The Glass Menagerie Society’s standards can exceed what some people are capable of. Amanda, the mother, pressures both of her children to reach these standards. She often expects Tom to live up to society's expectations. Following these ideals puts pressure on Tom. To escape from these beliefs he goes to the movie theaters. Tom receives pressure from those around him and no one supports him. Society sets high standards for people like the Wingfield family. In the 1930s there were many expectations for each gender. In this time period males have an expectation to provide income. Tom is the only male in his family and must provide the income. Society's expectations is shown by, "I haven’t enjoyed one bite of this dinner because of your constant directions on how to eat it" (Williams 6). Amanda nags him in order to guide him to fit society’s standards. She will constantly nag him about how society feels and she fully supports this. People treat Tom like how every man is expected to at this time. Every day he will follow the same routine in order to fulfill what others want. …show more content…
He wants to escape and follow his dream to become a sailor. Tom does not want to follow the path society holds ideal. Williams extensively explores the role of emotion Tom experiences at this time (62). He has a personality that goes against the standards society has and causes it to be a difficult path to follow. Restrictions are always around him and he wants to pursue his dream. To solve these problems he faces he will bottle up his emotions and go out places and smoke often. Tom feels the expectations society has is negative and will do other activities to forget about these expectations. He would rather pursue his dream job than to follow the standards his mother and society
At the onset of the book, Young Tom has just been released from prison and is interested in making up for lost time and enjoying himself. He is a strong family support during the journey but is among the first to begin reaching out to a larger family. At the end he has focused on the plight and abuse of all the homeless farmers and recognizes that they must
Tom fears that his own kind will be overrun by others, such as dreamers like Gatsby. Tom hides “behind his wealth” (Pidgeon 179) and “leave others to clean up [his] messes” (Pidgeon 180). Tom’s arrogance and racism help create his character and establish his place in the society. Tom’s personality depicts his cruel ways of protecting the old money’s ways of life from the new money people. He considers himself above of everyone else.
| Tom wants his old life back prior to the accident and he sees the accident as the end of his life as he knew it. He loses his sense of identity and sense of family in particular.Feels guilty and ashamed about the irrevocable consequences his brother’s irresponsibility had for other people and their familiesRetreats into a depressed state which feels empty and black.
(12) shows Tom?s authority and the how gender roles affected everyone back in the 1920?s. Tom?s overpowering demeanor hides his actual self, he has a strong aura around him which suggests his authority on everyone around him, making him a kill joy. ¬
Amanda and Tom share a familial relationship of mother and son. Williams depicts Amanda at first interpretation as overbearing, hypercritical and controlling. However, on further assessment, the audience is able to acknowledge a more admirable facet to her character: her evident persistence in trying to love her children. Through her attempts in perpetuating her youth and past glory, she distorts reality to fit her
Tom is often inarticulate in expressing is emotions, which works to his advantage as sensitivity was, and is, often considered an effeminate quality. On one occasion, Tom seems as though he has a moment of sentiment, he is taken “from the edge of the theoretical abyss” (121) and doesn’t continue the point he had been trying to make, as he can’t seem to find the right words. During the fight with Gatsby, however, Tom relies on insult and humiliation as his main argumentative technique. He uses insulting Gatsby in order to draw attention away from himself. For example, he claims that Gatsby turns his “house into a pigsty in order to have any friends” (130), which doesn’t have anything to do with Daisy or the affair, but is just a stab at Gatsby. He also refers to Gatsby as a “common swindler who’d have to steal the ring he put on her finger” (133). Tom exposes the fact that Gatsby would not be able to provide for Daisy, disproving Gatsby’s masculinity while assuring his own, and the fact that he is able to provide for Daisy. Not only is language, but also the way that Tom speaks is a way in which he upholds his masculinity. Rather than asking questions, he always “demanded” (121) them, so rather than asking, he is declaring that he requires an answer. Asking implies that he needs assistance, and to him, self-sufficiency is a masculine quality because it means being able to support yourself. Almost every description of the way Tom speaks is that he speaks forcefully or unpleasantly. He often “snapped” and “exploded” (131) in conversation, which suggests an interruption of conversation, which is in an effort to assert
His character developed significantly as he felt, frustration, helplessness, and anger from his journey. His journey may have ended in the book, but I feel as though it has not ended for him as an evolved, successful character. He may be traveling all over California, spreading the idea of every migrant uniting to topple the monster. Following his words to his mother, Tom would go wherever the migrants are, giving hope and advice to them for their souls—the Oversoul—to strengthen. His benevolence and care for them would intensify, relating to how hope would always prevail over despair and depravity, which is the message John Steinbeck was trying to make his readers grasp. As we all grow up and mature, there will be times when we encounter certain trials and barriers in which we have to triumph over in order for us to realize our hopes and dreams. These sufferings and hardships may challenge our positions as a student, adolescent, young adult, teacher, parent, friend and many more. Despite some hardships that may break and lead us astray, we should face them with clear resolve and determination. If we do not, then we are not going to live our lives the way we want to. The needless limitations we may be subjected to in our lives may be uncontrollable and overpowering, but we need to be what we want to be and take the path we want to take. All those
Throughout the reading, Tom is viewed as an irresponsible husband and father figure because of how he frequently relinquishes his duties as a man. After he gets married to Daisy, they eventually have a daughter. However, due to Tom’s nonchalant nature, he doesn’t feel obliged to handle any responsibilities concerning his marriage. He becomes an alcoholic and he is pictured as a very arrogant man due to his wealth. His cruel nature was depicted by the author when Nick states that “His speaking voice, a gruff husky tenor, added to the impression of fractiousness he conveyed. There was a touch of paternal contempt in it, even toward people he liked—and there were men at New Haven who had hated his guts” (Fitzgerald 9). This statement proves how rude Tom was.
Tom’s major concern lies with the way Gatsby obtained his money. With this concern comes Tom’s criticism of Gatsby as a “Bootlegger,” because of his information on Gatsby (76). Tom immediately separates Gatsby from himself, by placing Gatsby into the category of new money. With this sly criticism Tom insults Gatsby’s achievement and connects him to an infamous world of crime, ultimately trying to prove that Gatsby isn’t the man everyone believes him to be. He later says “I suppose the latest thing is to sit back and let Mr. Nobody from Nowhere make love to your wife….” (77). In his rage, Tom’s attitude toward Gatsby’s class and morals is displayed through his supercilious critique of Gatsby’s apparel, Tom contest Gatsby’s learning at Oxford by saying “An Oxford man! ... Like hell he is! He wears a pink suit.” (65) Within this criticism Tom’s incredulous attitude, brings out his superior social status through his narrow minded view of proper
Because he has recently gotten out of prison, Tom has no idea what is hapening. Tom's four-year absence from his family has placed a barrier between him and his family. Throughout the entire novel, one can see Tom as an outsider to his family.
Tom Buchanan: Most Corrupt Character There are many characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, “The Great Gatsby”. From the most innocent, to the most corrupt. For example, the main character of the story is a man named Nick. He didn’t do anything to his friends, didn’t lie as much as other characters, and respects anyone he meets.
Tom shows how he is an oppressor, he believes that in order for everything to run smoothly,he needs controlling everyone and that other people are below him.
If I could change the outcome of the story, I would have allowed Laura and Jim O’Connor to get married. I would have made this change because then Amanda’s problem would have been solved, and Laura would have had financial support in the future. Another reason I would have made this change is because Jim O’Connor would have been the ideal man for Laura because he connected with her. He saw past her awkward fondness of a glass animal set. He also got Laura to take pride in herself.
The way Tom acts on the difficulties and challenges that he faces at home not only affect him but his family as well. He escapes his troubles from home, due to the pressure, by going to the movies. Finally, his mother realizes and
Aside from the internal and external conflicts which impact Amanda, Williams's strongly expresses his indictment through his very own character, Tom. Tom is merely a victim of both societal conflicts and his own guilt caused by his decision to seek fulfillment within his own life, rather than surrender to the unsatisfying life which his mother had created for him. One of the greatest factors in Tom’s lifestyle that creates his desire to escape this sense of imprisonment, is society's overall attitude toward homosexuality, specifically within his mother. Amanda stated, “I took that horrible novel back to the library- yes! That hideous book by that insane Mr. Lawrence. I cannot control the output of diseased minds or people who cater to them- but I won’t let such filth brought into my house” (Williams 759). Because 1930’s society does not allow homosexuality to be expressed openly, literature is the closest way which allows him to express himself. The simple fact that his novels are the one way which allows him to gain any sense of satisfaction is taken away by his