—Stella reveals to Stanley that Belle Reve has been lost and an argument over how it has been lost ensues.
—Stella leaves and Blanche comes out of the bath only to
be faced with Stanley interrogating her about Belle Reve.
—Blanche eventually hands over all of the mortgage papers
to Stanley who studies them closely.
—Stanley then tells Blanche that Stella is pregnant and
Blanche and Stella leave to go out before the poker party begins.
Key Quotes
—“It looks to me like you have been
swindled, baby, and when you’re swindled under the Napoleonic code I’m swindled
too. And I don’t like to be swindled.”
—Stanley’s obsession with the Napoleonic code
demonstrates that he needs to have control over Stella and her possessions. The
repetition of the word ‘swindled’ reinforces his point that they have been
cheated out of money however his anger is due to the fact that he won’t get any of the
earnings. Stanley shows no sympathy towards Stella when Belle Reve is lost because he
is too desperate to be in control of Stella’s life.
“Stanley: The Kowalskis and
the DuBois have different notions. Stella: Indeed they have, thank
heavens!”
—After Stella and Stanley’s argument, Stanley comments
that he and Stella (the Kowalskis) have different
notions from Blanche (the DuBois). However Stella’s reply implies that she is siding
with Blanche as she doesn’t feel she has the same notions as here husband.
Knowing how the play ends this is an unexpected comment as Stella chooses to
side with Stanley, despite claiming that she doesn’t share the same views as
him.
—“Everyone has something he won’t let
others touch because of their- intimate nature…”
—Here Blanche talks about the love poems that Allan had
written for her as being ‘intimate’. This shows that they mean a lot to Blanche
as they are a constant reminder that someone loved her and they are also the
last things she has left of Allan’s. The way Williams describes these poems
make it seem like they are a representation of Blanche and that Stanley’s
mishandling of the letters foreshadows the events in Scene 10.
—“…our improvident grand-fathers and
fathers and uncles and brothers exchanged the land for their epic
fornications.”
This polysyndetic list not only demonstrates the patriarchy within their
society but it also shows us that Blanche places the blame for the loss of
Belle Reve on her ancestors.
The repetition of the word ‘and’ in the list implies that there were lots of
people involved, with a whole new generation being added after each ‘and’. The
use of the word ‘epic’ suggests that Blanche does not approve of the choices they
made as they have ultimately cost her her future.
—“…especially now that she’s going to
have a baby.”
Throughout the second half of this scene there has been
a power struggle between Blanche and Stanley over the loss of Belle Reve. For the most part,
particularly before Blanche gets out the mortgage papers, Blanche is in control
of the conversation as she is the one that holds all of the information.
However Stanley is ultimately the one who wins as he delivers this final line
to Blanche, which not only informs her that Stella is pregnant but signals to
her that she has now lost her final hope as Stella has a bigger loyalty to
Stanley.
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