20+ Best 'A Streetcar Named Desire' Quotes

Anusuya Mukherjee
Dec 12, 2023 By Anusuya Mukherjee
Originally Published on Jan 11, 2021
'A Streetcar Named Desire' quotes are real-life based.
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Age: 0-99
Read time: 7.5 Min

'A Streetcar Named Desire' is one of the most iconic American drama films made from an iconic play.

If you are looking for some amazing fantasy vs. reality quotes from 'A Streetcar Named Desire', then you have come to the right place. Here you will find the best quotes from 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

There are plenty of famous quotes from 'A Streetcar Named Desire' that it becomes very difficult to choose a best good movie quote. So many characters have different 'A Streetcar Named Desire' quotes that have different meanings in our life.

'A Streetcar Named Desire' quotes can always be made applicable to us, and that is part of the reason the show is so loved.

There are four main characters in 'A Streetcar Named Desire', and they are Blanche Dubois, Stella Kowalski, Stanley Kowalski, and Harold Mitchell. Stanley Kowalski is a fairly basic working man who faces everything with severe authenticity.

Blanche DuBois is a sensitive individual from the blurring Southern nobility who has recently lost her position. Stella Kowalski is the sister of Blanche, she lives in the New Orleans French Quarter. Blanche lies about many things in the play, including losing her job, drinking, and her age.

Harold Mitchell is Stanley's friend, often known as Mitch. Mitch is not married, but he looks after his ill mother and feels an extraordinary commitment to her.

In the play, the 'Streetcar Named Desire' is very symbolic. This streetcar can be understood as a symbol of human existence, and the power that desire holds in shaping and forming human lives.

In this article, we have covered some of the famous 'Streetcar' quotes by most of the characters. If you like our 'A Streetcar Named Desire' quotes, you can also check out these quotes from Gone With The Wind and 'Of Mice And Men' quotes too.

Blanche Dubois Quotes

At the point when the play starts, Blanche is a fallen lady in the public eye. Her family fortune and bequest are gone, and she is seen as socially untouchable.

She also tends to drink too much, which she lies about and tries to conceal.

Behind her facade of a social highbrow character, Blanche is a shaky, disjointed person.

She is a maturing Southern beauty who lives in a condition of unending frenzy about her blurring magnificence. Petite and slight, she sports a closet of ostentatious however modest clothes.

In the play, Stanley rapidly sees through Blanche's facade and searches out information about her past. Here is a list of the best Blanche quotes that might sometimes make you laugh, while others may give you motivation and inspiration.

You will find iconic quotes here, such as the famous line, “they told me to take a street-car named Desire, and transfer to one called Cemeteries, and ride six blocks and get off at - Elysian fields!”, and the famous last line of the play: "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers, always depended."

1. “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers, always depended.”

- Blanche Dubois, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

2. “When your sister first met me, she thought I was common, well I'm common alright, common as dirt.”

- Blanche Dubois, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

3. “I thought you would never come back to this horrible place! What am I saying? I didn’t mean to say that. I meant to be nice about it and say—oh, what a convenient location and such...”

- Blanche Dubois, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

4. “Open your pretty mouth and talk while I look around for some liquor! I know you must have some liquor on the place! Where could it be, I wonder?”

- Blanche Dubois, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

5. “I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than I can a rude remark or a vulgar action.”

- Blanche Dubois, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

6. “I don't want realism. I want magic!”

- Blanche Dubois, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

7. “They told me to take a street-car named Desire, and transfer to one called Cemeteries, and ride six blocks and get off at - Elysian fields”

- Blanche Dubois, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

'A Streetcar Named Desire' is a real classic.

Stella Kowalski Quotes

Some of the best quotes of 'A Streetcar Named Desire' are these Stella quotes. Stella says many funny and hilarious things, as well as many meaningful and thought-provoking quotes. Discover the most important quotes from 'A Streetcar Named Desire' in this list of Stella quotes, which is your favorite?

8. “You never did give me a chance to say much, Blanche. So, I just got in the habit of being quiet around you.”

- Stella Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

9. “This is my house and I’ll talk as much as I want to!”

- Stella Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

10. “It isn't on his forehead and it isn't genius.”

- Stella Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

11. “I wish you'd stop taking it for granted that I'm in something I want to get out of.”

- Stella Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

Stanley Kowalski Quotes

Stanley quotes from 'A Streetcar Named Desire' are some of the favorite quotes of all time. The way he says things brings out emotions in many viewers and readers.

At the beginning of the play, Stanley is faithful to his friends and an enthusiastic partner of Stella. His family is from Poland, and a few times in the play he communicates his shock at being called derogatory and unfavorable names. The character of Stanley speaks to the new, heterogeneous America to which Blanche doesn't have a place.

He considers himself to be a social leveler, as he tells Stella in scene eight. The quotes here from Stanley offer further insight into his character.

12. “We have the Napoleonic code, what belongs to the wife belongs to the husband.”

- Stanley Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

13. “Man, liquor goes fast in the hot weather. You want a shot?”

- Stanley Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

14. “You showed me the snapshot of the place with the columns and how you loved it.”

- Stanley Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

15. “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 Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

16. “Oh, well, it’s his pleasure, like mine is movies and bridge. People have got to tolerate each other’s habits, I guess.”

- Stanley Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

17. “I pulled you down off them columns and how you loved it, having them colored lights going! And wasn’t we happy together, wasn’t it all okay till she showed here?”

- Stanley Kowalski, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

Harold “Mitch” Mitchell Quotes

Mitch has an interesting character build-up in the play. He lives with his ill mother, and Mitch is discernibly more delicate than Stanley's other friends who he plays poker with.

In fact, many men in the play even make fun of him for his close relationship with his mother. Mitch is a polite man, who wants to find the right woman to marry, both for himself and for his mother to be happy too.

However, Mitch doesn't possess all the necessary qualities that Blanche is looking for. He is somewhat awkward, and she does not approve of his interest in muscle building.

In spite of the fact that he is a delicate character, he does not share Blanche's sentimental viewpoint and otherworldliness, nor her comprehension of verse and writing. Throughout the play, she plays with his absence of insight, for instance, she speaks to him in French as she knows he won't understand.

Discover more about Mitch with these book quotes from 'A Streetcar Named Desire'. Which of these Mitch quotes is your favorite?

'A Man For All Seasons' is famous worldwide.

18. “I like you to be exactly the way that you are, because in all my—experience—I have never known anyone like you.”

- Harold Mitchell, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

19. “You need somebody. And I need somebody, too. Could it be—you and me, Blanche?”

- Harold Mitchell, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

20. “I told you already I don’t want none of his liquor and I mean it. You ought to lay off his liquor. He says you been lapping it up all summer like a wild-cat.”

- Harold Mitchell, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

21. “I guess we must strike you as being a pretty rough bunch.”

- Harold Mitchell, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

22. “Poker should not be played in a house with women.”

- Harold Mitchell, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

23. "I don't think I want to marry you anymore."

- Harold Mitchell, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly quotes for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 20+ of the best ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ quotes, then why not look at these great '80s movie quotes or these interesting 'Death Of A Salesman' quotes to discover more great movie quotes?

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Written by Anusuya Mukherjee

Bachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights

Anusuya Mukherjee picture

Anusuya MukherjeeBachelor of Arts and Law specializing in Political Science and Intellectual Property Rights

With a wealth of international experience spanning Europe, Africa, North America, and the Middle East, Anusuya brings a unique perspective to her work as a Content Assistant and Content Updating Coordinator. She holds a law degree from India and has practiced law in India and Kuwait. Anusuya is a fan of rap music and enjoys a good cup of coffee in her free time. Currently, she is working on her novel, "Mr. Ivory Merchant".

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