We were introduced the all the main characters of this story right off the bat, but the most interesting by far was Blanche. From the get-go I knew she was a liar, she was so sketchy from the very beginning. Especially when Stanley was undressing. She seemed all into it, and was watching and flirting with him. This seemed to be foreshadowing for later on in the piece when all the secrets about Blanche's past start to come out.
I really liked how some things about the French Quarter were incorporated into this piece. I'm researching this for my paper, and the point of the story when Blanche doesn't want to go out on the stoop with Mitch because she's isn't properly dressed, and he dismisses it and says it doesn't matter in the quarter. This made me think of modern day Mardi Gras where people have very little inhibitions and act in a way they wouldn't normally. Things are taken less seriously in this part of the world.
I found a strong connection to Their Eyes Were Watching God in the theme of domestic violence and the romanticizing of that violence. When Stanley hits Stella, Blanche is outraged at the fact that Stella seems to brush it off as if it was nothing. But Stella says the same things that it seems Janie's character would say. As long as the man truly loves you, and is truly sorry it doesn't matter what happened. It just shows the passionate love that they shared. Stella explains that she is madly in love with Stanley and even though he hit her, she would never leave. As long as the violence was out of love, it's OK. Also, the fact that Stanley was drunk- Stella chalks it up to the fact that this is what men do. They play poker and drink, and she made it seem as if it was somehow her fault that she got hit. I find this dynamic of passionate love, to the point of accepting domestic violence to be very interesting.
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I also noticed that the violence was downplayed by the characters, as it had been in Their eyes were watching God. However, Stella responds differently than Janie. Stella cries out, almost threatening Stanley. "You lay your hands on me and I'll.." Janie, on the other hand, never cried out when she was whipped.
In Hurston's novel, all the people in the muck praised Tea Cake and Janie's relationship. The men looked up to Tea Cake for having such control over Janie. All the women adored Janie for having such a relationship with Tea Cake. However, the characters in A Streetcar Named Desire don't justify Stanley hitting Stella. Eunice chastizes Stanley: "You can't beat on a woman an' then call'er back! She won't come! And her goin't' have a baby!..You stinker! You whelp of a Polack, you! I hope they do haul you in and turn the fire hose on you, same as last time!" This passage implies that this is not the first time Stanley has hit Stella.
I agree that it seems to be a trend that as long as love is involved it is acceptable to the woman that the man hits her. I think this probably relates most to the happiness of the woman. I’m sure not all women of this time accepted the fact that they were beaten regularly. These authors seem to be making a point that physical abuse is such a common factor in life that the women act as if it is not a big deal. Since women during this time period are typically not equal to men it also seems as though the woman might not say anything because they are going to find little sympathy. The fact that these women are able to accept being beaten in order to not cause a larger problem shows how dominated they are. They men are basically able to do whatever they want, and the women will happily accept it.
I have to say that there has to be factions into the fact that Blanche is the way she is. Was she attacked as a young teenager? Or does she really think that Stella abandoned the family for a brute like Stanley. you get a really good sense of what blanche is liek when she talks about the apartment that Stella and Stanley live in and what she thinks about when she comments about Stanley to Stella.
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