STELLA: What are you laughing at, honey?
BLANCHE: Myself, myself, for being such a liar! I’m writing a letter to Shep.
– Tennessee Williams
A Streetcar Named Desire, Scene 5. Shep Huntleigh represents Blanche’s perfect man and the unattainable. He is a symbol of American success and wealth and Blanche’s refuge and means of escape from reality. Her old boyfriend in college, he is now married in Dallas and a millionaire owner of oil wells. Shep never actually appears in the play. As Blanche writes a letter to him, she admits to being a liar. Generally economical with the truth, Blanche is given to fabricating stories and the details of her life to suit her purpose – which she does in her letter. She fantasizes that he will provide her the cash to rescue her from her current situation and set her up in a shop.