Comparative Essay: The sense of closure in the endings of A Streetcar Named Desire

and Things Fall Apart

When reaching the end of a story, readers may come across two distinct categories of
endings: those that offer a satisfactory sense of closure, and those that do not. However, it becomes
evident that many, if not most endings can be both ambiguously open, and provide a conclusion to the
story. The play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, set in the 1940s of New Orleans,
ends with the departure of its superficial and delusional protagonist, Blanche Dubois. She is taken
away to an asylum by a doctor and matron in front of her sister Stella, and Stella’s husband, Stanley
after living with them for a short while and being tormented by the harshness of reality. Contrastingly,
Chinua Achebe’s 1958 novel Things Fall Apart covers the destruction of Umuofia, a Western African
village, after the arrival of Christian missionaries. Achebe concludes the story with the downfall of its
protagonist, Okonkwo, who commits suicide after murdering a European man and coming to the
realisation that he was alone in the fight against colonisation. Despite obvious differences in the
narratives, it appears both endings offer a certain sense of closure, while Williams’ writing maintains
an open, undefined future for some of the characters in A Streetcar Named Desire.

Foremost, a tragic aspect can be found in both of the texts’ outcomes, being heavily
foreshadowed by the authors. In turn, the endings provide a fatal but clear sense of closure. In the
play, Blanche Dubois’ downfall is repeatedly hinted towards, most notably when she is shown as a
vulnerable character. Indeed, she appears particularly flawed to the audience as she is easily
disturbed, due to her delusional perception of the world and it being easily shattered. This is
emphasised in Scene 5, when she ‘gives a piercing cry’ as Stella accidentally spills something on her
‘pretty white skirt’. This event shows how such a simple act of staining her clothes forcefully brings
her back to reality, as the act of staining her otherwise impeccable garment is a symbol of impurity,
sullying her image. However, the extreme reaction of ‘[giving] a piercing cry’, is evidence of her
mental instability and fragility, as it highlights the irrational obsessions that lead to her internment in an
asylum. Furthermore, several recurring motifs in the play also accentuate this idea. The Varsouviana
polka, for example, is a music which plays repeatedly in the play to indicate and emphasise Blanche’s
turmoil, setting an ominous atmosphere. In the final scene 11, the stage directions mention that ‘the
“Varsouviana” is filtered into weird distortion’ when the doctor and matron arrive. With the use of such
background music, the audience is able to predict an ominous ending, underlined by the music’s
‘weird distortion’. In fact, the ‘distortion’ and comical aspect of the Varsouviana hint toward Blanche’s
insanity, hence her submission to her fantasies when she leaves with the doctor and ‘allows him to
lead her’. As such, the ending is the direct outcome of her instability throughout the play, and can be
foreseen by the audience. Because the ending is expected, the audience feels that Blanche’s physical
and mental departure from the main setting, or reality, is coherent, bringing finality and closure to the
whole of the play. Similarly, Okonkwo is painted from the start as a tragic hero, characterised by one
main flaw or hamartia, which ultimately led to his death. This is evident from chapter 2 onward, as the
narrator informs the reader that Okonkwo’s ‘whole life was dominated by (...) the fear of failure and of
weakness’, highlighting the protagonist’s singular but fatal flaw. The verb ‘dominated’ and the passive
voice used in this sentence emphasise Okonkwo’s powerlessness against his destiny, which contrasts
with his reputation in the village, as a valiant and ferocious clansman. Hence, the reader perceives
Okonkwo as a tragic hero, destined to collapse because of his fears. Ultimately, the ending fits with
the reader’s expectations, as Obierika, a friend of Okonkwo, states that he “will be buried like a dog”.
Here, the comparison to an animal such as a ‘dog’, a domesticated and common species, underlines
Okonkwo’s disgrace. Moreover, the ending is marked by the protagonist ultimately committing murder,
and suicide. Because these acts are those of violence and irrationality, the reader feels that Okonkwo
not only collapses in terms of social rank, but also in terms of mental stability. This aspect, similar to
Blanche’s dementia, is foreshadowed in the text through several of the main events in the story, one
of which his adoptive son Ikemefuna’s murder. Indeed, Okonkwo being fond of Ikemefuna, his
execution marks the beginning of the protagonist's irrational outbursts of violence. The reader
understands that this act was a result of Okonkwo's fear of weakness, considering that he felt
pressured to preserve his reputation as a manly and capable man. As the author displays his
weakness and destructive behaviour, committing suicide fits compellingly into the story, as it can be
interpreted as an act of cowardice, while being the outcome of his violent tendencies.

However, several differences set both texts’ endings apart, and strike the reader upon
comparison. For instance, the sense of uncertainty in the ending of A Streetcar Named Desire,
contrasts with the lucid conclusion of Things Fall Apart. While Tennessee Williams ends the play
tragically for Blanche, Stella and Stanley’s relationship’s future is left ambiguous. Once Blanche has
left her sister's apartment, the play does not end, but shows Stella sobbing at the loss of her sister
beside Stanley. He ushers the words ‘Now, love’ repeatedly, in an attempt to comfort his wife.
Previously, the author had established their relationship as a toxic one, built on physical attraction and
violence, which ‘thrills’ Stella. Indeed, Stanley is presented as brutal and crude, living by animal-like
instincts, such as when he rapes Blanche in scene 10, or hits Stella in scene 3. As such, the loving
and soft tone he uses to address Stella could mark the beginning of a new sincere and affectionate
relationship. However, the stage directions specify that ‘his fingers find the opening of her blouse’, the
synecdoche in this passage — with the noun ‘fingers’ — suggesting that Stanley’s actions are still in
fact driven by physical attraction. Furthermore, the last spoken words in A Streetcar Named Desire
are those of Steve — a minor character in the play — , who says: ‘This game is seven-card stud.’
This sentence on its own is very ambiguous, as it holds a deeper and more general meaning than
apparent. Not only does it refer to a popular version of poker, played by the men in the play, the
‘game’ or ‘seven-card stud’ could be a metaphor for life, as it is uncertain and uncontrollable. It also
has connotations of bluff and deceit, which fits with the fact that Stella has chosen not to believe that
Blanche was raped by Stanley, thus giving in to her husband’s lies. Overall, the multiple underlying
meanings of this sentence reinforce the vagueness of the play’s final scene. Consequently, the ending
of the play is unclear for both Stanley and Stella, making it ambiguous and open to the audience. By
contrast, the novel Things Fall Apart ends on a realistic and conclusive note. The novel’s historical
dimension plays a very important role in its resolution, being the very first about pre-colonial Igbo
history written by a man of their descent, and from the colonised peoples’ perspective. As such,
Okonkwo's story not only stands as a fictional piece, the novel is also a representation of all African
tribes and their forgotten history. By detailing the customs and organisation of the Igbo tribe, Achebe
argues against the idea that it is an uncivilised peoples, which was the main argument for their
colonisation. The novel is therefore an argumentation against the colonisation of Africa.
Consequently, Okonkwo’s death also marks the end of Igbo history, overtaken by Western powers.
This is evident in the narrative shift that takes place in the very last lines of the novel, where the
narration is taken over by the Commissioner in the third person. Then, the narrator states that ‘One
could almost write a whole chapter on [Okonkwo].’ Here, the author uses irony to suggest the
omission and denigration of African history, for which European colonists — symbolised by the
Commissioner — are responsible. From this, the reader recognises that the ending of the novel is
also the beginning of a new era, or Nigeria’s colonial history, which no longer involves the Igbo tribe.
Thus, the storyline is complete as it is tied to the rest of history and cannot go on any further. This
gives a strong sense of finality and closure to the reader, contrary to the uncertainty of Stella and
Stanley Kowalski’s future in A Streetcar Named Desire.

All in all, it seems that differences are to consider when comparing the ending of Things Fall
Apart to A Streetcar Named Desire’s final scene, as Williams completes his play in an unsettlingly
open way for certain characters. Despite this, the texts equally offer a coherent and fitting conclusion
to their plot, foreshadowed by both Williams and Achebe. However, the reader’s appreciation of the
endings exclusively depends on their perspective and preferences, as some may prefer slight
ambiguity in a story’s conclusion, than one that is entirely explicit and closed.