It is apparent that Stella is a battleground for the DuBois-Kowalski feud. Blanche continually tries to turn Stella away from Stanley, by belittling him every chance she has. She tries to prevent her sister from returning to her husband after Stella had been beaten by Stanley during the card game. Blanche does not try to hide her opinion of Stanley when she decides to tell Stella of her true feelings for her brother-in-law. She calls Stanley "common," "bestial," and "sub-human." Stella seems to become the tangible symbol of victory between the two warring parties. Blanche does her best in trying to grasp this symbol for herself. Blanche's influence is definitely weighty. The argument between Stanley and his wife in Scene 3 is directly caused by Blanche's insistence on playing the radio. Stella shows strong signs of her sister's influence. She even seems to repeat exactly what Blanche would say, "drunk — drunk — animal thing, you!" In another instance, she says, "Mr. Kowalski is too busy making a pig of himself to think of anything else!" These are words that most likely would come from Blanche's own mouth and Stella would never have uttered them before Blanche's arrival. Thus, Blanche has had some influence upon Stella.
But Blanche is not alone in her hopes to win over Stella, for Stanley is also guilty of trying to mold his wife's mind. He is continually trying to convince Stella that they had a better life together before her sister's arrival. He wants Stella to ask her sister to leave, and he continues his efforts in doing this. He does not need Stella's consent to throw Blanche out of his house but he, nevertheless, strives to get his wife's approval. Stella is reminded of the "colored lights" of their sex life together and of the happiness they once shared. He delights in telling Stella of her sister's immorality, hoping that this too will turn his wife against Blanche. Stanley tells her that it will be all right once again between them as soon as Blanche leaves.
