Last night I was so drunk I cheated on my girlfriend, but I don't remember it, so does it count? People instinctively try to place blame on everything but themselves, and alcohol presents itself as the perfect escape from a guilty conscience. People often find themselves making impulsive decisions more frequently while under the influence of alcohol. However, how much bad behavior can alcohol excuse before a person has to accept the consequences of their actions? Tennessee Williams delves into the theme of alcohol addiction in his play, A Streetcar Named Desire. Throughout the show, both Blanche and Stanley appear to rely heavily on alcohol. Alcohol is used as both a crutch and an excuse for bad behavior in A Streetcar Named Desire, and has become even more prevalent in today's society. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche Dubois, the protagonist, often uses alcohol to escape the hysteria she faces every day due to the loss of both her homosexual husband and her wealth, "... retreating further into a cleverly evolved world of fantasy and artifice" ("A Streetcar Named Desire, Drugs and Alcohol Theme"). Upon entering the Kowalski house, Blanche pours herself half a glass of whiskey. This act foreshadows his total dependence on the substance. It is evident throughout the play that he tries to maintain his aristocratic facade by drinking only whiskey, which is an expensive and strong form of liquor. Blanche recognizes that drinking ruins her reputation and that it also contradicts her "southern belle" persona, which is why she tries to hide it as much as possible, when she is offered a second drink by Stella in the first scene, " No, one is my limit” (Williams 14). How...... middle of paper...... 2014.Marotous, George. "A Streetcar Named Desire Themes." .English School, 2006. Web. 05 April 2014. McCarthy, Richard, M.D. Unhealthy Alcohol Use." New England Journal of Medicine (2005): 596. Web. April 7, 2014. "A Streetcar Named Desire, Drug and Alcohol Theme." Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., November 11 2008. Web. 06 April 2014.Warner, Nicholas O. “Equivocal Spirits: Alcoholism and Alcoholism in Twentieth-Century Literature (Review).” Muse.jhu.edu. Purdue Research Foundation, December-January. 1987. Network. May 22, 2014. Williams, Tennessee. "Drunkenness." A Streetcar Named Desire and Other Comedies. London: Penguin, 2000. Print.Williams, Tennessee. A tram called Desiderio. New York: New Directions, 1947. Print.