Freedom and Imprisonment in Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie The themes of freedom and imprisonment play an important part in the play ‘The glass Menagerie’. The contrast between the two themes is used effectively by Williams, which can be seen in the characters and the plot itself. The opening scene shows Tom, dressed as a merchant sailor, introducing the play. This is in the future, after Tom has left, and as it is a memory play, Tom recalls the events through his perception. Tom, like his father, left his family to escape into a world where he no longer feels trapped. He is dressed in a sailor’s uniform, which suggests that he travels and has a much more exciting life. However, he will also still be given orders, although he must be happier listening to somebody else tell him what to do than Amanda. Tom escapes from his life through the cinema and alcohol. This has a negative effect on the family and is often the source of arguments between him and Amanda. He takes frequent trips to the fire escape. This is symbolic because it shows his wish to escape and the fire escape is just outside his front door, and therefore shows how easy it is for him to leave. Amanda escapes the reality of her life by remembering better times in her past. These stories may not be true and we only have Amanda’s word. She appears to tell the story of her past in Blue Mountain all the time. When she is about to recite the tale again Tom says ‘I know what’s coming!’ but Laura knows how much Amanda likes to talk about her past, so lets her tell it. This is because of Laura’s character that she likes to please people. When she talks about her past, a spotlight appears on stage pointing at Amanda. ‘Her eyes lift, her face glows, her voice becomes rich and elegiac’, which shows how much more she enjoyed life before she met the father. She shows regret in her tone when she says she picked ‘your father’ out of a choice of
The power within the mind provides people with the opportunity to create an illusion of one’s life. These illusions sprout from dreams that often are unobtainable, as they strive to reach perfection in life which is known to be impossible. The mind crafted images provide people with an outlet to escape the terrifying truth of reality. Shielding oneself from reality is only a temporary solution, and can create social struggles as well as tension. The struggle between wanting to live in a fantasy of dreams to escape the world, and accepting the hardships of reality has existed in society since the beginning of time. Tennessee Williams demonstrates that many fall into the temptation to escape reality by living in an imagination where truth and responsibilities are neglected in his novel The Glass Menagerie.
shall firstly do a summery of the play and give a basic image of what
Different characters in the play show that if someone has been wronged or feels like they have been wronged in the past, they will in turn try to hurt others. Both Thomas and
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In The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams presents us with four characters whose lives seem to consist in avoiding reality more than facing it. Amanda lives her life through her children and clings to her lost youthfulness. Tom retreats into movie theaters and into his dream of joining the merchant seamen and some day becoming a published poet. Laura resorts to her Victrola and collection of glass ornaments to help sustain her world of fantasy. Finally, Jim is only able to find some relief in his glorified old memories. This essay will examine how Amanda, Tom, Laura and Jim attempt to escape from the real world through their dreams.
Mr. Tom is an elderly gentleman who lives in the country of England. He is quiet and keeps to himself. Throughout the novel Mr. Tom changes and becomes a new person. With the outbreak of war he is responsible for the care of a young evacuee, Will. He and Tom quickly grow to care for each other. Will is given into Tom's care with only the clothes on his back. Tom talks to Mrs. Henley, a local neighbor, and asks her if she would be kind enough to knit Will a jersey. She replied, "You ent gotta clothe em" but Mr. Tom was persistent and was able to get Will a new, thick jersey made (18). Tom takes real good care of William and does his best to look after the young child. While Will is around him, Mr. Tom isn't so deeply depressed about his wife and son, who have both departed. He is more social with the rest of the town and has a more happy expression. When the young evacuee is sent back home Tom worries, when he goes to check on him he finds him in startling health. He even breaks the law to get his frail body back into the country side with him. Mr. Tom is soon Will's adopted father, nearing the end of the novel Will notices something about Tom. "[He] noticed how old and vulnerable Tom looked" (317).
Tennessee Williams’ Suddenly Last Summer is a one-act play with a cast of colourful characters ranging from the eccentric Violet to the troubled Catherine. One individual, George Holly, is more minor than others, and as such might get overlooked. However, the Fictional World method of analysis uncovers new insight into his nature. By analysing George’s character in the Social World of the play specifically, we get a better understanding of how traumatic and powerful the climax really is.
Tom Wingfield is a determined young man. He has decided against everyone else in his family's wishes that he wants to leave the dismal life of a factory job, to pursue a chance in the Merchant Marines. He realizes that he would be running off like his father and this is probably the only thing that kept him from leaving this long. Amanda, Tom's mother, deep down knows the day is coming that Tom will leave. She says "But not till there's someone to take your place." She wants Laura, if not herself to be taken care of. At that moment in the play Tom is the breadwinner in the family and up to this point Tom is the underpriviledged child that wants to move on. He wants to pursue his dream, a more adventurous life. Tom was a likable character until we find out he didn't pay the electric bill with the intended money. When Jim is over and he says "I paid my dues this month, instead of the light bill". At this point, Tom becomes a more selfish character. There is less sympathy given in his direction. In fact, this is probably where we feel a little more sorry for Amanda.
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The lacking of a positive male role model can be very troublesome for any family; especially during the mid-thirties. Prior to the Second World War, women did not have significant roles in the workforce and depended on their husbands or fathers to provide for them financially. There were limited government assistance programs during the era of The Great Depression, and it was up to the families to provide for themselves. The absence of Mr. Wingfield placed enormous strains on the physical as well as mental wellbeing of his family. The effects the abandonment of their father had on the Wingfield family from Tennessee William’s The Glass Menagerie are undeniable.
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams is a touching play about the lost dreams of a southern family and their struggle to escape reality. The play is a memory play and therefore very poetic in mood, setting, and dialogue. Tom Wingfield serves as the narrator as well as a character in the play. Tom lives with his Southern belle mother, Amanda, and his painfully shy sister, Laura. The action of the play revolves around Amanda's search to find Laura a "gentleman caller. The Glass Menagerie's plot closely mirrors actual events in the author's life. Because Williams related so well to the characters and situations, he was able to beautifully portray the play's theme through his creative use of symbolism.
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The third and final reason Tom is unhappy and wants to leave, is due to his dreams being put on hold to support his family. Tom envisions a life of adventure, something of which he feels his life is meaningless without. After his father leaves, though not his obligation, Tom takes over the role as the man of the house. Tom feels that he is now responsible for taking care of his mother and sister. Even though Amanda and Laura need him, Tom decides anyway to leave them in search of his own adventures. Tom does not necessarily want to be unlike his father, he thinks of his wanting leave as a gene of sorts, a destiny, something he is supposed to do. When Tom’s coworker, Jim, is invited to dinner, Tom even confides in Jim that Tom is “like my [his] father” and that he is “the
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In Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, the narrator is used to reveal elements of Williams' own life as a victim of the Depression in the 1930s. Williams does this through his eloquent use of symbolism. Three symbols seem to reveal Williams' intent especially accurately; the unicorn, the picture of Mr. Wingfield, and Malvolio's coffin trick.