btlew lesson 12 - the kindness of strangers part two enter

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Lesson 12 - The Kindness of Strangers

Part TwoPart Two

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I. Tennessee Williams

II. A Streetcar Named Desire

III.States in the U.S.A

IV. The Golden Gate Bridge

Background Background InformationInformation

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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.


I.I. Tennessee Tennessee WilliamsWilliams

The end of Author.

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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.


II.II. A Streetcar A Streetcar Named DesireNamed Desire

To be continued on the next page.

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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.




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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.



The end of A Streetcar Named Desire.

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III.III. States in the States in the U.S.AU.S.A


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

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III.III. States in the States in the U.S.AU.S.A

Please mark out the states the author mentioned in the article.

The end of States in the U.S.A.

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Pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge

IV. The Golden Gate IV. The Golden Gate BridgeBridge

Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco side


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Pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge

IV. The Golden Gate IV. The Golden Gate BridgeBridge

The towers define the Bridge's art deco motif.

The end of The Golden Gate Bridge.

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