Scene 3 - Poker Scene

Throughout the poker scene certain people’s characters are illustrated especially Stanley, he is the dominant speaker in this scene. He sees himself as a man's man, with all the whiskey and cussing, Stanley likes to come across as a villain who likes to belittle people around him especially his Mitch during the card game. When Mitch decides to leave the Poker night to go home and check on his sick mother, Stanley teases him before Mitch leaves he says “You all are married. But I’ll be alone when she goes – I’m going to the bathroom” Stanley replies with “Hurry back, we’ll fix you a sugar tit”. Sugar tit is another name for a pacifier, Stanley uses this to symbolize that Mitch is still a baby/kid because he’s so attached to his mum. Which isn’t the case at all, his mother is seriously ill who needs looking after and Mitch is the only one that is capable of doing so.

During the Poker scene, Stella and Blanche return home too early and interrupted the poker game. When both of them first arrive either one of them are welcomed around the Poker Table, and to make matters worse Blanche is hovering round the table trying to get noticed which is irritating Stanley even more. Stanley has been losing money, and needs to save face with his buddies. The combination of liquor, the late hour playing, the constant bad poker hands, and Stanley's increasing annoyance at his sister-in-law's presence all lead to him finally striking his wife. When he hits Stella is becomes clear to the audience that this isn’t the first time he’s hit her, Stella says: "It makes me so mad when he does that in front of people," this shows that Stella isn’t annoyed with her husband for hitting her she’s annoyed at him for doing it public. Stella’s personality is shown when she says this, she’s portrayed as a push over who seems to be afraid of Stanley. Mitch summarizes the whole poker scene at the end when he says "Poker shouldn't be played in a house with women." Mitch is adamant in his conviction that the conflict that erupts in the Kowalski household is due to the flammable combination of poker and women.

Extract 2

When Blanche and Stella return home the topic conversation is based on how Blanche looks, Blanche asks Stella “How do I look?” Stella replies “Lovely, Blanche” even when her sister tells her she looks lovely Blanche still isn’t satisfied. Blanche is a very insecure woman who always feels the need to be noticed by people and to look perfect. Blanche always turns to her sister for reassurance because she knows her sister will be honest to her and not lie, Blanche is the dominant speaker who is driving the conversation. Blanche says she wants to “bathe” she says this a few times, the reason for blanche constantly always wanting to bathe is that are there are several meanings to this as an audience you have to interpret yourself. I think the reason for Blanche saying she wants to bathe numerous times is because she wants to wash her sorrows away, because she lost her husband at a young age she is still grieving and distraught so by doing this she washing away what has happened.

Extract 3

Mitch and Blanche's relationship is presented in scene 3, Mitch is drawn to Blanche and
And she is drawn to him also but for different reasons, enraptured Mitch is enraptured by Blanche's many tricks and tools of flirtatious seduction, and desperate Blanche latches on to the stable and supportive idea of a husband. They both share similar pasts, Blanche lost her husband at a young age and Mitch lost the girl who gave him the cigarette lighter. Blanche's loss is more profound, more crippling, and the darkness in her quickly threatens to overwhelm the simplicity of Mitch.

Extract 4

The radio is a key feature in the intense poker game,  Stanley is the dominant speaker in the poker scene however when Blanche and Stella return home Blanche instantly puts the radio on which makes Stanley lose focus in the poker game to regain his authority he throws the radio out the window. By doing this, it shows that Stanley has all the powerful in his and Stella's relationship and in the house as well, Stanley loses control of the situation and lashes out on Stella which makes the men intervene to take over the situation. It clearly shows that isn't the first time that Stanley's brutal behaviour has occurred.