Rape In A Streetcar Named Desire

“Rape is unique. No other violent crime is so fraught with controversy, so enmeshed in dispute and in the politics of gender and sexuality… And within the domain of rape, the most highly charged area of debate concerns the issue of false allegations. For centuries, it has been asserted and assumed that women “cry rape,” that a large proportion of rape allegations are maliciously concocted for purposes of revenge or other motives.”

In the article “On Date Rape”, Camille Paglia argues that the reason why women are falling victims of date rape is because they want freedom but do not act responsibly. She says that freedom comes with responsibility which women should take as they are always at a higher risk of being overpowered by men. The responsibility she refers to is being alert and being on the lookout for signs of possible sexual assault. An analysis of Camille Paglia’s “On Date Rape” shows a fallacious argument resulting from personal attacks, hasty generalization, and false cause.

A Streetcar Named Desire is a socially challenging play in light of the way in which Tennessee Williams depicts the capacity of human nature for brutality and deceit.  He takes the viewpoint that, no matter how structured or 'civilized' society is, all people will rely on their natural animal instincts, such as dominance and deception, to get themselves out of trouble at some stage in life.  William's has created three main characters, Blanche Dubois, Stella Kowalski and Stanley Kowalski. Each of these characters is equally as civilized as the next, yet all are guilty of acts of savagery on different levels.  Throughout the play Williams symbolically relates these three characters to animals, 'savages,' through the disclosure of

Patricia Lockwood’s The Rape Joke is a risky composition- not because it discloses information about Lockwood’s personal rape experience, but because it does so from a comedic stance, ridiculing the unfortunate event and the events leading up to and after it. While the creation of the poem was prompted due to the sexual assault she experienced, the content and subject are not centered around the incident or the assaulter but around rape culture and the sociological concept of victim blaming, from both society and oneself. There is no such thing as a rape joke-the joke is the incredulous ways society has guided people to respond to it.

Another victim of white on black rape was Betty Jean Owens, she was kidnapped from a school dance and taken into the woods and was gang raped by four white different men. Betty was so hurt from this rape she was sent to the hospital. When the students from the school she attended in Tallahassee, Florida had heard about the rape they were enraged, “Early the next day more than a thousand students gathered in the university’s grassy quadrangle with signs, hymns, and prayers aimed at the national news media, which sent stories of the attack across the country” (McGuire 136). These students were no longer going to sit back and watch the women they love and care about get raped and treated as though they aren’t human. They were letting the world

In America, rape has been around since the 1800’s. Rape culture in the U.S. started with white men raping black women during slavery and unfortunately it was allowed. When black women were raped, they wouldn’t consider it a crime because it was the norm. According to the article, “History of the Rape Crisis Movement” written by Gillian Greensite, “White men would get in groups and rape black women.” African American women had no rights and therefore no voice to protest these action until 1866, when a group of African American women finally spoke out about being raped during a memphis riot by a gang of white men. (Sniffen)

The role of women in the 1950 was seen to be repressive and constrictive in many ways. Society placed high importance and many expectations for these women on behavior at home as well as in public. Women were supposed to fulfil certain roles, such as a caring mother, a diligent homemaker, and an obedient wife. The perfect mother was supposed to stay home and nurture so society would accept them. In fact, even if a woman wanted to voice an opinion, her lack of education would not allow it . The play A Streetcar Named Desire is set during the late 1940’s and early 1950’s period where it describes the decline of a fading Southern belle named Blanche DuBois. The women in this play are represented to be dependent and submissive in nature and in addition they are also seen to be manipulative. However, Williams has also portrayed these women to be independent and taking control of the situation. This can be seen through the use of the main characters

In the beginning of the play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, Blanche first arrives from Laurel Missouri and immediately becomes the antagonist. As the play goes on Stanley starts to go against Blanche. At the end of the play Blanche becomes the victim. In the end, Stanley sent Blanche off to a mental asylum. This plays demonstrates domestic violence. In the beginning of the play A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams shows how society accepted it and ignored it.Stanley, one of the characters in the play, found domestic violence to be a positive and very sexual part of him and his wife, Stella's, relationship. Throughout the play, Williams shows that he believes that it is wrong.

From the time that the streetcar first rattles through town, it is clear that the theme of desire is a prominent feature in A Streetcar Named Desire. The themes of lust and sexuality are present mainly in three major characters: Stanley, Stella, and Blanche. Blanche’s interactions with men and her views of herself revolve around her value as a sexual object; while Stella allows Stanley’s violence and animalistic nature because of their sex life.

America has a proud history of being a country that has many different ethnicities and cultures living within its borders. But one of the most prevalent cultures is one that transcends race or country of origin, rape culture. The term used by modern day feminist and gender activist defines a culture which normalizes rape and sexual assaults because of the deeply rooted societal attitudes towards gender and sexuality. In a rape culture the instances of rape are accepted as everyday occurrences and even as the prerogative of men, resulting in the stigmatization and blame placing of rape victims. Although the phrase “rape culture” is relatively modern, the

Merril Smith’s Encycolpedia of Rape defines the term “rape culture” as “one in which rape and other sexual violence against women . . . [is] both prevalent and considered the norm” (174). Rape is not a new subject in today’s society, its origins reaching far back into history. What causes rape, though? Is it the primal drive of men to exhibit dominance over all women, or do the women share the blame because of the way they dress, act, or do their makeup? Modern American culture would place the blame on the woman who “provoked” the attack; however, a woman should not have to park closer to the building she is entering, nor should she have to carry protection just in case a sexual predator decides that she is his next victim. Men are just as

A very real, and very common, problem in America is rape—more so the lack of knowledge about rape. This causes many problems for victims of sexual assault. In Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, the story of Melinda directly reflects the world today because most kids are not properly educated about rape and many teens in Melinda’s position can’t find a voice to tell their story.

Feminist scholarship has argued that rape ideology encourages and justifies sexual coercion, trivializes sexual violence and demeans and devalues women who have experienced sexual assault. The foundation of this argument is based on women's experiences in patriarchal societies. Due to the fact that

In Tennessee Williams play “A Streetcar Named Desire” madness continues to get progressively worse in the lives of the main characters Stanly, Stella, and Blanche. Because of low self esteem and her delusional thought process Blanche is most affected by the madness. Blanche’s delusional life style leads her to compulsively lie, live a promiscuous life style, and alcoholism. Blanche tries constantly to deal with her own madness, but her delusional mental state is constantly effect by the people around her. Although she causes most of the problems in her life some of her madness is justifiable. By the end of the play Blanche can no longer fight off the madness and is sent to an insane asylum. Even though most of the madness that occurs

Sex is the driving force of most our actions. Sex is like a new language that once spoken, can never be unspoken again. It scratches the itch that we cannot get, and it brings joy even in one’s darkest hour. Though we deny it, sex can be a motive to help others. Death is the sweet release at the end of our natural born life. After we have given all that one could have, death comes knocking at your door to take you away, from you all the pain, suffering and anguish. Sex is a quick fix like a drug, while death can be a permanent fix that leads to long lasting high. Although you cannot have sex in death, death to some is the ultimate way to attaining a well-deserved liberation. Death and sex are intimately related. They are directly proportional