The action of The Glass Menagerie takes place in the Wingfied's apartment in St. This play is framed around the memory of its narrator, Tom Wingfield.
Tom's predicament is one of the play's major themes. This theme can be best described as the conflict between responsibility for one's family and the need to live one's own life.
The outer conflict lies in the clash of Tom's hunger for independence and discovery versus Amanda's archaic, "old south" Christian morality. Tom seethes for freedom and adventure; joining The Union of Merchant Seamen as a scapegoat from a perfunctory, mediocre existence. The fire escape, a prominent entity in the play, symbolizes Tom's sense of imprisonment and the possibility of escape. Dissimilar to Tom's desire's, Amanda believes a good Christian need only look to their job for adventure. She feels in his quest for freedom he will only sin further; for he has already toyed with blasphemy, reading the works of D.H. Lawrence and supposedly spending his nights going to the picture show. Tom and Amanda's relationship is tense: throughout the play Tom seems to be struggling to just tolerate Amanda and while Amanda is loving, she is demanding beyond reason. .
Tom is character of true melancholy. Though he longs for freedom, his obligatory feelings toward his family keep him in St. Louis. Despite his feelings of obligation, Amanda's constant nagging and Laura's idiosyncrasies make the apartment oppressive and imprisoning. His only escape is his nightly visits to the movies that baffles and angers Amanda. Upon his arrival home from the movies one late night, he is greeted by Laura. He tells Laura of the most impressive trick done by the magician at the show: .
Council 2.
escaping a coffin without removing a nail. The significance of the trick is that it symbolizes Tom's hopeless wish he can escape without doing harm to his family. Ironically like his estranged father, Tom also battles with alcoholism.
The Glass Menagerie first opened on March 31, 1945. ... He uses the narrator, Tom, to represent himself. ... Like Tom, Tennessee Williams" father was a traveling Draves 2 salesman. ... Tom says this about her, "Laura is very different from other girls." ... During one of Tom's nightly excursions, he stumbled across Malvolio the Magician. ...
The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams, was written and first performed in 1944. ... Williams is able to incorporate elements such as setting, symbolism, and conflict to express a main theme of escape. Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie takes place in the Wingfield family apartment, in 1937. ... Another literary element that Williams presents throughout The Glass Menagerie is symbolism. ... Tennessee Williams' application of conflict is another supporting element of this classic. ...
The Glass Menagerie In The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams, Tom and Laura Wingfield share a special sibling bond. ... In Tennessee William's play, The Glass Menagerie, the characters of Tom, Amanda, and Laura are all like the "Glass Menagerie" in one way or another. ... Laura Wingfield, a shy and emotionally crippled young girl, is the most like the glass menagerie that she adores. ... Immediately, she retreats to the fantasy world of the glass menagerie. ... Each character resembles the glass in the glass menagerie. ...
The Foils: Tom and Tom The Great Depression was a trying time on almost all Americans. ... The Glass Menagerie and The Grapes of Wrath are works of literature set in this time period. ... Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath and Tom Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie are both young adults who are forced with the pressure of leading and supporting their families during the Great Depression, while attempting to discover who they are. ... Both Tom Joad and Tom Wingfield leave their families. ... The turning point of both the play, The Glass Menagerie and the novel, The Grapes of Wrath reveal that t...
Tennessee Williams The Glass Menagerie In Tennessee William's the Glass Menagerie the Wingfield family- that belongs in the lower middle class- Amanda and her two children, Laura and Tom live in a small apartment somewhere St. ... The Glass Menagerie is a memory play. ... Firstly, the title of the play is symbolic, The Glass Menagerie, as well as the presence of the object itself- the glass animals- during the play. The Glass Menagerie represents in some points the character's psychology, but it also attributes the characteristics of glass to the memory as a whole. ... Tom asks ...
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams is a play about a family living during The Depression. ... Tom: House, house! ... Tom: We are going to have one. ... Tom: A gentleman caller! ... In conclusion, Tom is the main protagonist in The Glass Menagerie. ...
Analysis of The Glass Menagerie The Glass Menagerie is an extremely well written play. ... The play begins with a speech from Tom. ... Tom invites Jim O"Conner over for dinner. ... The glass menagerie is the perfect representation of Laura. ... The Glass Menagerie was an extremely well written play. ...
Tom is overwhelmed by his responsibilities for the care of his mother and sister. ... In Tom's case, however, his guilt for abandoning his sister is never extinguished. ... Like the glass figurines of her menagerie, Laura is fragile and transparent. ... Sometimes, if she looks hard enough, she can see just a glint of her inner beauty when she gazes into a mirror. ... "The Glass Menagerie" is a tale of regret and opportunities lost. ...
In The Glass Menagerie, Tom Wingfield is unhappy with his life as his primary role is to work and provide for his family. ... Another example of symbolism used in The Glass Menagerie is the movies. ... Another character in The Glass Menagerie that creates escapes to avoid reality is Tom's mother Amanda. ... Tom's opinion is expressed as he describes her menagerie, "She lives in a world of her own–a world of little glass ornaments" (Williams 48). Clearly Laura escapes reality as she uses her menagerie. ...
