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Foreshadowing
Explanation and Analysis—Naked Bulb:
Throughout the play, Blanche does whatever she can to avoid being exposed to bright electric light. The way she shrinks away from it whenever it appears foreshadows her dread of any kind of exposure. At the beginning of the play, she tells Mitch flirtartiously that:
BLANCHE: I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than I can a rude remark or a vulgar action.
Blanche says this to Mitch the first time they converse. She purrs this sentence coyly to him as she asks him to cover the bare lightbulb in her room with the paper shade she's bought for the purpose. In doing so, she makes him complicit in helping her avoid the bulb's strong light. She's also warning him that she has certain expectations for the behavior of the people around her, even at this very early stage.
This moment foreshadows several important events that follow it. It's the first instance where Mitch unquestioningly does as Blanche asks him to, which tends to be how he behaves later on in their relationship until it collapses. It is also a moment where Blanche draws a direct link between the presence of light and the way that she detests "vulgar actions." Blanche's delusions about herself and her world depend on a certain amount of wilful avoidance and obfuscation. By asking Mitch to help her cover up the bulb, she's inviting him to join her in her fantasy life. When Stanley squashes Mitch's illusions about her, he tellingly references the paper cover again, as if to imply he understood Blanche's intentions in this scene.
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