1. In Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire, what are the tensions between Stanley and Blanche? There are, obviously, tensions from the start. What are these? Consider the following: their backgrounds, their values, their perceptions of each other, their relationship with Stella, their expressions of sexuality, their cramped living conditions, etc.
2. In A Streetcar Named Desire, how does the relationship between Mitch and Blanche evolve? What are his initial feelings about her? What is his reaction to her story about Allan, her husband’s, death? What is his reaction about her history, her sexual background?
4. In Eudora Welty’s “Petrified Man,” what is Mrs. Pike’s attitude toward Mr. Petrie? How do she and Leota respond to the realization that he is a rapist? What does their response tell us about them?
5. In Sherman Alexie’s story “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona,” what is the struggle for the protagonist, Victor? What is he trying to balance, trying to come to terms with in regard to his identity? Who is Thomas (Thomas Builds-the-Fire), and what is his role? How is Victor’s struggle resolved at the end? Is it resolved?
7. In Sandra Cisneros’ “Woman Hollering Creek,” why doesn’t Cleófilas want to return to her father’s home in Mexico? Describe the various “ways out” she considers over the course of the story. Why does she finally decide to return to Mexico?