glass of menagerie

A detailed Summary of glass of menagerie

In Tennessee Williams' play, the glass menagerie, all four members of the Wingfield family have chosen to hide from reality. Amanda tries to relive her past through Laura, and denies anything she does not want to accept. Laura is terrified of the real world, and choses to hide behind her limp, her glass menagerie and the victrola. Tom hides from his reality by going to the movies, writing poetry, and getting drunk. Mr Wingfield hides from his reality by leaving his family and not contacting them after he has done so. Each member of the Wingfield family has their own escape mechanism which they use to hide or escape from the real world.

Amanda has chosen to hide from reality by trying to relive her past. She is living in the unreality of her youthful memories and sees herself as still being as young as Laura when she says to her, 'No, sister, no, sister - you be the lady this time and I'll be the darkey' (p 237). She reminisces about 'one Sunday afternoon in Blue Mountain' (p 237) when she received seventeen gentleman callers, and then tries to relive this through Laura. She arranges for Tom to bring home some nice young man for his sister. When Tom brings home a gentleman caller, Amanda wears 'a girlish frock of yellowed voile

In the play The Glass Menagerie, Tom Wingfield has chosen to hide from reality. Tom's reality is that he works in a warehouse, has a nagging mother, a shy, 'crippled' sister and he lives in a prison of an apartment. In order to escape the reality of his work in the warehouse, Tom often '[retires] to a cabinet of the washroom to work on poems when business was slack in the warehouse.' (p 273). Doing this, Tom can hide from his work and co-workers in the reality of his life. Tom craves for adventure in his life, and he finds this by going to the movies night after night, with a 'shower of movie-ticket stubs' (p 254) falling from his pocket when he comes home early one morning. He also drinks 'Kentucky Straight Bourbon' (p 254) to temporarily escape from the prison-like apartment, at which he lives. These things help Tom to escape from his reality, however it is not very effective, as once he wakes up in the morning, he has to face the realities of his life once more. Tom seeks a more permanent escape, and becomes a member of the 'Union of Merchant Seamen.' (p 283) hoping to leave his job at the warehouse and the apartment for good. This is Tom's ultimate escape from the real world.

Laura Wingfield has chosen to hide from reality in the play The Glass Menagerie. She seems to live in a world of her own, and hides from everything and everyone outside of the apartment. Laura is terrified of anything new or different. Her mother sent her to business college, but Laura was so afraid that 'The first time [they] gave a speed-test, she broke down completely - was sick at the stomach and almost had to be carried into the wash -room.' (p 243). Laura uses her limp as an excuse to hide from the world. She believes that her slight limp makes her crippled and that she cannot

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Approximate Word count = 1195
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English