Pub 2
Tony Robbins states “If you tell yourself a lie long enough, you’ll start to believe it”.
In Tennessee Williams classic “A Streetcar Named Desire”, Stella states “I couldn’t go on believing her story and living with Stanley.” (1232). Stella and her husband Stanley’s relationship and her relationship with her sister Blanche is on a constant pendulum throughout this story. There is a test of family versus desire. In her head, Stella has the perfect world, she’s married and has a baby on the way. The illusion she creates is all to abolish the harsh truth of reality. Reality is the fact her husband is an alcoholic who abuses his wife and then goes on to rape her sister while she is in labor. Stella didn’t want to believe that any of what Blanche said was true because then her “perfect” life would be ruined. She must keep living in her illusion to survive.
The idea of illusions stem from the desire as humans to be accepted and loved. Illusions are false senses of reality when reality is too difficult to confront. Illusions can be formed for a variety of reasons. One common issue is the concept of different mental illnesses. Schizophrenia is known for being a loss of contact with reality. Schizophrenic individuals are constantly battling what is real versus what is just in their mind. One can develop this mental illness in many ways, but one that is relevant would be violence and abuse. Violence and abuse can scar anyone enough to cause them to try to live in a fantasy life. Stella does not have schizophrenia, but she is suffering from enough abuse to make her create this false sense of reality.
Serial killers often tend to develop fantasies which lead them to kill. “A child who is abused may understandably develop aggressive fantasies in which he develops a power and means by which he can destroy his tormentor…common events such as parental divorce, family illness, rejection by a friend can all give a child a sense of loss of control, anxiety, and fear, and may spark aggressive fantasies as a method of coping with the stress” (Vronsky 280-81). Abuse can lead anyone to want to pretend what is happening isn’t actually occurring. In a serial killer’s case they have violent fantasies. They tend to violently hurt their tormenter in their heads and then if it gets to a point where it is bad enough, their fantasy becomes a reality.
The relationship between characters is important when it comes to this quote and the meaning around it. The main characters Stella, Stanley and Blanche all have different relationships between each other. Stella and Stanley are in a seemingly stable marriage. Stella and Blanche are sisters, and Blanche and Stanley are almost enemies. There is a tension between the two of them from the second the story introduces them to each other. Stella chooses to ignore the tension and keep living in her perfect fantasy world. Stanley eventually needs to feel dominant and he does this by raping Blanche. Blanche tells her sister, but she chooses to ignore it because she is blind to the truth. Her whole life is based on the sense of desire. She desires Stanley and she desires to be accepted. Desire can cause anyone to believe whatever they want. Her relationship and believing her sister should be her priority, but to be accepted she has to believe her husband. Desire and illusions can truly hurt people in the end.
Works Cited
Vronsky, Peter. Serial Killers The Method and Madness of Monsters. Berkley Books, 2004
Williams, Tennessee. A Streetcar Named Desire
In Tennessee Williams classic “A Streetcar Named Desire”, Stella states “I couldn’t go on believing her story and living with Stanley.” (1232). Stella and her husband Stanley’s relationship and her relationship with her sister Blanche is on a constant pendulum throughout this story. There is a test of family versus desire. In her head, Stella has the perfect world, she’s married and has a baby on the way. The illusion she creates is all to abolish the harsh truth of reality. Reality is the fact her husband is an alcoholic who abuses his wife and then goes on to rape her sister while she is in labor. Stella didn’t want to believe that any of what Blanche said was true because then her “perfect” life would be ruined. She must keep living in her illusion to survive.
The idea of illusions stem from the desire as humans to be accepted and loved. Illusions are false senses of reality when reality is too difficult to confront. Illusions can be formed for a variety of reasons. One common issue is the concept of different mental illnesses. Schizophrenia is known for being a loss of contact with reality. Schizophrenic individuals are constantly battling what is real versus what is just in their mind. One can develop this mental illness in many ways, but one that is relevant would be violence and abuse. Violence and abuse can scar anyone enough to cause them to try to live in a fantasy life. Stella does not have schizophrenia, but she is suffering from enough abuse to make her create this false sense of reality.
Serial killers often tend to develop fantasies which lead them to kill. “A child who is abused may understandably develop aggressive fantasies in which he develops a power and means by which he can destroy his tormentor…common events such as parental divorce, family illness, rejection by a friend can all give a child a sense of loss of control, anxiety, and fear, and may spark aggressive fantasies as a method of coping with the stress” (Vronsky 280-81). Abuse can lead anyone to want to pretend what is happening isn’t actually occurring. In a serial killer’s case they have violent fantasies. They tend to violently hurt their tormenter in their heads and then if it gets to a point where it is bad enough, their fantasy becomes a reality.
The relationship between characters is important when it comes to this quote and the meaning around it. The main characters Stella, Stanley and Blanche all have different relationships between each other. Stella and Stanley are in a seemingly stable marriage. Stella and Blanche are sisters, and Blanche and Stanley are almost enemies. There is a tension between the two of them from the second the story introduces them to each other. Stella chooses to ignore the tension and keep living in her perfect fantasy world. Stanley eventually needs to feel dominant and he does this by raping Blanche. Blanche tells her sister, but she chooses to ignore it because she is blind to the truth. Her whole life is based on the sense of desire. She desires Stanley and she desires to be accepted. Desire can cause anyone to believe whatever they want. Her relationship and believing her sister should be her priority, but to be accepted she has to believe her husband. Desire and illusions can truly hurt people in the end.
Works Cited
Vronsky, Peter. Serial Killers The Method and Madness of Monsters. Berkley Books, 2004
Williams, Tennessee. A Streetcar Named Desire
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