Light In A Streetcar Named Desire

Words: 769
Pages: 4

“You can avoid reality, but you can’t avoid the consequences of avoiding reality” - Ayn Rand. (nice) In the novel A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, light is the symbol of reality which Blanche tries to evade till the very end. She runs and runs away from her reality until it finally gets the best of her. Light is the absence of reality, truth, and self confidence.
To begin with, Blanche refrains from light because of the guilt she feels for her role in the loss of her husband. She blames herself for what happened because of what she had told him before he shot himself. “ It was because on the dance floor unable to stop myself I'd suddenly said "I saw! I know! You disgust me..." (Scene 6, pg.95). The light that vanishes from Blanche’s life when Allan dies represents a
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The absence of light in this situation was the lack of self confidence that Blanche possessed. She hid her true self from everyone she came across and even her sister who loved her profoundly. She lied, she pretended to be someone she wasn’t, and most of all she refrained from the light that could have salvaged her. Anytime she came across light, she would dim it with paper lanterns to avoid anyone to see her impurity. “ I bought this adorable little colored paper lantern at a Chinese shop on Bourbon. Put it over the light bulb! Will you, please?” (Scene 3, pg.150) Blanche wants to conceal her age and fading beauty from Mitch when she takes this action. She lets her insecurity take over and makes it a habit to cover any light. “ When people are soft--soft people have got to shimmer and glow--they've got to put on soft colors, the colors of butterfly wings, and put a-- paper lantern over the light.... It isn't enough to be soft.” (Scene 5, pg. 79) She goes to extreme measures to hide her true nature and as a result she hurts everyone she encounters with her little white