[She springs up and crosses to it, and removes a whiskey bottle. She pours a half tumbler of whiskey and tosses it down. She carefully replaces the bottle and washes out the tumbler at the sink.]
– Tennessee Williams
A Streetcar Named Desire, Scene 1. The first thing Blanche does in the Kowalski apartment is to take a bottle of whiskey from the closet and help herself to a generous drink from it. Alcohol and alcoholism form an important theme in the play.