A strology dates back thousands of years. Over time a pattern has been codified in which the sun, the moon and other stars and planets are said to influence not just the Earth but its inhabitants. Along with the 12 lunar cycles per year go the 12 signs of the zodiac. You don’t have to believe in astrology to appreciate this strand of rich imagery in A Streetcar Named Desire, but it is worth noting that Tennessee Williams’ heroine, Blanche DuBois, knows a lot about it.
Blanche calls her sister ‘Stella for Star’ as ‘Stella’ means ‘star’ in Latin (Scene I). Attracted to a teenaged newspaper seller, the title of the publication he works for — The Evening Star — shows his potential as an object of romantic interest to her (Scene V). Blanche points out to Mitch the Pleiades, a constellation also known as the Seven Sisters, describing them fancifully in Scene VI as a close-knit sorority. Most significant, however, are the symbolic birth signs of Blanche and Stanley.
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