Category: The Glass Menagerie

The Glass Menagerie is a play by Tennessee Williams that explores the conflicts and desires of a dysfunctional family living in St. Louis during the 1930s. The major conflict of the play is Toms struggle to escape his stifling home life and his responsibility to his family. The dramatic question revolves around whether or not Tom will abandon his mother and sister, and the unifying theme of the play is the power of memory and the illusions that people create to escape their unsatisfactory lives (Anxious 00:01:00). The dominant tone of the play is serious, with occasional moments of humor to alleviate the tension.

Directing

The production I watched was a filmed version of the 2013 Broadway revival directed by John Tiffany. The production concept was minimalist, with a single set consisting of a fire escape and a few pieces of furniture. The unifying metaphor was the idea of memory, which was reinforced through projected images and a non-linear narrative structure (Anxious 00:01:10). The production elements were compatible and coordinated, with the lighting and sound design contributing to the overall mood and atmosphere of the play.

The plays themes were reinforced particularly well by the productions use of memory. The non-linear narrative style enabled the spectator to concurrently observe the characters past and present personalities, emphasizing the difference between their idealized childhood selves and their contemporary circumstances. The projected visuals further enhanced the plays surreal nature, which evoked the characters nostalgia and the difficulty of reliving the past (Anxious 00:23:10). Overall, the plays topics were effectively communicated, and the staging gave the audience a gripping, immersive experience.

Acting

One of the actors who stood out was Cherry Jones, who played Amanda Wingfield. Jones was perfectly cast in the role, embodying Amandas neuroticism and desperation while still managing to evoke empathy from the audience. She was particularly effective in the second act, during her confrontation with Tom (Anxious 1:45:17). The other standout was Zachary Quinto, who played Tom. Quinto brought a sense of restlessness and simmering anger to the character, and his final monologue was a highlight of the production. The roles were appropriately cast, and all of the actors were strong. However, Celia Keenan-Bolgers performance as Laura was somewhat underwhelming (Anxious 01:51:23). The audience were audible enough and were understandable. There were no special skills used in this movie on a specific actor.

Scenic Design

The scenery was simple but effective, evoking the shabbiness of the Wingfield apartment and the suffocating atmosphere of the familys situation. The play was staged in a proscenium theatre, which is a traditional theatre (Anxious 00:01:25).. The scenery in The Glass Menagerie is crucial to the plays atmosphere and themes. The play takes place in a small apartment, and the set design typically includes only a few pieces of furniture, such as a table and chairs, a sofa, and a small glass collection. If the scenery were eliminated from the production, much of the plays atmosphere and themes would be lost.

Costume Design and Makeup

The costumes and makeup were unobtrusive but effective, helping to establish the period and the characters social status. There were no specific costumes that were needed for the play. Overall, the production was well-executed and engaging, with solid performances and an evocative design. The experience of watching a filmed version of a stage production was somewhat different from watching a live performance. Still, the quality of the production and the strength of the performances made it a worthwhile experience (Anxious 00:01:25). The Glass Menagerie remains a powerful play that speaks to the human experience with insight and compassion.

Lighting Design and Sound

The lighting and sound design of a play can significantly impact the overall production, and this was no exception in the 2013 Broadway revival of The Glass Menagerie. There were no special lighting required for the play except the ones used in production of the film. The lighting and sound were used effectively to contribute to the production concept and the total production (Anxious 00:01:25). The use of shadow and silhouette was particularly effective in emphasizing the contrast between the characters youthful dreams and their current reality (Anxious 00:13:25). Overall, the lighting design was skillfully executed and added to the overall quality of the production. The sound design was also effective, with music and sound effects used to set the mood and create a sense of atmosphere.

Personal Thought

The Glass Menagerie is a classic play adapted into several films, including the 1973 version referenced in the citation. The film follows the story of a family living in poverty in St. Louis during the Great Depression and their struggles in dealing with their past and present circumstances. The film is known for its strong performances, particularly by the lead actors, and its faithful adaptation of the plays themes and motifs. It also captures the melancholic and dreamlike atmosphere of the play, which is an essential aspect of Williams writing. Overall, The Glass Menagerie movie is a poignant and moving adaptation of Williams play, and it remains a significant contribution to American theater and film.

Overall, the critique of the 2013 Broadway revival of The Glass Menagerie is positive, highlighting the strong performances, effective use of production elements, and the plays enduring relevance. The minimalist staging and use of memory effectively reinforce the plays themes, and the lighting and sound design contribute to the dreamlike and surreal atmosphere. While some minor criticisms are noted, such as a slightly underwhelming performance by one actor, the production is overall well-executed and engaging. The reviewer also acknowledges the significance of the play in American theater and film, and the continuing relevance of its exploration of the human experience.

Work Cited

Anxious Jellybean. (2021). The Glass Menagerie (1973) [Video]. Web.

Introduction

Amanda, Tom, and Laura are the principal characters in Tennessee Williams play The Glass Menagerie. The three of them are the remaining members of a small family who have been deserted by a wandering yet a charming father. Amanda is the mother, raised in the Old South, who finds it difficult to accept both her age and her current financial position.

Although Tom is the younger of the two children, he is mostly responsible for the family as the only male.

The play opens with him working at a job he detests while dreaming of traveling and being a writer. His frustration is expressed through his drinking and going to the movies in the evenings and reading and writing poetry on the job. Both of these characters revolve around Laura, the extremely shy sister. She suffers from a crippling disease (pleurodesis) which forces her to wear a brace on her leg and walk with a limp, and she spends her time dreaming about her glass figurines. Although they each do it differently, all three of these characters are guilty of escaping into a world of illusion to avoid reality.

An illusion of Toms mind

Toms first words reveal that the entire play is an illusion. His first words are the play is a memory (I, 145).

Tom keeps separating himself from the action of the play from time to time to narrate and point to specific ideas or events or make other comments, which reminds the audience that the play is an illusion of Toms mind. By keeping the concept that almost the entire play is a memory belonging to Tom in clear focus, Williams can illustrate how memory has become Toms illusion, something he cant help escaping to no matter where his travels take him. Tom tells the audience at the end of the play that he followed in my fathers footsteps, attempting to find in motion what was lost in space. I traveled around a great deal & I would have stopped, but I was pursued by something (VII, 237).

That something turns out to be the memories he has shared through the course of the play. Rather than helping him hide from reality, his memories serve to force reality upon him at odd moments throughout every day.

Lauras world of illusion

Laura lives in the most obvious world of illusion as she drifts through life in a cloud of disconnection.

She associates the classical music of her records with a happier time in her life while she associates her school days with the thunder of her leg brace as she struggled into her music room late day after day. Her past has a huge significance to her present state of apathy, she dropped out of high school because she made bad grades on my final examinations (VII, 219) just as she couldnt go back to business school because I couldnt go back there. I  threw up  on the floor! (II, 155).

Unable to face her reality, Laura fills her time listening to her radio and playing with her glass figures. Her illusion is that time is not passing, that her hopes and dreams of long ago will still be attainable if she can ever move beyond her shyness. Her dreams are echoed in her cherished yearbook in which she still knows how to find the picture of the one boy she liked in high school, Jim OConnor because he gave her a pet name that didnt sound like a slur of some sort. When I had that attack of pleurodesis  he asked me what was the matter when I cam back.

I said pleurodesis  he thought that I said, Blue Roses! So thats what he always called me after that (II, 157). She imagines that if she could have gained the attention of Jim OConnor in high school, her life would be much different. Although Laura allows her memories of the past to paint a picture of the present that is more acceptable than reality, her encounter with reality in the form of the living and breathing Jim OConnor allows her to realize that her trap is large of her imagination.

Memories of Amanda

The character who lives most within the illusions created by her memory is Amanda, the mother. Her first words in the play indicate her inability to leave her past in the past as she instructs Tom in the proper forms of eating and then tells stories of her immense popularity as a Southern belle in the Old South.

Although she takes on odd jobs to try to earn enough money to pay for the little extras around the house, she does not have the skills to take on a regular out-of-the-home job nor, as a proper Southern belle, would she consider it. Her refusal to exist in the present is also demonstrated in her dedication and devotion to the DAR. She even points out Lauras attributes in terms of old values, Its rare for a girl as sweet and pretty as Laura to be domestic! But Laura is thank heavens, not only pretty but also very domestic.

Im not at all. I never was a bit. I never could make a thing but angel-food cake. Well, in the South we had so many servants & I wasnt prepared for what the future brought me (VI, 204). Her memories of herself at her daughters age have her expecting Lauras life to begin echoing her own. Not even the brace on her daughters leg or the frank comments of her son can wake her up to the facts. However, the shock of Jims engagement announcement is seen to have perhaps shaken her out of her imaginary world momentarily at least as expressed in the last image the audience is given of her: Now that we cannot hear the mothers speech, her silliness is gone and she has dignity and tragic beauty & Amandas gestures are slow and graceful, almost dancelike, as she comforts her daughter (VII, 236).

Conclusion

Through the action of the play, all three characters experience at least a temporary reality check from the illusory worlds they live in as a result of the power of their memories.

For Tom, the play itself becomes the release of his memory that allows him to find a sense of temporary closure on his past. For Laura, stuck in a steady haze in the present, the realization of her thwarted hopes and dreams from the past allows her to consider new ideas brought in by the hero she envisioned, although not in the way she had imagined. For Amanda, the wake-up call doesnt come until the end of the play, when she finally acknowledges the truths of the present, Dont think about us, a mother deserted, an unmarried sister whos crippled and has no job! (VII, 236).

While the duration of this reality check may not be measured in the play or real life, the suddenness of it, for all the characters occurring in the final scene of the play, serves as a wake-up call for the audience as well, to start examining the various areas in which their nostalgic dreams of the past are clouding their perception of the present or the future and preventing them from truly and effectively addressing the issues of the day.

Works Cited

Williams, Tennessee. The Glass Menagerie. The Theatre of Tennessee Williams. Vol. 1. New York: New Directions Books: 1971.

Analysis

In Tennessee Williams play The Glass Menagerie, the story is told of a small family. The father of the family deserted them many years ago and the mother, Amanda, from old Southern genteel stock, finds it nearly impossible to accept her current conditions, instead constantly talking to her children about the good old days when she was popular and surrounded by beaus. The son, Tom, is the younger of the two children and the play opens with him working at a job he detests as a means of supporting his female relatives while secretly dreaming of traveling and being a writer.

However, he knows he will never accomplish his dreams while he is supporting his mother and sister and his frustration is taken out in drinking and going to the movies, which disgusts his mother who feels he should be spending his time in loftier pursuits. Finally, theres Laura, a young woman who is extremely shy, partly because of her crippling disease (pleurosis) which forces her to wear a brace on her leg and walk with a limp. Too shy to attend the business school her mother enrolled her in and without any friends of her own, Amanda decides marriage is the only answer for Laura and forces Tom to find a beau for his sister. Unfortunately, the one he finds, while perfectly acceptable to both Laura and Amanda, is already engaged and leaves Laura with a broken heart, symbolized by the broken unicorn Laura encourages him to keep as a souvenir. The play is a tragedy because Laura, having already had the opportunity to learn from her past, continues to live in a dream-world of her own creation. She does this by failing to recognize the real strengths and weaknesses of her children and in encouraging her daughter to live the same way.

Throughout the play, Amanda regales her children with stories about when she was young, in the process pointing out the various ways in which Laura is a failure as a daughter. Although this is not necessarily done in a mean way or with deliberate intentions, as she discusses her own days of youth, Amanda continuously points out the various ways in which Laura does not measure up to her expectations. She indicates girls in her time knew how to entertain their gentleman callers. It wasnt enough for a girl to be possessed of a pretty face and a graceful figure  although I wasnt slighted in either respect. She also needed to have a nimble wit and a tongue to meet all occasions (I, 148).

It is noticed that while Laura has the pretty face, she does not possess the graceful figure her mother deems important thanks to the braced leg nor does she have the sparkling personality her mother lists, being too shy to mumble more than a word or two when confronted by strangers. Amandas imagined world is made obvious as the family finishes dinner and Amanda sends Laura out into the family room to prepare for the flood, there must have been a tornado of gentlemen callers prepared to spend the evening vying for Lauras attention rather than recognizing and working with Lauras true nature. Lauras feelings of inadequacy are captured with her response to her mothers preparations, It isnt a flood, its not a tornado, Mother. Im just not popular like you were in Blue Mountain (I, 150). Rather than focusing on the strengths actually possessed by her daughter that can be utilized to help ease her out into society, Amanda insists there is only one way of accomplishing her goals and that is through determined charm and wit, attempting to force Laura into behavior that is completely alien to her and erasing any source of self-confidence Laura might have had.

Like her blind spot regarding Lauras shyness, Amanda is equally unaware of Toms limitations and lack of friends. Shes constantly angry with him for first not bringing home enough money so that she is forced to work on the phone and then for his tendency to go out at night as the only way he can work out his frustrations. Her expectations for him seem to go well beyond the possible for anyone as they are often contradictory or insist upon extreme self-denial. When she asks him to find a gentleman for Laura, the pressure is not just to find someone for Laura to meet, but to find someone willing to marry Laura immediately. Although she tells him she wants him to Find out one thats clean-living  doesnt drink and ask him out for sister & To meet! Get acquainted! (IV, 176), Tom realizes that a simple acquaintance is not what his mother is seeking. While it seems to Amanda that Tom is putting off inviting someone to dinner, it emerges in scene six that Tom is nearly as friendless as Laura. I had known Jim slightly in high school & He was the only one at the warehouse with whom I was on friendly terms (VI, 190). That he genuinely tried to find someone for Laura is evidenced in his recollection that Laura had known Jim in high school and had spoken admiringly of his voice (VI, 191). However, his best friend down at the warehouse (VII, 235) has a surprise Tom didnt know about, that he was getting married in June, which Amanda uses to blame Tom for once again thinking only about himself, making the scene even worse for Laura as the play comes to an end.

Although she has had plenty of opportunity to learn how devastating living in a dream world can be, Amanda is constantly building up Lauras hopes and dreams for a brighter future by washing her in waves of make-believe. Laura simply does not have the same personality that her mother was given, nor does she have the luxurious entertainment space or the opportunity for attending social events that her mother evidently enjoyed. Thus, she cannot possibly meet the number of men Amanda apparently had opportunity to know, nor would she feel comfortable talking with them. Despite this, Amanda continues to encourage her to hold out hopes for a good marriage. This starts with her own recitation of the quality of her suitors, My callers were gentlemen  all! Among my callers were some of the most prominent young planters of the Mississippi Delta  planters and sons of planters (I, 148).

As she talks about them, it emerges that about the only one that didnt amount to anything was the one she married. Immediately upon Tom telling her that he has a friend coming over for dinner, Amanda already considers him her daughters future husband. Tom tries to reign her in by stating Lots of fellows meet girls whom they dont marry (V, 184), but Amanda just tells him to talk sensibly. She instills in Laura the sense that without a husband, she will be worth nothing and will end up living a worse life even than the one she lives now. She builds up Lauras hope and secret belief that the boy her brother is bringing home will take her away from all this. When it is discovered that the boy is the same boy Laura had a deep crush on in high school, this dream bursts into full flower only to be completely crushed as the family discovers Jim is already planning to be married to someone else very soon.

Conclusion

Throughout the play, it can be seen that Amanda has little idea of how to handle having two children who dont share her same outlook on life or outgoing personality. She is incapable of seeing how their desperate living conditions, as well as physical conditions in the case of Laura, have affected her children, causing them to be closed off to the outside world. This is made worse by her constantly informing her children of their own failures  Toms in not being the inhuman paragon of strength she expects him to be and Laura by not being the vivacious thing Amanda herself used to be in her own youth. By failing to take their individual personalities into consideration, she forces a situation in which both children are sure to fail, proving herself to be, ultimately, the cause for Lauras broken heart by the end of the play.

Works Cited

Williams, Tennessee. The Glass Menagerie. The Theatre of Tennessee Williams. Vol. 1. New York: New Directions Books: 1971.

One of the reasons why Tennessee Williamss play The Glass Menagerie continues to be referred, as such that represents a particularly high literary value, is that the themes and motifs, contained in it, are discursively relevant. That is, by being exposed to how the plays characters address life-challenges, viewers do recognize these characters innermost psychological anxieties, as such that relate to the ones of their own.

In my paper, I will explore the validity of this suggestion at length, while focusing on the significance of the motif of an existential alienation, which I believe is being prominently featured, throughout the plays entirety.

Even though that there are a number of clearly defined modernist overtones to how the plays plot unravels out on the stage, due to the plots structural simplicity, grasping it mentally does not represent much of a challenge. In essence, it can be outlined as follows. The character of Amanda Wingfield, who shares a household with her son Tom and her daughter Laura, tries her best to help Laura to find a man who would be willing to marry her.

This, however, is not easily accomplishable, due to both: Lauras physical deficiency (she limps) and the fact that she happened to be an unnaturally shy individual, afraid of socializing with strangers. The character of Tom (narrator) temporarily works at a shoe-warehouse, while striving to support his mother and sister.

However, being endowed with artistic aspirations, he finds the routine of addressing his professional duties increasingly unbearable  hence, Toms tendency to overindulge in drinking. Being emotionally involved with Laura, Tom also tries to set her up with a potential husband  he invites his coworker Jim to a family-dinner, so that he would be able to get to know Laura better, and eventually to decide to marry her.

Despite her shyness, Laura does become relaxed in Jims presence and begins to experience the sensation of being romantically attached to him. However, it does not take too long for her to find out that Jim plans to marry another woman, which results in Laura having sustained yet another emotional blow. The plays ending implies that Laura effectively gives up on her hope of being able to lead a conventional lifestyle, and becomes socially-withdrawn for the rest of her life.

Thus, it will only be appropriate to suggest that the very subtleties of the plot create objective preconditions for viewers to perceive the plays characters, as such that do not quite fit into the reality that surrounds them. This simply could not be otherwise, because, as the earlier provided outline of Williamss play implies  these characters never ceased experiencing the sensation of an existential alienation.

The manner, in which the character of Amanda goes about trying to exercise a parental authority within the family, illustrates the legitimacy of this statement perfectly well. For example, in her conversations with Tom and Laura, Amanda never ceases to promote the so-called traditional values, deeply imbedded in the notion of religion.

Hence, Amandas insistence that it is not only that people must utter a prayer, before they have a dinner, but that neither of the household members may skip attending this ritual: Amanda: We cant say grace until you (Tom) come to the table! (Williams 753). Apparently, it never occurred to Amanda that the very realities of living in the early 20^th centurys America were exposing the sheer erroneousness of Biblical fables.

This is why the Amandas traditionalist approach to parenting could not prove effective, by definition. As a result, Amanda was becoming increasingly frustrated with her inability to instill Laura and Tom with proper morals, which in turn was causing her to suspect that she probably was not a good mother, after all.

It is needless to mention, of course, that this could not result in anything else, but in making Amanda ever more psychological uncomfortable with the surrounding socio-cultural environment.

This is exactly the reason why Amanda would never skip an opportunity to reflect upon how things used to be back in the past: Amanda: One Sunday afternoon in Blue Mountain  your mother received  seventeen gentlemen-callers! We had to send the nigger over to bring in folding chairs from the parish house (754).

The very delight, with which Amanda expounds on her memories of the past, leaves no doubts as to the fact that, psychologically speaking, Amanda was growing increasingly tempted to submerge into the reality of the past, while ignoring the actual reality of the present (Bluefarb 513).

Essentially the same thesis applies to the character of Laura, even though that, unlike her mother, she was not overly fascinated with the good ole days. Being an emotionally sensitive girl, who used to experience the sensation of inferiority (due to having to wear braces on her leg), Laura could not help creating her own world of little figurines of exotic animals, made out of glass, among which she felt thoroughly comfortable.

As time went on, Laura was becoming progressively withdrawn, while preoccupying herself with taking care of her beloved figurines. This, of course, used to cause Amanda a great deal of worry: Now all she (Laura) does is fool with those pieces of glass and play those worn-out records. What kind of a life is that for a girl to lead? (758).

Nevertheless, contrary to what Amanda used to believe, her daughters mental condition could hardly be remedied by the mean of encouraging Laura to socialize more. Apparently, Lauras obsession with the glass menagerie extrapolated her cognitive and emotional incompatibility with the functioning of the American materialistic society.

Hence, the symbolical significance of Jims rhetorical question: Unicorns, arent they extinct in the modern world? (774)  without intending to do it rationally, Jim did hint that individuals like Laura (the ones that indulge in a socially withdrawn daydreaming) will never be able to adjust to the real world.

Therefore, there is nothing utterly surprising about the fact that, throughout the course of the plays entirety, Laura is being represented as an individual, whose biological vitality has been irrevocably undermined. In its turn, this explains why, as opposed to what it happened to be the case with her mother, the Lauras sense of existential alienation has strongly defined tragic undertones to it.

Even though that, formally speaking, the plays narrator (Jim) does not appear to experience the sensation of a societal alienation, this is far from being the actual case. This is because, despite the fact that Jim does tend to indulge in a number of different socialization-related activities, without seeming to suffer any emotional damage, as a result, he finds it increasingly difficult adjusting to his social role of a warehouse-worker.

There is a memorable scene in the play, where Jim comes up with the emotionally-charged speech, on the subject of his deep-seated incompatibility with the idea that working at a warehouse accounts for his true calling: You think Im crazy about the warehouse? You think Im in love with the Continental Shoemakers?

You think I want to spend fifty-five years down there in that  celotex interior! with  fluorescent  tubes! Look! Id rather somebody picked up a crowbar and battered out my brains  than go back mornings! (757). Apparently, being an idealistically-minded young man, Tom could never adjust to the prospect of spending the rest of his life, working as a manual laborer.

This is the reason why, throughout the play, Tom acts as a socially alienated individual, who strives to overcome the sensation of being unfit to lead the conventional lifestyle of a laborer by the mean of uttering sarcastic remarks, every time he finds it appropriate.

As King (1973) noted: Tom toys with the same madness in which his sister Laura is trapped but saves himself with irony (209). Therefore, just as it happened to be the case with the earlier mentioned characters, Tom appears to have suffered from his deep-seated suspicion of himself being not quite normal  hence, the clearly defined motif of alienation to the manner, in which this particular character addresses life-challenges.

Even the plays most conventional character Jim, also seems to be affected by his realization of the fact that he is not quite as successful, as he hoped he would be: I hoped when I was going to high-school that I would be further along at this time, six years later, than I am now (778).

In fact, this appears to be the actual reason why he was able to get along with Laura right away  apparently, Jim was no stranger to the sensation of being a loser, which is why he could well relate to the Lauras emotional state of being. However, unlike what it was the case with Tom, Jim never had any aspirations of grandeur, which is why he was able to successfully deal with his alienation-related anxieties (Cluck 87).

The deployed line of argumentation does substantiate the idea that, in The Glass Menagerie, it was specifically the main characters subtle understanding that they do not quite belong to this world, which prevented them from being able to enjoy their lives to the fullest. Therefore, it would only be logical to assume that in Williamss play, the theme of alienation affects plots developments more than anything else does.

Given the fact that, it was implied earlier, the realities of a post-industrial living do cause more and more Americans to grow increasingly detached from the classical (euro-centric) conventions of what should be considered ones purposeful life, there is nothing too surprising about the cult-status of this particular Williamss play.

After all, just as it was the case with the characters of Amanda, Tom and Laura, many contemporary Americans (particularly Whites) do realize themselves being in no position to be able to keep up with the pace of a social progress  hence, their tendency to choose in favor of socially-withdrawn lifestyles. I believe that this conclusion fully correlates with the papers initial thesis.

Works Cited

Bluefarb, Sam. The Glass Menagerie: Three Visions of Time. College English 24.7 (1963): 513-518. Print.

Cluck, Nancy. Showing or Telling: Narrators in the Drama of Tennessee Williams. American Literature 51.1 (1979): 84-93. Print.

King, Thomas. Irony and Distance in The Glass Menagerie. Educational Theatre Journal 25.2 (1973): 207-214. Print.

Williams, Tennessee 1945, The Glass Menagerie. Web.

Dramatic elements are present in any narrative, whether assembled in a literary form or a cinematic or, traditionally, constituting a theatrical performance. These elements, constituting parts of any well-written narrative, are working towards captivating the audiences attention and enhancing the story, making it engaging and comprehensible. In that sense, The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams excels by a number of criteria. While each of the dramatic elements serves its own unique purpose in relation to the story, there are ones that are imminently more pronounced than others, which can be owed to Glass Menageries own specificity. Conflict, contrast, and tension are the ones that protrude the most  while at the same time serving the play and its reception remarkably well.

Tension is the first thing one is met with when watching the film. While the opening scene features Tom taking the stance of a dispassionate narrator, later on, it is unveiled by him that he, too, is a character with deep involvement with the story. As soon as it appears clear  the fact that the plays author is engrossed in the action  the audience experience the first display of tension. The feeling of tightness and lack of physical and emotional freedom is pervasive throughout the play. It is particularly evident when Tom says in a rush of anger that he has got nothing in his life to call his own, which is characteristic of a feeling when one is desperate and cornered (Williams 17). In the film, tension is intensified by the dimly lit apartment and repetitive shot angles  the importance of the setting is accentuated. The setting is immensely important as it sets the tone  and it is critical for interpreting the meaning (Elements of Drama). Via these visual choices, the audience is able to comprehend the inner world of the characters in full detail.

However, the most prominent dramatic element of The Glass Menagerie is, undoubtedly, its inflating conflict  Amandas and Toms, and Lauras ones. Along with tension, conflict is one characteristic that is particularly clear in the play. While Lauras internal conflict remains to be one of the main driving forces of the narrative, Toms and Amandas, and even Jims, are of importance, too. Tom is indulging in various forms of compensation for lives passing by without any change, his mother is being nostalgic for her youth, and Laura is living inside her head (The Glass Menagerie). All of the characters appear to be broken, each in their own way. It is the unique apposition of the trauma of all of those people that makes this conversational play, limited to the setting of their decaying apartment, so interesting to follow.

Interestingly enough, it is Jim, the last character to appear, who allows for one of the most outstanding features of the play to shine in its full glory. Contrast, as it appears in the dialogue between Laura and Jim, is crucial to demonstrating conflict and engaging the viewers attention. What happens after Laura has reached a level of intimacy with another person as she has never done before  a moment that is an apex  crushes the audiences hopes for her fulfilling her romantic dreams. The fact that the only man she has ever loved is engaged to another woman is truly tragic, especially in Lauras position, which makes it an outstanding example of the use of contrast. Multiple layers of it can be distilled from the text  from the appalling news that Jim has for Laura to the casual behavior that he adopts right after such an intimate, important moment.

Finally, it is essential to note that the usage of the dramatic elements is at its finest in both the play and its cinematographic rendition. Although there are a number of other elements, the building tension, contrast, and conflict are the most characteristic and the most well-executed. With the help of those dramatic devices, the audience is able to see deeper into the different manifestations of human nature and ultimately, themselves.

Works Cited

Williams, Tennessee. The Glass Menagerie. Penguin Books, 1988.

The Glass Menagerie, YouTube, uploaded by FilmRise Movies, 2020, Web.

Elements of Drama. Lumen, Web.

The Plays Analysis

It is considered as a memory play. It can therefore be exhibited with rare independence of convention. Owing to its noticeably subtle or questionable content, environmental inferences and finesses of direction take up a very pertinent role. Expressionism as well as other untraditional approaches in drama possesses just a single valid goal which is a quicker methodology to realism or truth.

When a playwright chooses to use exceptional methods in writing his play, it is not thought or should not be in a bid to elude its mandate of countenancing reality or inferring knowledge, but it should be a process of trying to get an easy way to show or clear way to express issues as they exist.

Music, screening, and lighting are important factors of consideration when developing a play and should be well done. All these are achieved in the play as one experiences reading through its plots and lines.

Tom Wingfield

Tom takes a double role in this play. The first role is that of a character having memoirs that the play writes about. The second role is that of a character who mainly acts bound by these very memoirs. It is these double roles which underpin the tension in the play pulling between dramatic realism shown in the play and recollections disruption of realism.

There are moments in the play when Tom speaks directly to the audience in a bid to offer a more isolated clarification and evaluation of events that have occurred on stage. The other characters do not do this. Nevertheless, at the same moment, he exhibits actual and at times infantile sentiments as he participates in the acts within the play.

This kind of dualism can upset our consideration of Tom since it is difficult to come to conclusion whether he is that kind of person whose evaluations should be taken seriously or a character who permits his feelings to dent a blow to his personal judgment. In addition it shows the way recollection is intrinsically challenging. This is because memory is normally incorporated to deal with a past where an individual was not as virtuous as he may be at present.

Even when considered as the only character within the play, contradiction seems to fill his life. On one side of the coin, he immerses himself into reading literature, writing poetic contents, and hopes for the better things in life. However, on the other side of the coin, Tom appears intricately bound for the grotesque, simple environment of the Wingfield family.

Amanda Wingfield

One distinct character which marks the plays dramatic plot can be said to be that of a faded southern belle. Wingfield clearly represents this attribute. Typically, the playwrights faded belle is one from a well-known community or family from the south, has been brought up in a conservative way, and has gone through the pains of dealing with a reverse of financial as well as social well-being at one time in life.

Just like Wingfield, such ladies have all gone through a difficult time in appreciating the new status that they enjoy in the society and particularly with the new society which fails to take into consideration the social differences which they were taught to hold dear. How they relate with men as well as their families is quite problematic, and they strictly conserve the norms of their past.

As it is with Wingfield, their conservation of proper conduct in very impolite environments may be seen as disastrous, amusing, or totally ugly. Amanda Wingfield comes across as the most vociferous as well as theatrical actor, and one among the contemporary American drama most admired female characterization.

Laura Wingfield

Laura is physically as well as emotionally deprived as can be seen from the play. She is also the only actor within the play who avoids doing deeds that might be hurtful to others. Despite the fact that she faces too much trouble handling her personal challenges, she exhibits true kindness. This is evident when she cries and feels sad because Tom is not happy as told by Amanda in the fourth scene.

This attribute is contrastingly different as with the rest of the family members within the Wingfield family who are characterized by extreme selfishness. One cannot help but also notice that Laura similarly has the fewest lines in the entire play to stage. This indeed plays a big part why she is considered more selfless than everyone else.

However, she remains the center where the whole plot of the play focuses on. The most conspicuous signs in the play such as the blue roses, the glass unicorn as well as the glass menagerie seem to in a big way refer to her character. She is as uncommon and strange as a blue rose or a unicorn. She is also considered as delicate as a figurine made from glass. The last character is Jim Oconnor who is considered as a very good gentleman.

In conclusion, the play has been developed well to encompass all the attributes of a well written play. Characters are properly molded to represent distinct characters of their own and matched with the correct personalities as intended by the playwright. Lastly, it is easy to identify themes within the play that are quite connected to the playwrights life.

Introduction

The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams depicts the depression era and its impact on a small Southern family in St. Louis. Williams portrays that the family in financial trouble: the father has abandoned his wife and two children, both of whom are now young adults. The main problem is that the family cannot cope with economic crisis lost in dreams about prosperity and wealth. Thesis Williams portrays that false values and ideals imposed by Amanda on her children result in loosing hopes and desperation.

The plot of the play

In the play, Williams depicts people waiting for better days but unable to cope with reality and financial crisis. It is possible to say that Amanda, the mother, has a great impact on values and ideals of children. On the one hand, Amanda knows she must do what it takes to keep the bills paid. On the other hand, she cherishes the remembrances of the days back in Blue Mountain, with gentlemen callers and hoards of jonquils surrounding her: One Sunday afternoon in Blue Mountain-your mother received-seventeen!-gentlemen callers! (Williams, p. 8). Williams admits that she regrets her diminished status: the fading of her beauty and the increasing harshness of her tone of voice: a little woman of great but confused vitality clinging frantically to another time and place (Williams 129). Her hopes and dreams did not come true causing her emotional sufferings and desperation. It is possible to say that as her beauty fades, her desire for adulation increases, making her a harpy. Once Tom calls his mother an ugly-babbling old-witch (Williams, p. 23). Amanda, see her life as wasteful and unhappy. She regrets her choice of the wrong suitor, one who did not become a bank president and a millionaire. The emphasis on the hivelike buildings of ugly colors with their fire escapes underscores the separation from nature, beauty, and human values. This is not the proper habitat for the dreamer, the poet, or the fragile cripple.

False dreams and values imposed by Amanda on her children lead to desperation and anxiety. Amanda forces her daughter, Laura, to realize her hopes and dreams. Williams depicts Laura as the gentle girl. She plays with her glass animals and enjoys dreaming but she is unable to cope with typewriters, offices, flirtations, and strangers. She is shy, withdrawn and sweet. Amanda seeks desperately to make Laura independent by enrolling her in business school, but that proves a failure. Amanda tells Laura: Girls that arent cut out for business careers usually wind up married to some nice man (Williams 17). Losing hopes are described through personal failure of Laura and her personal weakness to oppose the mother and her influence. Williams describes Laura as a piece of her glass collection, too exquisitely fragile to move from the shelf (Williams 129). Amanda nags her son to bring home a suitor to court and marry Laura. This reveals the perennial conflicts between individual needs and perceived obligations. Lauras pained responses to her mothers cruel questions about her plans for the evening expose the anguish that this teasing causes the sensitive girl. Taking it as a symbol of Laura herself, Williams uses the symbol of glass menagerie and the unicorn as symbols of losing hopes. Jim accidentally breaks off the unicorn: Laura touches her throat and clears it-turns the broken unicorn in her hands. His voice becomes softer.] Has anyone ever told you that you were pretty (Williams, p. 87)? It is possible to say that Amanda has done the same to Laura: distorted her true nature to make her seem like all normal young woman.

The world of dreams and the world of reality

In the play, Williams contrast two worlds: the world of dreams and the world of reality. For instance, Amanda expresses eloquently the humiliation of the deserted wife and the unmarried woman in the South. Williams speaks of this lost lady, who is not suited for the marriage game, cannot earn a living in the modern world, and has no role in modern fragmented family units. What is there left but dependency all our lives? I know so well what becomes of unmarried women who arent prepared to occupy a position. Ive seen such pitiful cases in the South (Williams 16). Using this example, Amanda tries to prove her personal value and importance.

Tom is lost in his dreams about independence and personal freedom. The son is working in a warehouse to support his mother and sister. Williams portrays Tom as a man trapped by economic pressures, forced to work at tasks that will emasculate him over time. Unlike his friend Jim, Tom is not interested in success and is not willing to spend a lifetime trapped in mechanical and meaningless chores. He must escape to find his truth. In his role as central character and objective commentator, he portrays his frustrations, his anger, and his sorrow. In his final sad meditations he reveals his own conflicted love for these people. Williams states that independence must be purchased at a significant price. To achieve his own potential as a poet, he must be a free man. To behave like a good son and loving brother, he must remain in bondage. Amanda says: Most young men find adventure in their careers. Tom responds: Then most young men are not employed in a warehouse (Williams, p. 33). The decision to escape the tender trap is a necessity. Losing hopes and desperation forces Tom to escape his sisters tragedy by transferring the responsibility onto his mother. In the narrators voice, we hear the poetic, ironic tone of the outsider who has managed to transform this individual situation into a universal commentary on being true to ones self.

Summary

In sum, apparently nurturing, Amanda thwarts and hobbles her children, dominating not only their eating habits but their entire lives, keeping them safely in the nest with her. Portraying herself as a martyr to their needs, she actually requires their submission to feed her pride, crippling Laura by her outrageous expectations. On the one hand, losing hopes and desperation are caused by the effects of the industrial revolution and its impact on the family. Although Williams emphasizes that personal values of the mother dominate in the play. Amanda has distorted Lauras childish nature to make her seem like all the normal young ladies being courted by nice young gentlemen. Through the character of Tom, Williams portrays that his loosing hopes and dreams are caused by constant pressure and false morals imposed by Amanda. The unique vision of reality and events can be seen as personal style of writing in which the author acknowledges that he is selecting his characters, scenes, and moods from his individual perspective at a precise moment in time. Thus, glimpses give the viewer the fleeting impression of a moment through the selective use of details, just as the individual eye chooses images for the mind to consider.

References

Williams T. The Glass Menagerie. New Directions Publishing Corporation, 1999.

The Glass Menagerie is a memory play by American playwright and screenwriter Tennessee Williams. The play is autobiographical; it was first performed in 1944. The Glass Menagerie entails various elements of theatre, which play a crucial role in delivery. The distinctive feature of the play is the unrealism of events as each character lives in two worlds: a real and an imaginary one, bringing something that reality cannot offer. At the same time, all characters are prototypes of real individuals whose figures are not created by imagination but reconstructed from the authors memory. This dualism is achieved by three elements of theater: individual performances, sound, and lighting, which are collectively paramount in the play.

The real part of the play is concentrated around the relationships between members of Wingfields family, with the most complicated of them between Amanda and Tom. The depth and complexity of their communication are effectively delivered in the play through individual performances of the actors. They express a diverse spectrum of emotions through facial expressions and body language, and the importance of the gestures is highlighted by the author in comments supporting dialogs (Williams, 2011). Given that most scenes seem unrealistic, hyperbolized concepts constructed by creative imagination, acting is crucial to ensure an unrealistic perspective of events and maintain the wholeness of characters, who make the audience empathize and draw parallels with their own lives. The individual performances in The Glass Menagerie are key to telling a deeply personal story whereby maintaining an imaginative basis of events.

Music plays an important role in The Glass Menagerie by introducing symbolic significance and helping to convey a sense of emotion throughout the play. For example, in the fourth act, the author includes Ave Maria as a background, which is both symbolic and functional: it allows the audience to sense her pure feelings for Amanda to her daughter. Furthermore, it serves as a symbol of the Biblical image of the mother. The music follows the scenes with Laura, another character in the play, who plays music to escape reality (Williams, 2011). These examples indicate that music in the play is one of the foremost instruments that express the idea of escapism and contributes to character development.

The theme of hope and hopelessness is effectively conveyed in the play by manipulating the lighting. The lighting is decreased when characters feel miserable and increases when they find hope. It allows to keep the atmosphere of memory and increases the symbolism created using music. For example, the production notes to the scene mentioned above with Laura say that The light upon Laura should be distinct from the others, having a peculiar, pristine clarity such as light used in early religious portraits of female saints or madonnas (Williams, 2011). Therefore, the light is an important instrument to convey basic ideas of the play and a useful tool to visualize the importance of memory.

The Glass Menagerie entails many ideas and themes like memory, hope, and escapism, which require complex and diverse instruments for effective delivery. Acting provides means to uncover complicated relationships between characters, whereby keeping the resemble of their real-life prototypes acting in the unreal atmosphere created by the authors imagination. Music is symbolic and helps to emphasize dramatic moments. The use of light is crucial to delivering the cloudiness of the memory and pointing to the source of events. These elements of theatre collectively helped Williams develop the complex and touching play.

Reference

Williams, T. (2011). The glass menagerie. New Directions Publishing.

The Glass Menagerie is a beautiful and appealing play written by Tennessee Williams in 1944. The story provides an insight into one unhappy family, in which each member feels lonely and wasted upon. Among the main topics involved are the beauty and its vulnerability, the balance between social obligations and personal freedom, parental authority, memories of long ago, and escaping from reality.

The Play

The most notable feature of the play is its symbolism, which is demonstrated by the author in a variety of ways. The glass is the most important symbol, as the name of the play suggests. Lauras glass collection represents fragility and beauty, but it has no practical point. The broken piece stands for the broken heart of the girl. Another symbol for Lauras ephemerality is her nickname Blue Roses, which Jim gives her in the following words, They are common as  weeds, but you  well  youre  Blue Roses! (Tennessee 87). Laura strongly depends on her family and lives in isolation like a ghost. The fire escape symbolizes getting away from reality, and the narrators monologues take place there. Finally, the act of blowing out the candles probably means the end of all hopes for Laura and the end of the old life for Tom.

The Characters

Amanda Wingfield used to be the reigning beauty of a small town, but now she is an abandoned spouse living on the memories of long ago. Amanda can hardly accept her present position, and as a devoted mother, she is fully committed to her children. However, her efforts to make them succeed in life turn to unbearable pressure for both Laura and Tom.

Laura is timid and unsocial due to physical disability. The outside world frightens the girl, and her way of escaping from reality is the glass collection. However, she is not dead inside and has feelings towards a young man.

Tom is committed to poetry, but he has to work in a shoe warehouse to support his family. He feels imprisoned both at work and home. I know I seem dreamy, but inside  well, Im boiling! he exclaims (Tennessee 62). Night movies are his escape. Amanda wants Tom to demonstrate Spartan endurance! (Tennessee 32), and to find a husband for Laura. Once her future is safe, he may have a chance to start a new life. Finally, Tom chooses freedom and leaves home. As abandoned Laura and Amanda could die in poverty, it must be a tough decision.

Jim is the long-awaited potential husband for Laura. He is vivid, enthusiastic, and charming, but not willing to marry. After making advances to Laura, he confesses that he is engaged. The girl is hurt, of which the play hints: Glass breaks so easily. No matter how careful you are (Tennessee, 86). Maybe the engagement does not exist, but it makes an excellent excuse for Jim.

One more character is the absent Amandas husband, who left his family years ago looking for freedom and life pleasures. However, he seems still to belong to the family, which struggles against hopelessness that threatens their lives (Nalliveettil and Sobhi 201). The ex-husband remains an authority for Amanda and influences her decisions.

Conclusion

None of the characters in the play is completely good or bad, and the author managed to avoid any black and white coloring. That is why the heroes really seem living and appealing, and one can easily associate himself with any of them. Amanda is tough, but she is a devoted mother, while nice and pretty Laura is a burden to her family. Although the plot and the characters of the play reflect the social background of the middle of the past century, the problems raised by the author are supertemporal and remain challenging for many people in the contemporary world.

Works Cited

Nalliveettil, George, and Mahmoud Sobhi. Discourse Analysis of Tennessee Williams The Glass Menagerie. Advances in Language and Literary Studies, vol. 7, no 3, 2016, pp. 20110.

Tennessee, Williams. The Glass Menagerie. New Directions, 1999.

The Glass Menagerie is a memory play by American playwright and screenwriter Tennessee Williams. The play is autobiographical; it was first performed in 1944. The Glass Menagerie entails various elements of theatre, which play a crucial role in delivery. The distinctive feature of the play is the unrealism of events as each character lives in two worlds: a real and an imaginary one, bringing something that reality cannot offer. At the same time, all characters are prototypes of real individuals whose figures are not created by imagination but reconstructed from the authors memory. This dualism is achieved by three elements of theater: individual performances, sound, and lighting, which are collectively paramount in the play.

The real part of the play is concentrated around the relationships between members of Wingfields family, with the most complicated of them between Amanda and Tom. The depth and complexity of their communication are effectively delivered in the play through individual performances of the actors. They express a diverse spectrum of emotions through facial expressions and body language, and the importance of the gestures is highlighted by the author in comments supporting dialogs (Williams, 2011). Given that most scenes seem unrealistic, hyperbolized concepts constructed by creative imagination, acting is crucial to ensure an unrealistic perspective of events and maintain the wholeness of characters, who make the audience empathize and draw parallels with their own lives. The individual performances in The Glass Menagerie are key to telling a deeply personal story whereby maintaining an imaginative basis of events.

Music plays an important role in The Glass Menagerie by introducing symbolic significance and helping to convey a sense of emotion throughout the play. For example, in the fourth act, the author includes Ave Maria as a background, which is both symbolic and functional: it allows the audience to sense her pure feelings for Amanda to her daughter. Furthermore, it serves as a symbol of the Biblical image of the mother. The music follows the scenes with Laura, another character in the play, who plays music to escape reality (Williams, 2011). These examples indicate that music in the play is one of the foremost instruments that express the idea of escapism and contributes to character development.

The theme of hope and hopelessness is effectively conveyed in the play by manipulating the lighting. The lighting is decreased when characters feel miserable and increases when they find hope. It allows to keep the atmosphere of memory and increases the symbolism created using music. For example, the production notes to the scene mentioned above with Laura say that The light upon Laura should be distinct from the others, having a peculiar, pristine clarity such as light used in early religious portraits of female saints or madonnas (Williams, 2011). Therefore, the light is an important instrument to convey basic ideas of the play and a useful tool to visualize the importance of memory.

The Glass Menagerie entails many ideas and themes like memory, hope, and escapism, which require complex and diverse instruments for effective delivery. Acting provides means to uncover complicated relationships between characters, whereby keeping the resemble of their real-life prototypes acting in the unreal atmosphere created by the authors imagination. Music is symbolic and helps to emphasize dramatic moments. The use of light is crucial to delivering the cloudiness of the memory and pointing to the source of events. These elements of theatre collectively helped Williams develop the complex and touching play.

Reference

Williams, T. (2011). The glass menagerie. New Directions Publishing.