It’s a Barnum and Bailey world. Just as phony as it can be – But it wouldn’t be make-believe if you believed in me!
– Tennessee Williams
A Streetcar Named Desire, Scene 7. Blanche is in the bath singing from the popular 1930s song, It’s Only a Paper Moon. At the same time Stanley is spilling the beans to Stella about her sister’s sordid past in the Flamingo Hotel in her hometown of Laurel. The words link to Blanche’s tendency to hide her real self behind a facade of purity and gentility. Her singing about "phony" and "make-believe" is ironic, because the words sum up Blanche herself.