How To Come Up With Good Essay Topics For A Streetcar Named Desire: Tips & Examples

One of the most popular movies and plays of all time is a Streetcar Named Desire. Since this remains a classic play and film, it is often covered in film, art and English classes. Students who need to write an essay on this topic can use the Internet to look for examples.

Getting Started

As the student watches a Streetcar Named Desire, they should take notes about any topics that interest them. These notes will be useful later on when the student has to actually start writing about their topic. The student may want to write the way different characters relate or the type of filming style used. In addition, students can write essays about topics like the social or cultural influences of the time. For additional essay topics, students can check out the following list of ideas.

Good Essay Topics for a Streetcar Named Desire

1. Where does desire lead to in the movie? How do the lives of Stanley and Blanche demonstrate the way desire effects life?


2. What causes Blanche to lose her sanity in the film?


3. In what way does Williams use sound as a type of dramatic device?


4. What causes Blanche and Stanley to have such an intense animosity against each other?


5. In what way does this story express mourning or loss for the Old South?


6. What does the child of Stella and Stanley represent? Is this mixed heritage child the future of the south?


7. How are immigrants portrayed in the film? Do they have a better chance for success than the Old South's social elite?


8. Why does Blanche find it so difficult to understand why Stella would be with Stanley?


9. Why is Blanche fascinated with teenage boys? How does this fascination lead to her downfall?


10. When Blanche is around other people, she behaves differently than when she is alone. Around others, she expresses great femininity and hides her secret drinking habit. How does the play show Blanche's tendency to perform for others? Do other characters in the play do a similar type of performance when they are alone versus in public?


11. How does Mitch compare or contrast with the other men in the play?


12. How are the working class and the Southern elite portrayed in the play?


13. How is light or the absence of light used in the film version of a Streetcar Named Desire?


14. What are some of the similarities and differences between Blanche and Stella?