US Supreme Court Decision Essay Example for Free

US Supreme Court Decision Essay An examination of the United States Supreme Court case Romer v. Evans, which was decided on May 20, 1996, is to be put forth in this paper. The case was argued on October 10, 1995. At issue was Amendment 2 to the State Constitution of Colorado â€Å"which precludes all legislative, executive, or judicial action at any level of state or local government designed to protect the status of persons based on their homosexual, lesbian or bisexual orientation, conduct, practices or relationships† (Romer v. Evans, 1995). The U. S. Supreme court held it violates the Equal Protection Clause. The opinion in favor was filed by Justice Kennedy, while the dissenting opinion was filed by Justice Scalia. The referendum, Article II sec 30b of the Colorado Constitution, read as follows: NO PROTECTED STATUS BASED ON HOMOSEXUAL, LESBIAN, OR BISEXUAL ORIENTATION. Neither the State of Colorado, through any of its branches or departments, nor any of its agencies, political subdivisions, municipalities or school districts, shall enact, adopt or enforce any statute, regulation, ordinance or policy whereby homosexual, lesbian or bisexual orientation, conduct, practices, or relationships shall constitute or otherwise be the basis of, or entitle any person or class of persons to have or claim any minority status, quota preferences, protected status or claim of discrimination. This Section of the Constitution shall be in all respects self-executing (Romer v. Evans, 1996). While many believed the law would prevent non-federal discrimination lawsuits based on sexual orientation as well as prevent the passage or the enforcing of existing laws prohibiting such discrimination, Amendment 2’s purpose was â€Å"generally inconsistent with mainstream American values† (Debbage Alexander, pg. 264). The State of Colorado argued the â€Å"measure does no more than deny homosexuals special rights† (Romer v. Evans, 1995). This is a decades old argument that right-wing Christian groups have used â€Å"to appeal to a wider, more secular audience by characterizing the gay rights movement as one aimed at getting special rights and protected status for gays and lesbians incorporated into civil rights law† (Debbage Alexander, pg. 273). Justice Kennedy writes in the opinion in favor, â€Å"The States principal argument that Amendment 2 puts gays and lesbians in the same position as all other persons by denying them special rights is rejected as implausible† (Romer v. Evans, 1995). Justice Kennedy further states how â€Å"Amendment 2 confounds this normal process of judicial review. It is at once too narrow and too broad. It identifies persons by a single trait and then denies them protection across the board† (Romer v. Evans, 1995). The final paragraph of Justice Kennedy’s opinion declares: â€Å"We must conclude that Amendment 2 classifies homosexuals not to further a proper legislative end but to make them unequal to everyone else. This Colorado cannot do. A State cannot so deem a class of persons a stranger to its laws. Amendment 2 violates the Equal Protection Clause, and the judgment of the Supreme Court of Colorado is affirmed† (Romer v. Evans, 1995). While Justice Scalia writes in his dissenting opinion, Amendment 2 is a â€Å"modest attempt by seemingly tolerant Coloradans to preserve traditional sexual mores against the efforts of a politically powerful minority to revise those mores through the use of the laws† (Romer v. Evans, 1995). While Justice Scalia has the right to his own personal beliefs regarding homosexuality and its validity as a protected class, many others do not share them. As Richard Mohr observes in Romer v. Evans: A Blow for Justice, â€Å"All or nearly all legal burdens on gays appeal directly or indirectly to prejudice†. His article goes on to describe how in 1996 this ruling should affect two major gay issues: gays in the military and gay marriage. When opponents cannot give logical reasons for their opposition it presupposes â€Å"strongly held beliefs for which one can offer no reasons or explanations are by definition prejudicial ones† (Mohr, para. 5). With the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, Romer v. Evans â€Å"marked an immensely important day for the gay rights movement and a major setback for anti-gay rights activists of all persuasions† according to Sharon Debbage Alexander’s article in the Winter 2002 issue of Texas Forum on Civil Liberties Civil Rights. Furthermore, this case has become one of the most significant decisions issued by the U.S. Supreme Court in regards to gay rights. The majority of those who have analyzed Romer v. Evans purport the â€Å"fact that the case was won using a rational basis test adds to the strength of the decision for gay rights† (Debbage Alexander, pg. 297). Since the decision of Romer v. Evans, President Barack Obama has overturned the â€Å"Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell† policy within our Armed Forces and gay marriage is currently under consideration in two cases that have been heard at the U.S. Supreme Court. After winning Boy Scouts of America v. Dale in 2000 protecting the groups First Amendment expressive association rights, recently the governing body of the Boy Scouts of America voted to allow openly gay scouts within its membership, but not as Scout Leaders. The important issue of gay rights in America has finally reached the forefront of public policy and debate. As in Romer v. Evans, I hope that the United States Supreme Court will rule against the State of California’s Proposition 8 and DOMA, the Defense of Marriage Act, to find both laws unconstitutional. In so far as to bring equality for all to these United States of America.

Marital Satisfaction And Gender Sociology Essay

Marital Satisfaction And Gender Sociology Essay Marital satisfaction also called marital quality is defined as the happiness and satisfaction one feels about their relationship with their spouse, as well as how well one feels their spouse fulfills their needs (Booth, Johnson, and Granger, 2005; Peleg, 2008). Marital satisfaction is the subject of much sociological research. Most of this research has focused on how certain influences affect marital satisfaction. Current research examines how factors such as division of labor, income, and parenthood affect marital quality (Kluwer, Heesink, and Van De Vliert, 1997; Tichenor, 1999; Cox, Paley, Burchinal and Payne, 1999). Studies shows that many factors play a role in the happiness spouses feel about their relationships. Much of the early research in this area focused on the traditional roles of husbands and wives. Because of recent trends such as the increase in dual-earner households and the fact that many women are making more money than their husbands, more recent studies focus on how gender role ideologies affect the marital relationship. Gender role ideology is how a person relates to family or marital roles that are usually linked to gender (Minnotte, Minnotte, Pederson, Mannon, and Kiger, 2010). Gender role ideologies are defined by Mickelson, Claffey, and Williams (2006) as spouses expectations of each other as well as of themselves within the context of the marital relationship. Mickelson et al. (2006) investigate the impact of egalitarian and traditional gender roles on marital satisfaction. Gender role ideology is shown to be a major influence on the levels of marital satisfaction reported by husbands and wives. Marital discord also influences marital satisfaction. Rogers (1999) defines m arital discord as problems and conflict in the marital relationship. Communication and interaction between spouses can have a major impact on marital quality. Does gender play a role in marital satisfaction? This article will examine previous research on the major factors that influence marital satisfaction, including gender role ideology, division of labor, income, children and parenthood, and communication and marital interaction beginning with the factors that correlate most with gender. GENDER ROLE IDEOLOGY Gender role ideology is defined by Minnotte et al. (2010) as the identity one assigns him- or herself with regard to gender-linked marriage or family roles. The difference in expectations between egalitarian and traditional gender roles can have a major impact on marital satisfaction. Lower marriage satisfaction in women seems to be the result of traditional gender role expectations (Ng, Loy, Gudmunson, and Cheong, 2009). However, lower marriage satisfaction in men tends to be influenced by egalitarian gender role expectations (Ng et al. 2009). Traditional relationships can appear to be less conflicted than egalitarian ones, but this is likely the result of conflict avoidance in the traditional relationship (Kluwer et al. 1997). Egalitarian relationships may seem to observers to have more conflict, however, they also have more communication and conflict resolution, whereas traditional relationships foster lower marital satisfaction by evading conflict management (Kluwer et al. 1997). Studies show that the gender role ideologies of husbands and wives play a significant role in their levels of marital quality. Mens marital quality is higher when the husband and wife share the same role ideology and is lower when the ideologies differ (Minnotte et al. 2010). When work responsibilities interfere with family responsibilities, the quality of marriage and other familial relationships can deteriorate. Minnotte et al. (2010) explain that egalitarian wives marital satisfaction suffers with relation to work-to-family conflict (lower marital satisfaction is related to high work-to-family conflict). Work-to-family conflict is defined as conflict that occurs when family needs are negatively impacted by the demands of ones work (Minnotte et al. 2010). DIVISION OF LABOR Division of labor continues to be a contentious issue between spouses. Saginak and Saginak (2005) define labor in the context of marriage and family as responsibilities of the home, including domestic, emotion and organizational work necessary to maintaining a family home. Dew and Wilcox (2011), Faulkner et al. (2005), and Ng et al. (2009) all report that a perception of inequitable distribution of household labor is directly related to marital dissatisfaction. In addition, Kluwer et al. (1997) report that just because a couple does not report household labor conflict doesnt mean that it is not present in their relationship. In traditional marriages, wives frequently avoid division of labor conflict, however discontent they may be, according to Kluwer et al. (1997). Evidence shows that instrumental support is crucial to marital satisfaction for egalitarian wives (Mickelson et al. 2006). However, the level of egalitarianism in men is negatively related to their marital satisfaction, probably because there is a higher expectation of household labor duties for egalitarian men compared to traditional men (Mickelson et al. 2006). This shows that in spite of egalitarian beliefs, many men still do not consider household labor their responsibility. INCOME The amount of money a woman makes doesnt influence marital quality in the ways we may think. Tichenor (1999) finds that gender has more of an impact on marital satisfaction than status or income. In families where the wife earns more money than the husband, most women reject the power they may get from earning more money and create an image of their husbands control of the family (Tichenor, 1999). These status-reversal relationships appear to seek the image of a conventional marriage (Tichenor, 1999). Tichenors (1999) research shows that most husbands prefer the label of provider and do not object to this manufactured image. Wives who earn more money than their husbands are still doing a majority of the housework while contributing a majority of the family income (Tichenor, 1999). This shows that housework is gendered and not influenced by wives income. Women cannot exchange money for housework by earning more money than their husbands (Tichenor, 1999). Rogers (1999) reports that wives marital dissatisfaction significantly influences wives income. Marital discord can contribute to a womans decision to get a job, but husbands marital dissatisfaction has no influence over their wives income (Rogers, 1999). Interestingly, Faulkner, Davey, and Davey (2005) report that wives job loss creates less marital conflict and a higher level of marital satisfaction for them. However, the time their husbands spend working outside the home is negatively related to their marital happiness (Faulkner et al. 2005). When a wife is unhappy, she is more likely to get a job outside the home, but when an employed wife loses her job, it contributes to less conflict and more satisfaction in the marriage. This illustrates the tendency of many men to have traditional gender role expectations. CHILDREN/PARENTHOOD The effects of parenthood on marriage are also more complicated than expected. Cox et al. (1999) argue that having children creates a decrease in marital satisfaction, but that the severity of the decrease is significantly influenced by whether the pregnancy was planned or unplanned, the gender of the child, and the conflict managements skills of the couple prior to pregnancy. Levels of marital satisfaction have been shown to bottom out around the childs first birthday, and then increase in small increments during the childs second year of life (Cox et al. 1999). Planned pregnancies purported higher levels of marital satisfaction than unplanned pregnancies. Studies show that parents of male children report higher levels of marital satisfaction than parents of female children, although the difference was slight (Cox et al. 1999). Dew and Wilcox (2011) report that wives decrease in marital satisfaction shortly after childbirth was attributed to a decrease in time spent with their spous e as compared to prior to the birth of the child. COMMUNICATION/MARITAL INTERACTION Communication plays a vital role in marital quality. Disclosure is the sharing of information about the self including past information and future plans (Finkenauer, Engels, Branje, and Meeus, 2004). Disclosure is a key aspect of marital communication. Finkenauer et al. (2004) state that disclosure in horizontal familial relationships is positively related to relationship quality. Sharing between spouses can lead to more intimacy and feelings of closeness (Finkenauer et al. 2004). Loss of time spent together as a couple can contribute to low marital satisfaction (Dew and Wilcox, 2011). Spending time together can lead to more sharing and disclosure, and has been shown to lead to higher levels of marital satisfaction for husbands and wives (Finkenauer et al. 2004). Interpersonal differentiation is also very important to personal relationships. Peleg (2008) defines interpersonal differentiation as the capacity for both intimacy and autonomy in relationships with others. Peleg (2008) argues that the differentiation of self is crucial to marital satisfaction. There is delicate balance of togetherness and separation that contributes to a healthy marriage (Peleg, 2008). More marital conflict is experienced by couples with low differentiation (Peleg, 2008). Peleg (2008) also states that low differentiation can result in negative feelings, which can negatively impact marriage satisfaction. These factors were equally significant for both men and women (Peleg, 2008). High marital locus of control (MLC) is associated with increased marital happiness (Myers and Booth, 1999). Locus of control is defined by Myers et al. (1999) as the level of control one feels over the conditions of their life. High MLC among spouses is directly correlated to lower reported marital instability and conflict (Myers and Booth, 1999). In other words, a perception of more control over marital activity equals increased perceived marital quality (Myers and Booth, 1999). Gender has not been shown to play a role in the MLC factor. Another aspect of the level of marital satisfaction has to do with the increasing number of aging wives caring for their ill and/or aging husbands. Between impaired husbands and their care giving wives, reciprocity of emotional support is directly related to lower perceptions of burden and increased marital satisfaction in the wives (Wright and Aquilino, 1998). Although reciprocity levels depend on the impairment of the husbands, increased interaction leads to higher marital quality perception in care giving wives (Wright and Aquilino, 1998.) CONCLUSION There is no simple answer to whether gender influences marital satisfaction. Simply stating that one gender is happier in marriage than the other is oversimplifying the facts. Most literature on marital satisfaction focuses on the different factors that influence marital satisfaction such as gender role ideology, income, children and parenting, communication and marital interaction, and division of labor. Some research goes a step further to distinguish how each factor is affected by gender, and some does not. There are so many angles from which to look at the quality of marriage that it would be next to impossible to isolate gender as the single most compelling issue in marital satisfaction. For example, a husband who has traditional gender role expectations is more likely to report higher marital satisfaction if his wife stays home with the children and does all the housework. However, if the wife does not share the traditional gender role expectations, she will be unhappy in the marriage, which will no doubt affect the husbands satisfaction with the relationship. These multi-layered findings make it obvious that gender is not the most significant factor in determining marital satisfaction. Differing gender role ideologies clearly influence marital satisfaction, as does each spouses expectations about their partners income. But husbands and wives are shown to have the same preferences when it comes to marital communication and disclosure. They also report almost identical patterns of marital satisfaction when it comes to the transition into parenthood. This illustrates how although influential, gender is not one of the most significant factors in marital satisfaction. Future research on this topic could focus specifically on how gender alone directly affects marital satisfaction. Excluding other influential factors could mean isolating the specific ways gender affects marital satisfaction in a way that hasnt been done before. This would be challenging, but finding a way to focus on gender would provide information that isnt currently available. This information can be useful to professionals who study the breakdown of marriage or to marriage counselors who are trying to help troubled couples salvage damaged relationships. It could also provide researchers with data that may predict the likelihood of success in future relationships.

Acronyms, Idioms And Slang: The Evolution Of The English Language. :: essays research papers

Acronyms, Idioms and Slang: the Evolution of the English Language. Although the English language is only 1500 years old, it has evolved at an incredible rate: so much so, that, at first glance, the average person in America today would find most Shakespearean literature confusing without the aid of an Old-English dictionary or Cliff's Notes. Yet Shakespear lived just 300 years ago! Some are seeing this is a sign of the decline of the English language, that people are becoming less and less literate. As R. Walker writes in his essay "Why English Needs Protecting," "the moral and economic decline of Great Britain in the post-war era has been mirrored by a decline in the English language and literature." I, however, disagree. It seems to me that the point of language is to communicate — to express some idea or exchange some form of information with someone else. In this sense, the English language seems, not necessarily to be improving or decaying, but optimizing — becoming more efficient. It has been both said and observed that the technological evolution of a society tends to grow exponentially rather than linearly. The same can also be said of the English language. English is evolving on two levels: culturally and technologically. And both of these are unavoidable. Perhaps the more noticeable of the two today is the technological evolution of English. When the current scope of a given language is insufficient to describe a new concept, invention, or property, then there becomes a necessity to alter, combine, or create words to provide a needed definition. For example, the field of Astro-Physics has provided the English language with such new terms as pulsar, quasar, quark, black hole, photon, neutrino, positron etc. Similarly, our society has recently be inundated with a myriad of new terms from the field of Computer Science: motherboard, hard drive, Internet, megabyte, CD, IDE, SCSI, TCP/IP, WWW, HTTP, DMA, GUI and literally hundreds of others acronyms this particular field is notorious for. While some of these terms, such as black hole and hard drive, are just a combination of pre-existing words, many of them are new words altogether. To me it seems clear that anything that serves to increase the academic vocabulary of a society should be welcomed, although not all would agree. For example, many have accused this trend of creating an acronym for everything to be impersonal and confusing. And, while I agree that there is really no need to abbreviate Kentucky Fried Chicken, it does become tiring to have to constantly say Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) or Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) when they are both used so frequently when

Pain for Pleasure Endured Essay -- Literature Pain Pleasure Essays

Pain for Pleasure Endured The intricate and complex nature of the relationship between pain and pleasure has been a source of contention and diversity of opinion for people of all eras. Shakespeare’s character Othello claims that "tis happiness to die." (Act 5 ln 295). In his situation the painful experience of dying is what he considers pleasure, he later verifies his belief in his statement by choosing to stab himself. Sir Philip Sidney, in his poem Astrophil and Stella states that "in my woes for thee thou art my joy" (108 ln 14). Astrophil finds his pleasure in the pain of his unrequited love for Stella. The complex relationship between pleasure and pain is reflected in the twenty-first century in addition to the Renaissance era. The Amish people choose to live in a world without modern conveniences and pleasures as they are acknowledged in the twentieth-first century. People who are taught from a very young age the dangers and health hazards contained in smoking continue and "Tobacco use remains t he leading preventable cause of death in the United States, causing more than 400,000 deaths each year and resulting in an annual cost of more than $50 billion in direct medical costs" (http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/issue.htm). In Wither’s emblem pain and pleasure are presented in a paradoxically coexisting relationship. Thomas More’s Utopia portrays pleasure as an entity unblemished by the experience of pain. Wither’s emblem entitled "By Pain on pleasures we do seize and we by sufferance purchase ease" (http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu/withe023.htm) expresses views on pain and pleasure which are the antithesis of those found in More’s "Utopia." The divergence in the authors’ viewpoints on the relationship between pain and pleasu... ...ous views. If the Utopians believed Wither to be a "heaven-sent" prophet then perhaps his words, which completely contradict all their views, could be accepted. Wither uses the image of a rose to reflect the essential idea of pain and pleasure in his poem. He claims that "her sweetness fast is closed in with many thornes." The Utopians would find a violet sweeter without the necessity of fighting thorns to enjoy the beauty. More’s ideal society conflicts strongly with ideals that have permeated society for generations. If pleasure is received without any pain can it be as great as the pleasure that contains the knowledge of the pain? Works Cited: Damrosch, David; The Longman Anthology of British Literature. Volume 1. Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc: 1999. http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/issue.htm) http://emblem.libraries.psu.edu/withe023.htm)

Writing as Healing :: essays papers

Writing as Healing Chapter five, Writing as Healing and the Rhetorical Tradition: Sorting Out Plato, Postmodernism, Writing Pedagogy, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder written by T.R. Johnson of the University of New Orleans describes the different views of how language helps a person who has encountered a traumatic experience overcome and heal. Chapter nine, Pathography and Enabling Myths: The Process of Healing written by Anne Hunsaker Hawkins of Pennsylvania State University discusses how personal writing, such as autobiographies and biographies, promote healing in regards to illness. Both of these two chapters speak about writing in regards to healing, but chapter nine speaks about a specific writing that tends to be more effective. Classical logotherapists believed that disease and illness inflicted a person in order to punish a person for something he/she had done. The illness was also viewed as a form of trauma that deformed one’s character by society of the classical era and healing of the illness restored one’s identity and moral purity. Healers used â€Å"verbal charms, prayers, and incantations† in order to drive out the demon that caused the illness from the infected person. Plato believed that healing occurred â€Å"in a plane of absolute, unchanging truths above and beyond the plane of lived experience.† In other words, Plato rejected the idea of that language could heal the diseased or traumatized person. Postmodern healers believe that healing occurs through â€Å"self-actualization† which occurs through writing, another form of language. They feel that writing will provide an insight to the individual and that insight will allow the healing process to begin. It is said that pathography allows a person to heal because one consistently remembers new details when one writes about a particular experience. The remembering of these details are imperative to the healing process because it not only allows the person to get through the experience by re-telling it also allows one to get beyond the traumatic experience. The healing process often occurs through writing an autobiography or biography because the writer soon begins to feel that others should learn from his/her experience, which bridges self-suffering and the outside world. Pathography demonstrates that healing oneself often involves reaching out to others, which writing does.

Falling in Love with Fall Essay

A cool, crisp breeze with just a tinge of warmth brushes my face. The pearl-grey sky and sound of leaves twisting and twirling – I watch as they dance carelessly through the air. My favorite season is autumn because of the many changes and feelings of gratitude it brings, the festivities, and fashion. One of the main reasons I enjoy autumn is because of the many festivities and activities. Not only is the weather cooler, especially in Texas, for outdoor fun but people’s spirits seem brighter. Every year there are so many things to do, festivals and carnivals to picking pumpkins and haunted houses. For me, it’s the sound of kids crunching through the leaves with laughter filling the air; their excitement is contagious and reminiscent of my childhood. The competitive feeling of who can get the most candy and the anticipation of shuffling through it all and scarfing down the best pieces. Because fall allows me to socialize with loved ones and new friends alike, it is my favorite season. Another reason I love the autumn are the feelings of change and gratitude. It might seem like a New Years idiom, but for me autumn is the most perfect time to mark new beginnings and reflect on the year that’s gone by. Maybe it’s the transition the environment makes, the colors of the leaves and the warm air turning cool. It’s intoxicating. As I crack open my bedroom window and curl up on my bed draping a cashmere throw over my legs, the smell of the leather from my journal mixes with the cool air and aroma of a newly opened bottle of wine. I sit and write about the year behind me, the memories and thoughts the ideas of my future. A nice counterpart to enjoying time with loved ones, it’s a perfect atmosphere to enjoy time alone; this is why it is my favorite season. I’ve saved the best for last, another great reason to love fall – fashion. Gone are the days of strappy tops and sandals, fall bring in a fresh cozy style. It’s a new excuse for shopping! Every year, come mid-September I make my way to the mall. With a delicious pumpkin spice latte in hand I fill my arms with an arsenal of clothing and accessories for fall. Tall boots and heeled booties are first on my list then its flowing cardigans,  poncho and double breasted jackets. The warm tones of purple and gold fill my bags and I can’t wait to show off my new collections at the many gatherings and festivities fall will bring. It is especially because of this, that autumn is my favorite season. With so many reasons to love fall, the best are those that engage your heart. It’s magical that even with the cool air; autumn can make a person feel warm. New beginnings at school and the gathering of loved ones, the smell of burning fireplaces hitting the cold air, watching as the trees shed their leaves. You can’t help but to feel a calm sense of hope this time of year.

Fantasy V Reality †Streetcar Named Desire Essay

Fantasy v reality Remember: AO1 communicate clearly the knowledge, understanding and insight appropriate to literary study, using appropriate terminology and accurate and coherent written expression. DuBois World * â€Å"old south† mindset * Aging Southern belle who lives in a state of perpetual panic about her fading beauty * Beginning she was half sane, then contributing people drive her to insanity. * Loss of reality, represents fantasy * â€Å"The state of your life is nothing more than a reflection of your mindset.† * â€Å"It wouldn’t be make believe if you believed in me† – Scene 7 * Story of a changing South containing characters struggling with the loss of aristocracy to the new American immigrant, the fallout of chivalry to a new mind-set of sex and desire, and a woman grasping desperately at the last bit of fantasy she can muster. DuBois World * â€Å"old south† mindset * Aging Southern belle who lives in a state of perpetual panic about her fading beauty * Beginning she was half sane, then contributing people drive her to insanity. * Loss of reality, represents fantasy * â€Å"The state of your life is nothing more than a reflection of your mindset.† * â€Å"It wouldn’t be make believe if you believed in me† – Scene 7 * Story of a changing South containing characters struggling with the loss of aristocracy to the new American immigrant, the fallout of chivalry to a new mind-set of sex and desire, and a woman grasping desperately at the last bit of fantasy she can muster. The structure of A Streetcar Named Desire is best seen through a series of confrontations between Blanche DuBois and Stanley Kowalski. In the first scene the confrontation is not so severe, but it increases in severity until one of the two must be destroyed. To understand fully the scenes of confrontations, the reader should have a good understanding of what is at stake in each encounter. That is, he should understand some of the differences between the DuBois world and the Kowalski world. Kowalski World * â€Å"new south† mindset * Beastly, Stanley possesses an animalistic physical vigor that is evident in his love of work, of fighting, and of sex * Represents reality * â€Å"He acts like an animal, has an animal’s habits! Eats like one, moves like one, talks like one! There’s even something sub-human — something not quite to the stage of humanity yet! Yes, something — ape-like about him, like one of those pictures I’ve seen in — anthropological studies.With his Polish ancestry, he represents the new, heterogeneous America† – Scene 4 (Blanche) * Destroys Blanche’s fantasy Kowalski World * â€Å"new south† mindset * Beastly, Stanley possesses an animalistic physical vigor that is evident in his love of work, of fighting, and of sex * Represents reality * â€Å"He acts like an animal, has an animal’s habits! Eats like one, moves like one, talks like one! There’s even something sub-human — something not quite to the stage of humanity yet! Yes, something — ape-like about him, like one of those pictures I’ve seen in — anthropological studies.With his Polish ancestry, he represents the new, heterogeneous America† – Scene 4 (Blanche) * Destroys Blanche’s fantasy Exploration of boundary between exterior and interior sets. Two room Kowalski apartment reflects surrounding streets. Scene 10: grotesque menacing shapes, jungle noises and distorted music are employed to reflect Blanche’s terror. Scenes 10 and 11: The use of distorted shapes and jungle cries as symbols of human cruelty. Scene 9: We hear the vendor’s cry of the Mexican Woman, â€Å"Flores, flores para los muertos† (flowers, flowers for the dead). It follows the moment when Mitch denounces Blanche as a liar and thereupon refuses to marry her. Blanche and Stella have huge dependence on male companions as it is their only way to achieve happiness (their sustenance and self image are reflected through men) Scene 4 Blanche recognises that Stella could be happier without the abusive husband for support, but this is hypocritical as she calls Shep Huntleigh for financial support. Stella chooses Stanley for love – Williams does not criticize but makes it clear that there is a FUTURE with him. A Streetcar Named Desire Plot Analysis Most good stories start with a fundamental list of ingredients: the initial situation, conflict, complication, climax, suspense, denouement, and conclusion. Great writers sometimes shake up the recipe and add some spice. Initial Situation â€Å"Meat!† Yes, that’s right – the early interactions between Stella and her husband constitute the initial situation of A Streetcar Named Desire. It’s important for us as the reader/audience to see the status quo of the Kowalski’s relationship before Blanche shows up and alters it for the duration of the play. Conflict Blanche arrives; something is up The immediate physical incongruity of Blanche and her surroundings lets us know that she isn’t going to fit in well here in New Orleans. Her first conversation with Stella hints at secrets she’s trying to hide. And her first encounter with Stanley is wrought with tension, sexual and otherwise. All the news of the loss of Belle Reve doesn’t help, either. Complication Blanche’s relationship with Stanley grows more and more antagonistic, especially as Stanley learns more about Blanche’s past in Laurel. Blanche and Stanley’s relationship grows more and more difficult, with Blanche constantly insulting him, and Stanley becoming more angry and aggressive. Stanley also learns about Blanche’s secret past, which he informs Stella and Mitch of. These multiple, small complications are what modern writer and essayist John Barth calls â€Å"incremental perturbations† – the water gets muddier bit by bit as the play progresses, and every new complication adds a layer of intensity and emotional weight to the story. Climax Scene Ten – the rape Did you notice that Stanley says to Blanche, â€Å"We’ve had this date with each other from the beginning!†? We know that 1) Stanley doesn’t like Blanche, 2) he takes out his anger physically, and 3) he’s practically defined by his sexual aggression. This scene seems the inevitable result of their increasingly antagonistic relationship. Suspense Already happened In this play, the suspense stage can be found in Scene Ten with the Climax. The suspense builds as we watch Blanche interact with Stanley, make a frantic phone call, declare repeatedly that she’s â€Å"caught in a trap,† and try to run away. Once the rape is over, we enter Scene Eleven without further suspense. Denouement Scene Eleven With the rape and the birth of Stella and Stanley’s child over and done with, the play’s final scene has â€Å"falling action† written all over it. Blanche’s descent into madness is complete, and we’re now looking at the aftermath to the destruction that took place at the earlier climax. Conclusion Stanley and Stella on the porch together Stella’s reaction to Blanche’s condition and story regarding her husband, and her decision to carry on her marriage in spite of it, constitute the play’s conclusion. This is summed up nicely in the image of her sitting on the porch with her baby in her arms, accepting comfort from her husband after her sister’s just been carted off to an institution. Dialogue Scene 9: â€Å"when I die, I’m going to die on the Sea.† – showing how after everything Blanche is accused of and put through, her fantasy is to be by the sea, washed clean and tranquil. Scene 9: â€Å"die..hand in hand of some nice- looking ship’s doctor, a very young one..† – Again, Blanche has always fantasized over young men, there are many references to Blanche and young men throughout the play. Scene 9: â€Å"I don’t want realism, I want magic. Magic.† – Throughout the play Blanche is the symbol of Fantasy. She dislikes the way things are in reality, and so let’s herself live in her own dream world. Scene 4: â€Å"He acts like an animal, has an animal’s habits! Eats like one, moves like one, talks like one!† – Blanche likes to think of people in a more outworldy way. She tries to justify the way Stanley is by saying he’s just not human. Stage directions Scene 7: Contrapuntal staging – irony with Blanches singing and Stanley’s gossiping. â€Å"it wouldn’t be make believe, unless you believe in me† – Blanches fairy like songs , bringing her back to her dream world, wanting to escape from reality. The music of the ‘Blue Piano’. – every now and then Blanche breaks through her fantasy world and into reality again, this is shown when the ‘blue piano’ plays. It is a memory of her dead husband, and the way that he died. From Blanche’s reaction towards the music playing, we can tell it is a memory she wishes to forget: ‘she sways and covers her face’, ‘the polka tune fades out. Her breath is drawn and released in long, grateful sobs.’ Bibliography: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/streetcar/themes.html Blue piano, magic AO3 perspectives and viewpoints: * Marxist viewpoint: Looking at the play ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’, it can be analysed through a Marxist perspective, reading into how the class struggle throughout the play is prominent in establishing Blanche’s role. Blanche and Stella are from a well off background, a plantation called â€Å"belle reve†. Stella has lived in New Orleans and has adapted well to the unfair male structure of the world she lives in, however the arrival of Blanche attempts to undo this with her intellect. However, even Blanche herself unable to break free from the convention of being second class citizen due to her status as a female, despite being intellectually superior to the males. The class struggle between Blanche and Stanley is a key focus point throughout the play, with Blanche looking down on Stanley, constantly referring to him as a â€Å"polack†, a derogatory term she uses to set her superiority amongst him. This however backfire massively as it causes huge tensions between Stanley and Blanche, ending once the rape of Blanche has been successfully attempted. This can show in William’s point of view how despite room for change, the American 1940s is not ready for equality and change, with the class perspective overruling equality. Ironically in the Marxist viewpoint, equality should be achieved by all in a socialist society; A Streetcar Named Desire elaborates on how the ideas of class equality is nothing more than a pipedream which cannot be attempted nor achieved in the dense capitalist America the play is set in. It can be further extrapolated to assume that Williams’ play is one to show the bitter struggle between fantasy and reality, with Marxism being the fantasy which cannot be achieved. * Queer theory viewpoint: Links can be established with William’s own gay perspective of his personal life, uses the play a streetcar named desire to show the oppression he himself faces through being a gay man in the American 1940s; it was considered an illegal immoral activity, and so he could not openly state his personal life. Through using blanche he portrays his own fractured psyche, linking his oppression as a homosexual to the oppression she faces in the misogynistic structure of America at that time. Whilst a time of change many things were still suppressed, with homosexuals and females being considered to be lower class than men, even males with a lower class background than the females. This can link well with how Blanche is treated during the play, despite coming from a higher class than the men of the play, she herself is supressed in her activities, and is considered mentally incapable and weak by the male characters as the play progresses. It can be inferred that Williams uses the female characters of the play to convey his own sense of inferiority during the American 1940s. Williams’ ideas of fantasy versus reality feature prominently though the ‘queer’ perspective; he clearly shows Blanche’s own broken mind, elaborating by the end how she sees â€Å"lurid reflections appear on the walls in odd, sinuous shapes†. This can be seen as Blanche’s own struggle with fantasy versus reality, unable to distinguish the two. AO4 Other work: The themes of Streetcar are typical of Williams work. The idea of feeling trapped in a fantasy world, much like in ‘The Glass Menagerie’. The contrast in gender, woman feeling much more insecure about the reality of the outside work than the men of the plays was a common idea for many of Williams’ plays. The themes of fantasy in ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ are also similar to those of ‘Summer and Smoke.’ The sexual and spiritual characteristics of Blanche are much like that of the character Alma in ‘Summer and Smoke’ Williams’ personal life: Williams sister was diagnosed with Schizophrenia and he remained close with her throughout his life. It can be inferred that this greatly influenced the ideas of mental illness’s being basis for fantastical elements within his plays. In the late 1930s Williams accepted he was homosexual, this was a crime during his period in which he lived in. this mean that Williams arguably included the idea of homosexuality in many of his plays as a way of escaping the troubles of his personal life. For example it is suggested that Blanche’s young lover who ended his life in ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ was homosexual. Historical background: ‘The American Dream’ was a key idea in the US during the 1940’s as it was soon after ‘The Great Depression’ This dream is often mentioned throughout the play, the name of Blache and Stellas old house being ‘Belle Reve’ translating to ‘beautiful dream’