In Tennessee Williams‘ play The Glass Menagerie, the audience believes that the
menagerie simply refers to a glass collection owned by Laura Wingfield. Laura lives with her
brother Tom and her mother Amanda. Due to her mother‘s desire for her to marry, Jim‘s
introduction to the play is one as a gentleman caller. When Laura describes her glass animals to
Jim, she uses her mother‘s term ―glass menagerie‖ (Williams 414) for them. All of the figures
are glass, but the animals in it vary, and thus fit, one definition of the word. However, there is
another definition to consider: ―an unusual and varied group of people‖ (―Menagerie‖). This
interpretation of the word seems to fit the entire play. Glass takes on many forms: clear, stained,
tinted, broken, vitreous, plain, painted, fractured, faceted, and toughened are just a few. The title
of the play now represents the way that the varied group of people in it portrays the definition.
Tom introduces the audience to the Wingfield family by means of his memories. Since
the play is a memory, Tom‘s interpretation of his family stems from his point of view. He does
not try to make himself out to be any better than the other members are. If anything, his character
seems to have just as many, if not more, flaws as his sister‘s and mother‘s characters do. The
inner conflict he suffers from makes him seem like a piece of stained glass, all separated, and
unable to become one piece. His conflict stems from what he is, what he wants to be, and what
he knows is right. Amanda drives home the latter by asking, ―How do you think we‘d manage if
you were‖ (Williams 395) implying that all of their well-beings depend on him. He holds down a
job at a warehouse, but poetry ...
... middle of paper ...
...r than
let the differences tear them apart.
Works Cited
Holditch, W. Kenneth. ―The Glass Menagerie.‖ Identities and Issues in Literature (1997):
Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 16 Nov. 2010.
―Menagerie.‖ Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 11 Nov. 2010.
Panesar, Gurdip. “Literary Contexts in Plays: Tennessee Williams‘ The Glass Menagerie‖
Literary Contexts in Plays: Tennessee Williams‟ „The Glass Menagerie‟ (2007):1.
Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 16 Nov. 2010.
Tischler, Nancy M. ―The Glass Menagerie: The Revolution of Quiet Truth.‖ Bloom‟s Modern
Critical Interpretations: The Glass Menagerie (1988): 31-41. Literary Reference Center.
EBSCO. Web. 16 Nov. 2010.
Williams, Tennessee. ―The Glass Menagerie.‖ Literature: Craft and Voice. Eds. Nicholas
Delbanco and Alan Cheuse. Vol. 3.New York: McGraw-Hill. 2010. 387-420. Print.
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The Scarlet Letter, a classic American novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, contains a plot that follows the controversial life of Hester Prynne, the main protagonist of the story. Set in the mid 1600’s in Boston, Massachusetts, it represented the Puritan society and its ideals at that time. Its rich plot has enticed and enraptured readers for many years, while Historical elements have allowed readers to analyze and understand the content better. The Scarlet Letter is a piece of historical fiction that contains a real representation of the period in which it is set in and is mostly historically accurate, barring a few minor inaccuracies.
Though it is shown throughout The Scarlet Letter that Nathaniel Hawthorne is completely against the Puritan faith, his views, other than those shown in the book, happen to be quite similar as well. He feels that the Puritans are but whole-hearted hypocrites in that the standards necessary to be a Puritan, are met by absolutely none of them. Part of being a Puritan is to be without sin. Being of sound mind, Hawthorne knows that everyone at some point in their life has sinned and therefore sees their hypocritical mentality. Nathaniel also feels that the Puritan faith conventions are unrealistic and are not at all what it means to be a Puritan. One of the Puritan faith conventions states that the Bible is an indispensable guide to life. Assuming that the Puritans followed their own faith conventions you would think that they read the Bible and based their life upon it. Hawthorne feels that this is not the case unless gossiping, lying, and putting yourself above others is part of the Bible. In addition he feels the Puritans are the complete opposite of what he considers as an acceptable religion and he wants nothing to do with them. The puritans gossip and exploit others sins, which just does not cut it for Hawthorne.
The Scarlet Letter is a well-known novel written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. In this novel Hawthorne wrote in depth about the Puritans’ reception to sin, in particular, adultery. He also includes brilliant visuals of the repercussions that occur when the town of Salem hears of Hester’s adultery. There are many relationships within the book, from a lover to a beautiful yet illegitimate daughter. Symbolism runs throughout, even a simple rose bush outside of a jail holds so much meaning. Hawthorne reveals themes all through the novel one in particular, was sin. Although sin does not occur often in the Puritan lifestyle Hawthorne shows the importance and change this one deceit makes for the town of Salem.
The setting of The Scarlet Letter provides a powerful connection between fact and fiction. Events such as the Salem witch trials, which occurred not long after the events of The Scarlet Letter, establish credibility for Hawthorne in that recounting historical details such as fear of witches makes him seem like he actually knows what he is talking about. Hawthorne's writing style has made him "one of the most widely read nineteenth century authors" (Jacobson 4). He upholds Puritan values and concepts while employing the classic allegorical characters of romanticism. One such Puritan value is that the devil resides in the forest. Anytime characters in The Scarlet Letter enter the forest, it is certain that something terrible just happened, is happening, or will happen soon. One such example is when the governor's sister, who is suspected of witchcraft, enters the forest and invites Hester to go with her. It is this woman who represents the idea that evil exists everywhere, especially among those who refuse to acknowledge its existence. Salem is a particularly intriguing setting because of its witch infamy. The occurrence of the witch trials in Salem creates an atmosphere where the evil and the right...
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Foreshadowing was perhaps the main reason superstition was used in Julius Caesar. The supernatural provided hints to the reader about many important events to come. The most important event that was foreshadowed, without a doubt, was the death of Caesar himself by the hands of Brutus and the conspirators on the ides of March.
The Scarlet Letter is a fictional novel that begins with an introductory passage titled ‘The Custom-House’. This passage gives a historical background of the novel and conveys the narrator’s purpose for writing about the legend of Hester Prynne even though the narrator envisions his ancestors criticizing him and calling him a “degenerate” because his career was not “glorifying God”, which is very typical of the strict, moralistic Puritans. Also, although Hawthorne is a Romantic writer, he incorporates properties of Realism into his novel by not idealizing the characters and by representing them in a more authentic manner. He does this by using very formal dialogue common to the harsh Puritan society of the seventeenth century and reflecting their ideals through this dialogue. The Puritans held somewhat similar views as the Transcendentalists in that they believed in the unity of God and the world and saw signs and symbols in human events, such as when the citizens related the meteo...