Is Blanche Insane?

Blog Post #3

The word “insane” is defined as “in a state of mind that prevents normal perception, behavior, or social interaction; seriously mentally ill” (en.oxforddictionaries.com). However, the term “insane” has been used colloquially to mean weird and has even been co-opted by rebellious teenagers to claim they are out of the ordinary (urbandictionary.com). There even are some clichés along the lines of “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result.” Blanche, an arguably tragic figure in Tennessee Williams’ play “A Streetcar Named Desire,” though she may be considered insane according to vernacular of today, does not fall under the proper definition of “insane.”

It would be foolhardy to argue that the dictionary definition of insane is incorrect. However, the connotations that now accompany the term can be critiqued, and are found wanting. For example, psychology today thoroughly debunks the cliché about repeating the same actions expecting a different result. The author, Ryan Howes, Ph.D, claims that if this saying were true, when one jogs for a week yet gains weight, they ought to stop jogging, or if one asks out two women and has been rejected on both occasions, they ought to stop asking for fear of being insane (psychologytoday.com). Obviously, continuing these actions despite the current results is not an example of insanity. Similarly, the reframing of the term “insane” to mean “weird” or “out of the ordinary” does not mean that one who is weird or out of the ordinary is insane. In context, the term makes sense yet no reasonable individual could argue that being weird or unique automatically places an individual under the category of insane.

Blanche is weird as well as out of the ordinary. However, such characteristics are subjective and thus, hard to adequately judge. That being said, Blanche repeats several actions throughout the play as if expecting different results, which, according to some, is insane. For example, in Act 1, she rapidly drinks alcohol when she is nervous as it “buzzes right through [her] and feels so good.” This habit continues for the rest of the play when Blanche is nervous yet she does not ever permanently fix her anxiety problems. However, as previously discussed, repetition of the same action expecting a different result is not necessarily insane. Thus, it is important to examine Blanche’s reasons for such a repeated action. For instance, Blanche mentions that she was married when she was young and eventually found out that her husband was gay. As if that were not enough, he eventually killed himself as well. In light of this information, Blanche’s drinking and anxiety can be considered normal. Had Blanche acted as though nothing happened, the likelihood of her insanity would increase because it is not normal to have no reaction to one’s husband killing himself.

Although it may be tempting to diagnose Blanche as insane due to the standards of today, Blanche does not meet the true requirements. Blanche is arguably a tragic figure who evokes the sympathy of readers, but her anxiety, drinking, and sadness are not enough to claim that she is insane due to the experiences she has had to endure.