Post-World+War+II

Published in 1946, //A Streetcar Named Desire// reflects the __cultural tensions__ that pervaded the nation after the horrors of World War II, when an idealistic and ambitious American nation attempted to prove its superiority and its power to the global community by attempting to - and succeeding in - squashing the threat of Nazi Germany. The characters in //A Streetcar Named Desire// are trying to __rebuild their lives in postwar America__: Stanley and Mitch served in the military, while Blanche had affairs with young soldiers based near her home.
 * Historical Background of //A// //Streetcar Named Desire//**** : **

T he national spotlight focused on the __middle and lower classes__ as the true bearers of the heroic American spirit. The nation had suffered through a terrible war, and it was ready to embrace the "old-fashioned" values of family and home. __Stanley has just come back from the war__ as a decorated soldier, and after proving his __masculinity__ on the battlefield, he is ready to assert his manhood within the home. Consequently, the theme of __pure, almost savage masculinity__ that is so ripe in A Streetcar Named Desire is one that filled America after the war - an air of __bravado__ and __victory__ following its defeat of the Nazi threat.

This focus on the middle and lower classes was popular throughout much of the literature of the 1930's and 1940's. Many American writers during and after the 1930's chose to focus on the brave individual stories of those who were members of the lower and middle classes, believing that their __strong work ethic and their ambitions characterized them as true Americans.__

This revolution effectively killed the __mystical charm of the Old South__, where __aristocracy__ and __chivalry__ reigned. Women in the South seemed to possess an __intangible charm__ that could enchant any man, and men __prided themselves on their manners__ and a mysterious code of conduct that __valued honor rather than industriousness__. __The ongoing power struggle between Blanche and Stanley thus reflects the battle between old Southern values and new industrial efficiency.__

Notes By:

Jesika Haria