The Glass Menagerie

A detailed Summary of The Glass Menagerie

In "The Glass Menagerie," Tennessee Williams portrays the effects that illusions can have on a family. "Amanda's anxieties are in large part economic and there is money behind many of her illusions: her mythical suitors were all wealthy; she hopes to make money by selling subscriptions to the fantasy world of The Homemaker's Companion; she computes the money Tom would save by giving up smoking" (Stein, 150). By reminiscing about her suitors, Amanda believes that Laura, her daughter, can have the same amount of success that she had as a southern bell. Amanda's high expectations on life also take a toll on Tom, her son. "Tom, the substitute father, refuses to pay the light bill, plunges his family into darkness, and then runs out, and Amanda sells subscriptions and brassieres only at the loss of her dignity" (Stein, 150).

In Tennessee William's "The Glass Menagerie," a middle class family struggles with each other. "The Glass Menagerie" is set during the Depression in St. Louis. Amanda is the single mother of two grown children that still live with her. Amanda is the classic southern belle. In her youth, she received many callers because of her stunning beauty. Instead of choosing a planter or a planter's son, Amanda chose to ma

Tom is the one person in the family who realizes that his life is confined to the factory and to his family. Because he realizes this, he fantasizes about the future. His fantasies often include adventures, much like the ones that he sees in the movie theaters. As he watches the movies, he becomes more and more frustrated with how his life has turned out. Unfortunately for his mother and his sister, he figures out how he can leave this life that he hates behind. When he leaves though, he cannot leave his sister completely. Wherever he goes, he can hear her voice, and even feel her hand on his shoulder. He did not plan on these emotions though. He thought that he could just leave the two of them without any pain.

Tennessee Williams writes about how the society that the Wingfields live in influences them and will not allow them to live their lives the way that they want to. Amanda cannot live her dream life of having gentlemen callers coming to see Laura because Laura is crippled. Laura cannot live the life that she wants because of her deformity. Even though it might not seem major to most people, Laura believes it does, and that causes her to get sick any time she has to interact with anybody outside of her family. Tom cannot write his poetry because he has to work at the shoe factory. All three of these people are prisoners because they have allowed other people to control their lives. Even though Tom tries to escape this prison, he cannot full leave behind the life that he once knew.

As fragile as glass is, there is something more fragile in this story. Laura feels as though everybody stares at her because of her deformity. In the beginning of the story, Laura cannot fathom why any guy would like her. Because she has low self-esteem, she does not realize her full potential. She allows the negativity from her mother to rule over what she does. But, when Jim talks to her, she finally realizes that she really is not as different as she thinks she is. Just as the horn broke off of the unicorn, the illusion that Laura was different from everybody disappeared.

Religious

Some common words found in the essay are:
Laura Jim, Tom Amanda, Louis Amanda, Homemaker's Companion, Tennessee Williams, Laura Laura, Gentleman Caller, Glass Menagerie, College Unfortunately, Ida Scott, gentleman caller, glass menagerie, jim gentleman caller, family realizes, story laura, shoe factory, beginning play, play tom, stein 150, jim gentleman, amanda calls, pay light bill,

Approximate Word count = 1408
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English