The "Varsouviana" polka represents Blanche's loss of innocence, and how the suicide of her young husband, Allan Gray, triggered her mental decline. Only she and the audience hear it, and this creates tension that is associated with panic and her gradual loss of reality. It is also a symbol of the deconstruction of Blanche, as the music is only heard at times when she is facing imminent disaster. The Varsouviana has an association in her memory with impending death, which means when we hear it again, we see a foreboding touch planted by Williams. Williams writes in the stage directions, " the music is in her mind: she is drinking to escape it." This illustrates Blanche's desire to escape reality while the haunting Varsouviana tune taunts her existence, thus driving her mad. This is Blanche's way of " wishing away a reality she finds unbearable." She escapes into her own world of lies and deceptions. " She, like her author, insists that she doesn't want realism, but magic." In scene 11 the "Varsouviana" polka is " filtered into weird distortion" in Blanche's mind, meaning that this constant piece of music is now changing, and has become even more haunting.
The idea of Blanche's fate being inevitable continues throughout the play. The " Cemeteries" where she arrives in New Orleans, could be described as a metaphor for her experience with death and its effect on her. Blanche, riding on the Streetcars towards disaster, and not able to get off, is a symbol of her inability to find happiness, love and stability. Despite Blanche's desperate attempts at escaping the imposing threat, it seems that her fate is already decided. "A condition of being human is that we are all on the streetcar rumbling towards our death and this inevitability is part of the tragedy of life as Williams saw it.”
The first colour perceived by the audience is white, from Blanche's dressing, and its significance was already mentioned, as purity and social class. But it is also relevant for another quality, which is the opposition to Stanley's colour of clothes, which is red. Red may be symbolising sexual aspects, since red is the colour for passion. And this opposition symbolises her opposite personalities and their confrontations. The colours blue and black from the sky are also relevant since they represent life and death respectively. This may be Blanche's husband's physical death or society's death, due to all its problems. Blanche’s clothes are an important symbol for her character. She still dresses as if she is in the past, trying to maintain the stereotypical image of a southern belle. At first the audience may not immediately grasp the importance of Blanche's clothes, but as the play continues Stanley is introduced and becomes a stark contrast to her. "…Roughly dressed in blue denim work clothes, Stanley carries his bowling jacket and a red stained package from a butchers." The use of bold, vibrant and lurid detail highlights the juxtaposition between these two extreme characters. Stanley represents the overpowering dominant force that finally destroys the mentally unstable Blanche. Williams uses a moth as a metaphor for Blanche to convey her vulnerability and delicate state. This imagery emphasises her fragility and innocence against the harsh, bright and threatening atmosphere of New Orleans. "Let's leave the lights off." Blanche lives in constant fear of being seen in the light, as it would reveal the ugly reality that she tries so hard to cover up. While the hiding of the naked light bulb is again a symbol of her eternal longing for magic and fantasy. The imagery concerning lights is one of the most powerful and I think the most important in the play. Blanche talks of Light very often, “I made the discovery- love. all at once and much, much too completely. It was like you suddenly turned a blind light on something that had always been half in shadow." Blanche shows how much she valued that light, and it was as if her purpose had been found. However when Allan killed himself; “The searchlight which had been turned on the world was turned off again." This could mean that she was lost again, she did not know her true purpose. Allan was in a way her guiding light, and this contrasts heavily in the way in which Stanley uses the metaphor of lights “Oh how you loved those coloured lights going”. This is Stanley’s metaphor for sex with Stella, and so seems like a harsh contrast against Blanche’s need for light. This could be another ironic link, where Williams shows that Blanche has definitely had enough sex in her life, and the light is still gone, whereas Stanley relies on this sex to keep his relationship with Stella.
Scene 10 is the climax of Blanche's breakdown and is full of imagery which represents Blanches' fragility that is threatened by the imposing force.
Stanley is symbolised as the forceful predator who is totally in control, while Blanche is weak and feeble, like his pray cornered for impending disaster. Blanche wears, " a somewhat soiled and crumpled white satin evening gown…pair of scuffed silver slippers," continuing the metaphor of the fragile and delicate moth. It also conveys the impression that she is used, tired out and that her time is up. Her white clothing contrasts with Stanley's " vivid green silk bowling shirt." This imagery portrays him as a gaudy, brash and powerful character that is ready to take control. He is "a richly feathered male bird among hens." As the scene progresses the domination and destruction increases. Blanche becomes weaker and Stanley becomes more powerful, and in control. Stanley is a primate at the peak of his physical manhood and this is symbolised in the music associated with him. The honky-tonk music with its offensive beats triumph over the harmonic and rhythmic melodies of Blanche. The music in this scene and throughout the play is highly metaphorical as it illustrates the dominant Stanley who eventually succeeds in his conquest over the more submissive Blanche.
The distorted shapes on the walls and the jungle cries, symbolise human cruelty while the menacing lurid shadows and reflections increase as Blanche becomes more panicked. It is evidence of her hysteria and insanity and an indication of the effect that the terrors of the night Allan died are still with her.
Stanley is the human symbol for the relentless fate that gradually breaks her down. William’s uses imagery and symbolism to great dramatic effect throughout the whole play, in dialogue and largely in stage directions, this gives the play a complex story, and when many hidden symbols and metaphors are discovered, opens many new aspects of the story.
