"Streetcar Named Desire" - Blanche - Character Analysis/Overview

In society's eyes, Blanche is a fallen woman. She has lost her family fortune and estate, her young husband to suicide and gained an appalling reputation due to her sexual behavior. Behind her facade of social snobbery and sexual propriety, Blanche is an insecure individual. She is an aging Southern belle who lives in a state of paranoia about her fading beauty. Her manner is dainty and frail, which Stanley quickly sees through her act.
In the Kowalski household, Blanche pretends to be a woman who has never known shame. …