After drink one of the most important things to Blanche is her clothes and jewelry. We know that looking young and attractive to Blanche is very important. In scene 1 she says ‘But don’t you look at me’, and in scene 2 she says ‘Would you think it possible that I was once considered attractive’. She thinks that because she is getting old that her appearance is fading. I think that she makes some of these comments through out so that people will compliment her thus making her feel better. Cloths and jewelry decorate her exterior. She believes that to take the focus of her aging face that she can decorate herself in glamorous attire and this is why these material things play such a big part in her life.
Throughout the play Blanche takes several baths. I think that she does this for two reasons. The first links in with the importance that her clothes and jewelry play in her life. She wants to always look her best so taking baths refreshes her and cleans her body making her more attractive. The second is because she says it calms her nerves. With all the tension of loosing her job and Belle Reve her mind is constantly buzzing with everything. The baths calms these nerves down much like the drink. However because she cannot drink at all hours of the day without everyone getting suspicious she takes baths instead, almost killing two birds with one stone. At the end of the bath she feels more relaxed and more beautiful.
In scene 9 Blanche says ‘I don’t tell the truth. I tell what ought to be the truth’. By this is think that she means that she says what the reality in her head is saying. In her head she still wants to be young, beautiful and desirable. Because she believes it so much in her own mind it has become a reality. Time and time again she has convinced herself that everything is ok. She has blocked out what happened in Laurel, and that is why she does not speak of it. Because in her mind all that she says is the truth, and what she perceives as ought to be the truth.
Shep Huntleigh to Blanche is her savior. In her mind she has created a perfect man and this gives her comfort and support. She can always rely on Shep even though he is not a real character. The stories she makes up of Shep being a millionaire and going away to Caribbean are another way that she can escape. Talking about him and their plans together lets her get away with talking about the real issues. His existence means to her that she is not alone and that there is someone that needs her.
Blanche’s long speech in Scene 11 shows us again what she thinks ought to be the truth. It’s another of her mind’s stories that have been created to make her feel comfort and happiness. In this passage she says that she will die at sea from eating an unwashed grape. She does not say that she will die of old age. I think that she doesn’t ever want to get old because with age comes the deterioration of the body, and that is the first of her two worst fears. The second of these fears is that she will die alone and that is why she says ‘I will die – with my hand in the hand of some nice-looking ship’s doctor’. She does not want to age and she does not want to die alone. She can see it coming though and so she created all these stories to try and keep her sanity. Her speech about death shows what her worst fears are, and her illusions stop their reality.
Blanches illusions are created by her to make the people around her perceive her in the way that she wants to be perceived. She wants to be seen as the young and beautiful Blanche that is admired by many young men. She never really wants to grow old and wither away, but most of all she doesn’t want to die alone. Her magnificent illusions are her only comfort in her aging loneliness.
