Essay on The Glass Menagerie: An Analysis

Tennessee Williams uses the character Amanda in “The Glass Menagerie” to express the attitude of how proper young men and woman should carry themselves. Amanda’s attitude towards her children sets the stage for their unhappy lives. Her refusal to accept her children for who they are has led to Tom drinking during the evenings and Laura having social anxiety. “The Glass Menagerie” reflects the social norms, roles, and values of the 1940’s when it was written. It depicts woman as helpless and unable to provide for themselves, while men should be focused on furthering their careers and providing for the family. Amanda believes that a young woman of Laura’s age should be attending social events and getting schooling till she can attract a gentlemen caller who will provide for her. Finally, she believes that Tom should be concerned with furthering his career to provide a better life for Laura and herself since he became the man of the house once his father left. Amanda’s attitude displays the social norms during the 1940’s and sets the framework for Laura’s disappointing meeting with a gentleman caller as well as Tom Leaving.

Tennessee Williams (1911-1983), born Thomas Lanier Williams and is considered by be one of the leading playwright of his age and post-World War II America. He took many of the elements of his plays from his own life. He was born in Columbus, MS, to a violent, aggressive traveling salesman and a high-minded, puritanical, preacher 's daughter. He had an older sister named Rose, who he adored, but suffered from mental problems that eventually caused her to be institutionalized. Rose was the model for several of Williams characters,His family moved to St. Louis at some point in his childhood. Williams attended a succession of universities before he finally received his degree in playwriting. Between stints in college, he worked for three years in a shoe factory.

In this quote, it becomes clear that Laura’s shyness is a weakness that inhibits her ability to move beyond issues in her life.

Amanda's dark humor applied to her current life makes a mockery of her future. Her

Critical Casebook of interpreting Amanda wheels you from seeing the struggling mother to the terrible excuse for a mother that most would call social services to leave her an empty-nester. Rasco brings images of the “death-house” she created for her children. I do have to say, this image did make me laugh, of course you must laugh, or you would cry. Rasco’s distain for Amanda is evident with statements of “destroying every vestige of hope and beauty and joy.” The accounts of Amanda bring a perspective that many have come to including Jones, that further the views of her selfishness, valuing money or gentleman caller’s over her daughter’s own happiness.

     The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams contained well-characterized characters. The "Dead Poet’s Society" also contained a great set of characters that were similar to those in The Glass Menagerie. It is fair to say that the characters of The Glass Menagerie and the characters of "Dead Poet’s Society" are more similar than different.

In the play, The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams, the protagonist, Tom, runs away from home in an attempt to find truth and meaning in his life. He leaves behind his mother Amanda and sister Laura who is crippled. As Tom narrates the play by recalling his memories he talks about the night when Laura has her first gentleman caller over, Jim O’Connor. Over the course of the evening Jim breaks Laura's glass unicorn and shines a light through it, thereby breaking Laura free from her own caged life. Although Tom does not call home to check up on Laura and his mother, it is inferred from the narration of his story that Jim, in fact, saves Laura from a lifetime of continuous falsity. Jim O’Connor acts as a savior of Laura’s by breaking her

Laura just sticks with herself throughout the play. She has no friends and considers herself crippled. Amanda always yells at Laura whenever Laura calls herself crippled. The word crippled cannot be said in the house. She is supposed to be going to college but she dropped out.

Growing up, Tennessee Williams’ had a modest mother along with a loud and abusive father. Many children today grow up without their father being around. The outcome of being a child of a single parent could be great, but it is up to them to choose not to let one conflict get in their head. In Tennessee Williams’ play, The Glass Menagerie, the author creates two characters, Tom and Laura Wingfield. Tom struggles to concentrate on occurrences that are right in front of him, learning that he will later regret his decision of leaving his family behind exactly like his father did, while Laura has trouble finding confidence, she comes to understand that lacking that confidence will only stop her from better preparing herself for the future.

Amanda is a caring mother who tries to create the perfect world among her imperfect circumstances. Sometimes viewed as paranoid, Amanda tries to control the surroundings that she is able to. She has not had much control of her situation, which leads to her pushy, dramatic personality. Critics view Amanda as “harsh but necessary.” In the simplest terms, Amanda is no more than a “Southern Belle” whose life took a turn towards reality. She struggles to make fantasy out of

Amanda Wingfield is the over bearing mother of Tom and Laura. She is the typical mother who wants nothing but to protect her family and ensure security. Joven describes Amanda's character quit well: "She is presented as out of touch with reality; she is flighty, and a source of embarrassment to her children". Amanda is from a different generation along with a different country so this she ends up being counterproductive in her efforts to supply security. She along with all the other characters are engulfed in their own dream worlds.

In the class that we had with Mr. Campbell, the class went over many things, ranging from 1851 to 1938. In this time period, Europe was not doing very well, and there were many conflicts and problems that led to disastrous events such as World War I. However, I am going to connect Mr. Campbell’s class to The Glass Menagerie through Laura, one of the main characters in the play.

Past, present, and future play an important role in any memory play, and an especially important role in Tennessee Williams's, The Glass Menagerie. However, in this particular play the characters themselves are used to represent different points along a timeline. The playwright makes this symbolism known to the audience through the dialogue and mannerisms of the three main characters. One character thinks of only her former self, another character seems to simply live day to day, and the final character thinks of nothing but his future. There are many symbols in this play, but these are arguably the most interesting and unique.

Essay Three: Laura An individual’s persona can be influenced by factors and circumstances of one’s proximity. Aspects of one’s past can surely contribute to one’s personality traits. Based on Tennessee Williams’s play The Glass Menagerie, Williams advocates how a person obtains an introverted, timid personality and neglects reality.

The Glass Menagerie, written by playwright Tennessee Williams, is the story of a family torn apart by heartbreak from the past and tragedy from the present. Williams' parallels this play to his true life experience with his own family, which makes The Glass Menagerie an even more tragic version of what happens to a family when love is lost and abandonment is reality. Providing for a family can be an overwhelming responsibility, for there are many pitfalls along the way, some families are able to cope, some are not, and The Glass Menagerie gives us insight into what truly happens to a family when faced with abandonment.