Free Glass Menagerie Essays: You Can Run, but You Can’t Hide

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You Can Run, but You Can’t Hide in The Glass Menagerie

The Glass Menagerie, a play written by Tennessee Williams, takes place in a dingy apartment in St. Louis. The theme of the play could be summarized as “waiting for better times”. Across the street from the dingy apartment is a club called Paradise Dance Hall. The family’s apartment could be considered the the exact opposite of Paradise. The family who occupies the apartment is not wealthy, and the members of the family all want to be somewhere else.

The main characters in the play are the elderly woman Amanda, and her grown-up children Tom and Laura. Amanda's husband, Mr. Wingfield, left his family many years ago. The family still got a picture of him hanging on the wall.

Tom is working at a warehouse. He hates his job, but has to earn money to support his mother and sister. He's not happy with his life, and would rather do something completely different. Tom doesn't like to stay at home. He goes out every night, drinking, and going to the movies. Tom doesn't like the way Amanda always tells him what to do. All he wants is for his mother to leave him alone.He'd like to run away and leave his family behind, just like his father did, but he's not sure how to do it.

Laura is a very shy young woman. She hardly ever talks to anyone besides her family. She's disabled, and because of that, she has no self- confidence. She can't see how any decent man would like to marry her. The most important things in Laura's life are some old records that belonged to her father, and her collection of glass figures.

Amanda is not happy about the way her life turned out to be. When she was young, she had gentleman callers coming over every day. She loves to tell stories from her youth. Then she was a prosperous young woman who believed she'd live happily for the rest of her life. But fate wanted it different. The man she chose, left her, and she had to take care of the children all by herself. Now the only thing she wants, is for her daughter to get married.

Amanda wants Laura to get married. But no gentleman caller seem to arrive. Amanda therefore talks Tom into inviting one of his colleagues home for dinner.

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