Now run along, now, quickly! It would be nice to keep you, but I’ve got to be good – and keep my hands off children.
– Tennessee Williams
A Streetcar Named Desire, Scene 5. Blanche says this to the newspaper boy who calls to the door to collect money for The Evening Star, after touching his cheek and kissing him on the lips. Her talk about keeping her hands off children echoes Blanche’s very sexual and hidden self and her fondness for boys. Foreshadowed here is Stanley’s shocking revelation in Scene 7 as to why Blanche was fired from her teaching job in Laurel.