Diction 

Elevated diction is used throughout the play; this illustrates that the characters are educated and upperclass. The play is intended for a mature audience who will understand the witty diction (in the stage directions as well as dialogue).

  • Stage direction: "with a  precocious instinct for the cruelest thing" (Williams I.62)

Accent & Syntax 

A very audible Southern dialect is apparent through the dialogue and style; a southern drawl is apparent in some of the drawn out sentences. This is characteristic of the setting, and this further ties the plot to the Southern setting, as this is important to developing the themes where the setting is important. 

  • Brick: "Wha'd you say, Maggie? Water was on s' loud I couldn't hearya..." (Williams I.17) 
    • Brick's first sentence has a strong drawling accent, which immediately contributes to his characterization. 

Tone 

A harsh tone dominates throughout the play created by Brick throwing his crutch at Maggie, by Big Daddy's biting remarks towards Big Mama, and by Brick's intense denials of Skipper's love. The many crises within the play build the tense and harsh tone, and the characters, all on high nerves, respond to the tension sharply. This sharpness sometimes is evident in raised and harsh voices. 

  • Big Daddy: "Yes, all liars, all liars, all lying dying liars!" (Williams II.131)

 Author's Voice 

Williams directly engages the audience and instills his own voice in the play by making effective use of stage directions. He directly states his purpose for the play as well as his thoughts on the characters and events. Williams' presence is very evident throughout the play, but he does not overshadow or demean the characters. He gives great detail about the set, lighting, characters' behaviors, and such in order to ensure that the full human experience is achieved; he wants the play's atmosphere and production successfully done, and he assists in this through his vivid and colorful stage directions. He adds a dimension to his characters and develops them greatly through the insights in his stage directions. He even demands things from his own characters and the actors who will later play them. For instance, Maggie must "capture the audience in a grip so tight that she can hold it till the first intermission without any lapse of attention" (Williams I.50)

Williams was evidently very involved in his play and cared for his characters greatly. As he says,

"Some mystery should be left in the revelation of the character in a play, just as a great deal of a mystery is always left in the revelation of character in life, even in one's own character to himself. This does not absolve the playwright of his duty to observe and probe as clearly and deeply as he legitimately can: but it should steer him away from 'pat' conclusions, facile definitions which make a play just a play, not a snare for the truth of human experience." (Williams II.117)