BTLEW Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers Part Two ENTER

BTLEW Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers I. Tennessee WilliamsTennessee Williams II. A Streetcar Named DesireA Streetcar Named Desire III.States in the U.S.AStates in the U.S.A IV. The Golden Gate BridgeThe Golden Gate Bridge Background Information

BTLEW Tennessee Williams (1911—1983) One of America’s greatest playwrights, and certainly the greatest ever from the South, Tennessee Williams wrote fiction and motion picture screenplays, but he is acclaimed primarily for his twenty-five full- length plays—nearly all of which are set in the South, but which at their best rise above regionalism to approach universal themes. Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers I.Tennessee Williams The end of Author.

BTLEW Main Themes (I) Fantasy/Illusion: Blanche dwells in illusion; fantasy is her primary means of self-defense. Her deceits do not carry any trace of malice; rather, they come from her weakness and inability to confront the truth head-on. She tells things not as they are, but as they ought to be. For her, fantasy has a liberating magic that protects her from the tragedies she has had to endure. Unfortunately, this defense is frail and will be shattered by Stanley. In the end, Stanley and Stella will also resort to a kind of illusion: Stella will force herself to believe that Blanche's accusations against Stanley are false. Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers II.A Streetcar Named Desire To be continued on the next page.

BTLEW Main Themes (II) Desire: Closely related to the theme above, desire is the central theme of the play. Blanche seeks to deny it, although we learn later in the play that desire is one of her driving motivations; her desires have caused her to be driven out of town. Desire, and not intellectual or spiritual intimacy, is the heart of Stella's and Stanley's relationship. Desire is Blanche's undoing, because she cannot find a healthy way of dealing with it: she is always either trying to suppress it or pursuing it with abandon. Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers II.A Streetcar Named Desire To be continued on the next page.

BTLEW Main Themes (III) Loneliness: The companion theme to desire; between these two extremes, Blanche is lost. She desperately seeks companionship and protection in the arms of strangers. Towards the end of the play she says “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers” in her desperate effort to find meaning in life. she has never recovered from her tragic and consuming love for her first husband. Blanche is in need of a defender. But in New Orleans, she will find instead the predatory and merciless Stanley. Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers II.A Streetcar Named Desire The end of A Streetcar Named Desire.

BTLEW Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers III.States in the U.S.A To be continued on the next page. These are states mentioned by the author in the article. Please mark them out in the map in the next page and draw a line to show the author’s route of journey. California ( CA)—San Francisco—the Golden Gate Bridge Iowa （ IA ） Montana (MT) Nebraska (NE) North Carolina (NC)—Cape Fear Oregon (OR) Tennessee (TN)—Jamestown Wyoming (WY) Louisiana (LA)—New Orleans

BTLEW Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers III.States in the U.S.A Please mark out the states the author mentioned in the article. The end of States in the U.S.A.

BTLEW Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers Pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge IV. The Golden Gate Bridge Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco side To be continued on the next page.

BTLEW Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers Pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge IV. The Golden Gate Bridge The towers define the Bridge's art deco motif. The end of The Golden Gate Bridge.

BTLEW Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers Part Two This is the end of Part Two. Please click HOME to visit other parts. HOME