanley ‘s pragmatism. Stanley criticises Blanche ‘s baths because he wants to urinate. It indicates his rejection of her idealistic universe. There is a contrast between Stanley ‘s crudeness, micturition, and Blanche ‘s idealism, hot baths. Blanche stills imagines that Shep Huntleigh, a gentleman, would come and deliver her after the barbarous colza by Stanley ( pg. 1194 ) .
Stanley ‘s love of pragmatism can be seen from his belief of practicality and his deficiency of ideals and imaginativenesss. Stanley is crude and animal-like. His animalistic physical strength is apparent in his love of work, contending and sex. Stella and Stanley ‘s matrimony is tied with sexual attractive force. Stella calls him an “ carnal thing ” and is beaten by Stanley. He bellows “ STELLA! ” into the dark like a hurt animal naming for the return of his mate. Their reunion is besides described in footings of animate being noises, “ They stare at each other. Then they come together with low, carnal groans. ” ( pg. 1163, 1164 ) . Stanley gets angry at the word “ oily ” and “ swine ” . Blanche says that “ what such a adult male has to offer is carnal force ” and it is impossible for her to populate with such a adult male. Blanche says that sheer desire is no footing for a matrimony.
Stanley ‘s assorted qualities contribute to the devastation of Blanche, typifying the loss of traditional values. Stanley is barbarian adult male. His involvements are imbibing, nutrient, gaming, bowling and sex. He reaches across the tabular array for meat and eats it with his fingers. Stella scolds him for holding oily fingers and orders him to assist clean up. He smashes his home base, his cup and disk. He yells that he has cleared his topographic point, and storms out onto the porch ( pg. 1186 ) . The action of Stanley ravishing Blanche symbolizes that in the modern and industrial universe, pragmatism and practicality wins out over the old traditional values which suggest idealism and love affair.
In decision, Stanley lacks Blanche ‘s civility and he represents the new America where wages is based on virtue and good work but non on birth by fate. It shows that in order to last in the modern and industrial universe, one should be realistic and practical. The fact that Stanley ‘s physical strength wins over Blanche ‘s religious ideals indicates the loss of traditional values in a modern and industrial universe. However, the world which is represented by the colza at the terminal is excessively barbarous that one may see the universe of dreams and phantasies as a better option. Although the drama portrays Blanche as a dishonest adult female, she feels declinations and negotiations about religious thoughts, decease, after her secrets are disclosed. She says that “ the opposite [ of decease ] is desire ” ( pg. 1192 ) , but Stanley is non ashamed of his barbarous actions. Therefore, it stimulates more sympathetic feelings for Blanche and may propose the thought that the old traditional values should be retained.
