IndexIntroductionThe relationship between Blanche and MitchConclusionReferencesIntroductionIn Tennessee Williams' 1947 comedy A Streetcar Named Desire, the relationship between Blanche and Mitch is a key subplot in the tale of Blanche's descent into madness and isolation. Although Williams initially presents Mitch as the answer to all of Blanche's problems and as a viable male suitor, it soon becomes apparent that Blanche and Mitch are not meant to be together. Mitch, in the larger scope of Williams' work, is simply another man who will ruin Blanche's life. So, the relationship between Blanche and Mitch is analyzed in this essay. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayThe relationship between Blanche and MitchWilliams first presents Mitch as Blanche's potential savior, and indeed this is how Blanche wishes to see him at first too. Mitch may not only be able to provide for Blanch financially, but emotionally as well. Blanche points out that Mitch is "sensitive" and they share a tragic romantic past. Furthermore, Mitch seems to fit Blanche's ideal of the Southern Bell compared to other men, whom she considers "monkeys." Mitch is formal and respectful, calling Blanche "Miss DuBois", and Blanche admits that she appreciates his "gallantry". It seems that Blanche and Mitch are in a sense united by their shared loss and are united by their experience of each other. They both need to fill a void in their lives and find each other conveniently as a means of gaining emotional (and financial) security. Mitch gets there, stating, “you need someone, and I need someone – could it be you and me, Blanche?” There is also a brief tenderness in their relationship and Blanche finds comfort in Mitch; she “huddles” against him and lets out “long sobs of gratitude” before exclaiming “sometimes, there is God, so fast.” We can see the closeness of the bond between the two as Mitch is the only character to whom Blanche tells the truth about "Alan", and it is after this outburst of emotion that they bond. However, the relationship between Blanche and Mitch is doomed to fail due to the nature of Mitch's incomplete pseudo-masculinity. In telling Alan's story, Blanche reveals that she couldn't be with him because he wasn't "like a man" – obviously alluding to his homosexuality which was taboo and illegal at the time. Yet over the course of the show we discover that Mitch is not “like a man” either. From the beginning we see that Mitch works in the “spare parts department”, a possible reference to his incomplete masculinity according to Kolin; he seems to have never matured, still living with his “mother”; and when he dances with Blanche, it is “awkwardly”. Likewise, his conversation is awkward and unromantic, as he emphasizes how he “sweats” and how much he “weighs.” It soon becomes apparent that Mitch is therefore not the “Rosenkavalier” or “Armand” that Blanche paints him to be. That's the problem. Blanche, who "does not want realism" but "magic", makes Mitch the model of the Southern Beau that she desires through his literary allusions despite belonging to the new order of post-world men. World War II era. She asks him to "bow" and orders him to "dance". Mitch becomes Blanche's favorite man who she molds into her ideal of masculinity which is, like Blanche, "incongruous" with contemporary ideals of masculinity which promoted strong men who were war veterans and defenders against tyranny after World War II . Blanche, like everything else, clouds her relationship with Mitch with an illusion, which Williams symbolizes with the scene in which Blanche invites Mitch to place a "lantern" over the light in herroom. She says "I can't stand a naked light bulb," a metaphor for her refusal to accept reality, and placing the lantern over the light is symbolic of the way Blanche masks the truth about her age and past from Mitch. Mitch's masculinity is further questioned when compared to Stanley. Stanley is the ideal stereotypical man of the time: he is very sexual; brings home “meat” for his wife, symbolic of the hunter-gatherer dynamic; and does sports. Furthermore, when it comes to Blanche, Stanley is assertive and successfully forces his way into the implied rape of scene 10, thus asserting his sexual dominance. Mitch, however, is unable to do so, and in his attempted rape he "has difficulty hugging her". It is therefore clear that, due to Mitch's incomplete masculinity, or the veneer of chivalrous romanticism under which Blanche lives, he will ultimately fail. Finally, Mitch yells that it was "lies, lies, lies!" this tore them apart and the relationship ends. Yet Williams makes greater use of the relationship between Mitch and Blanche than as a simple subplot, doomed to fail. Thematically, Mitch, like Stella, becomes a battleground for the ideological clash between Stanley and Blanche, who represent the New and Old Worlds respectively. Stanley: the immigrant worker, “100% American,” war veteran. Blanche: The upper-middle-class Southern Belle of the United States' French colonial past. When Stanley and Blanche meet it is clear that their two ideologies cannot live side by side, and a battle for dominance ensues. Stanley wins the first battle, after convincing Stela to "come back" to him after hitting her, and the battlefield shifts to Mitch. Initially, through her deceptive seduction and emotional appeal, Mitch falls in love with Blanche, but Stanley manages to convince Mitch to seek the truth from Blanche. Indeed, he does, and Mitch adopts Stanley's speech patterns and physical movements in scene 9, a maneuver that symbolizes that Stanley has successfully exerted his influence on Mitch: he speaks in monosyllables ("Me. Mitch") and with interrogative statements (“Why?”, “Are you out of your mind?”, and “Should we turn on that fan?”). Ultimately, Mitch “rips” the “lantern” from the lamp, symbolically violating Blanche and foreshadowing the subsequent rape scene by shattering her illusions and pretenses. After Stanley takes Mitch from Blanche, she has lost everything and appears in "dirty" and "wrinkled" clothes, a symbol of her stained purity and helplessness. Please note: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Conclusion Ultimately, Williams creates Mitch as someone who has good intentions regarding Blanche, and who is one of the few characters to empathize with her, yet never realistically does anything to help her. His well-intentioned yet helpless position is exemplified in the final captions as he "sobs" as Blanche leaves, and in his failed attempt to criticize Stanley ("You... brag... brag... brag.. .bull!”) This criticism may well have had some weight and helped Blanche, yet she is emasculated by Mitch's inability to even form a sentence. Mitch was Blanche's last opportunity to break away from the Old World of the colonial South and attach herself to the modern, postindustrial world in the aftermath of World War II, a world in which traditional gender roles had changed. Once this opportunity is lost, Blanche is destined to fade into the abyss of darkness and her institutionalization becomes inevitable as she is left mad, alone, unstable and without support. Iftimie, New Mexico (2018). The clash of genres in A Streetcar Named Desire..)