Context

STARTER:

Watch the following trailers, and write down any key ideas, themes or predictions about 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

What do you already know about...

The post-World War II era (late 1940s) and its impact on American society?
The Great Depression and its lingering effects on people's lives?
The setting of the play in New Orleans, Louisiana, and its cultural significance?

How does context shape our understanding of a text?

TASK: Each group will be assigned a key contextual area. Using visual materials such as photographs, film clips, or artwork depicting the 1940s South, create an informative five minute lesson on your assigned area. You will then present to the rest of the class, who will complete the following sheet:

CONTEXT NOTES

The American Civil War

The American Civil War was between the Northern and Southern states, and one of the major reasons for it starting was the issue of Slavery in the South. Northern states wanted it abolished, and Southern states, who relied on it for running their plantations, did not. The North eventually won, and it ended in 1865.
The ‘Deep South’ refers to Southern states of America which depended on Plantation agriculture and slave labour in the era before the American Civil War. Following the Civil War, when Slavery was no longer legal, it remained a place of Racism with heavy emphasis placed upon people’s history and family ancestry. They were reluctant to give up their old-fashioned ways, and resisted change.
Mississippi, where we’re told Blanche is originally from, is a classic example of a ‘Deep South’ state, where to have different coloured skin or be different in any way was to be shunned from society.
Even though New Orleans was geographically a ‘Deep South’ city, the way of life was enormously different. The population of New Orleans during the 1940s (the period the play was written and published in) was very diverse as a large portion of people were immigrants from Europe or Africa. It was comparatively a very accepting and open environment, where races mixed freely. The home of jazz music and very relaxed in terms of anything to do with etiquette or family history, New Orleans managed to keep its own way of life separate from the Racism and Discrimination raging in neighbouring cities and states throughout the South.

After the Civil War, the South became very separated from the rest of America, and formed its own identity. It was viewed as a place of extreme Racism and Poverty.

Even after the Civil War, although Slavery was illegal, segregation wasn’t, and cheap black labour was still widely in use in southern states.
The Southern Belle was a stock character created in the period before the Civil War, which depicted a young, beautiful Woman who was part of the upper socio-economic class of the Deep South. She was meant to marry a rich, respectable young man, raise a family and contribute actively to the community, all while practising typical southern hospitality and possessing a flirtatious yet chaste demeanour. The character of Blanche best captures all of these qualities and is an Archetype of the classic Southern belle.

The Antebellum South and its conflict with Industrialisation and Urbansation

Antebellum South: What Was the Identity of the Old South?The Antebellum South had a unique and unified identity built on an agrarian way of life, which was disrupted by its disagreements with the North.

The Southern Gothic Literary Tradition and its Influence on the Play

Southern Gothic is the name given to a literary movement with its roots in the Romantic and Gothic traditions of British literature. Authors that write in the Southern Gothic style borrowed the hyperaware, emotionally rich style of the Romantics and the Gothic interest in isolation and decay and applied these ideas to their region of the United States to develop a unique literary style.

Overlapping characteristics of Southern Gothic literature include:

· isolation and marginalization

· violence and crime

· sense of place

· freakishness and the grotesque

· destitution and decay

· oppression and discrimination

Gender Roles and Expectations in the 1940s

American Masculinity After World War II | The National WWII Museum | New OrleansWhile the war provided opportunities for soldiers to foster their sense of manhood, the postwar years and peacetime preferred the husband and father ideal while also finding ways to deal with injured or psychologically traumatized veterans.

Gender on the Home Front | The National WWII Museum | New OrleansWartime needs increased labor demands for both male and female workers, heightened domestic hardships and responsibilities, and intensified pressures for Americans to conform to social and cultural norms.

The Literary Traditions of Realism and Expressionism and their Influence in the Play

REALISM

EXPRESSIONISM

Realism is the attempt of art to capture life as realistically as possible. Social realism is the attempt of art to capture society as accurately as possible. The subgenre of social realism ranges across all arts, from film to literature, visual art to television and theatre. Social realism is a sub-genre of realism, and although the two forms are similar there are differences.

Realism is an art form that tries to depict life as naturally as possible. Realist novels tend to reflect everyday life.

Social realism is a subgenre of realism. Social realist novels look into society and provide commentary on social injustice and concern the lives of the working class.

Realism was a reaction to romanticism, but, whereas romanticism made life appear more glamourous, realism wished to make life appear how it really was. The difference in social realism is that artworks will aim to depict a commentary on society, typically shining a light on issues such as social division.

Expressionism is a movement starting in the early 20th century, which united a range of artistic mediums from prose, drama, poetry, art, painting, film, and music. Expressionism is characterised by a distorted style and form which is highly subjective and abandons conventional narrative and meter.

Born out of growing disillusionment in society, the Expressionists wanted a total break from tradition. Expressionism revolted against two previous movements called Realism and Naturalism, of which the former was criticised for their bourgeois and middle-class representations.

Realism is a literary movement that wanted to depict life as realistically as possible. This included using dialect, natural speech, and set and costume design.

Naturalism grew out of literary realism. Using the literary techniques of realism, they wanted to focus more on the working class and the struggles of real life.

Expressionism is also characterised by themes of disillusion, disorientation and alienation. This is influenced by the historical context, as Expressionists found themselves at a time of great upheaval resulting from an increasingly urbanised and mechanised world.