Glass_Menagerie

“The Glass Menagerie” by Tennessee Williams 1. The symbolism between the glass and Laura are related because they are both fragile and transparent. Laura has social anxiety and had or does have braces on her legs. Laura lives the life of illusion that her mother feed into, as opposed to the reality that she is becoming an unmarried woman with no possible suitors attempting to date her. She is a product of her mother’s fantasy of the suitable man waiting to call on her. She is relatable to the glass because she is emotionally like glass as well as her menagerie can. In the beginning of the story, the unicorn represents Laura, like her, it is delicate and fragile but once Jim O’ Conner breaks off the horn it then just becomes a horse like any other. 2. The main symbolisms in the play are the movies, the paradise music hall, the fire escape and Laura’s leg braces. The movies represent the absent father that abandoned them to drink and go into the merchant marines. This is where the mother Amanda feels she is going to loose her only son. Because once he is full frustrated with is mothers nagging he leaves there apartment and says he is going to the movies. The paradise music hall is where Laura’s fantasy’s come from. When you see Laura, you hear the music coming from the dance hall across the street. The fire escape is the main place Amanda and her kids go to look at the moon and fanaticize about other places and getting out of there little apartment. Laura’s leg brace represents her transparency, how no men see her and the anxiety disorder supersedes her need to be a wallflower keeping her back and away from others. 3. The high point or the climax of the glass menageries when Jim and Laura were having a mock date and Laura was gaining some confidence in her self because Jim was showing an interest in her. They shared a kiss and then Jim came back to reality and remembered he had a girlfriend. He broke Laura’s heart when he told her this and accidentally bumped the table that held the menagerie and this is when her unicorn fell and broke off. 4. Every family has conflict even though Amanda, the mom causes both her kids a great deal of anxiety. I think she means well and she is doing the best with what she has to offer them. She is obviously from a different generation and therefore bestows her old beliefs onto her kids, I do sympathize with Amanda. I think that neither of her children are wrong in there response to there mother. Tom is a grown man and does not want the responsibility of taking care of his mother and sister. It is an issue more of maturity the wronged feelings. Being a single young man he has dream and wants to travel and write but because his father ran off he’s been burdened with the responsibility of taking care of his mother and sister. After he does gets away from them by following in his fathers footsteps and running off to join the merchant marines, time goes by and maturity has set in and his guilt for leaving his sister haunt him. Laura is doing the best with what she has. She is unable to live a lucrative life because of her severe social anxiety disorder and because she got the disorder, she will never be able to go to work and take care of herself and she will never find a suitable man to take care of her. This leaves the live her life out with her mother. She has no real avenue of escape from her. 5. The glass menagerie shows contrast between fantasy and reality because all the characters in the play are all apiece in the glass menagerie collection. They are all breakable in different levels and none of then are living in the present reality because the illusion is much more pleasant a place to live in. Tom is the closest to living in reality because he goes to work everyday and maintains some social life with the outside world. However, Toms break in his reality is his writing, reading and his coworkers from the plant call him Shakespeare because of his unique quotes, and his drinking keeps him from dealing with reality. Amanda the mom seems to live entirely in the past. Reminiscing of all her past suitors that would come to her home for dates. She is hopeful that her daughter will receive the same amount of suitors and is practically waiting for the day to come for her to marry. Once she convinces her son to bring home an eligible man home for dinner and Tom finally gives in and announces that he has a friend coming over for dinner. Amanda panics because the actual event is going to happen and once the man comes to the house Amanda acts as though Jim O’Conner is there for her. Laura is out of the reality because of her disability she finds comfort in playing music and playing the piano. She is associated with music. Her fantasy is comfort from her disorder and her glass menagerie collection. It is perfect, beautiful, and delicate as she would probably like her life to be but reality gave her an anxiety disorder that causes her to feel ill and be ignored by others leaving her alone.