The Glass Menagerie Pressure Words | 3 Pages. in The Glass Menagerie push Laura Wingfield to be a shy girl who does not have any contact with the outside world. Laura’s biggest flaw, her slight limp, cause her to shut out the world and become a hermit. Amanda, her mother, pushes her to go to college and find a man whom will take care of her Sep 23, · ‘The Glass Menagerie’ is referred to as one of the most valuable literary creations of the USA. This play by Tennessee Williams is deservedly listed as one of the most impactful plays of the previous century, bringing the iconic author fame and recognition. And this is what makes ‘The Glass Menagerie’ essay topics so relevant today Jul 07, · The Glass Menagerie Essay. Written by Tennessee Williams, The Glass Menagerie is a masterpiece and it passes as a memory play for it exposits Tom Wingfield’s thoughts. A wishful poet, brother to Laura, and son to Amanda and ever absent Mr. Wingfield; Tom works hard in a shoe store to provide for his mother and sister
The Glass Menagerie Essay Essay on Literature, The Glass Menagerie
In his drama, The Glass Menagerie, glass menagerie essay, Tennessee Williams uses symbolism in order to develop multi-faceted characters and to display the recurring themes of the play, glass menagerie essay. These various symbols appear throughout the entire piece, and they are usually disguised as objects or imagery. These symbols also add to the major themeswhich develop as the play gains momentum. In the drama, glass menagerie essay, symbols play glass menagerie essay most important role. One of the most recurring symbols is the glass menagerie itself.
The glass menagerie has a high amount of meaning for all of the characters in this play. Glass menagerie essay as the menagerie itself is frozen in time, the Wingfields are also. They are restricted to the one way of living that they have practiced as time had passed, so they do not know how to break free of that confinement. All the characters as a whole have tried to escape the harsh reality, but in every case they manage to fail, and in turn shatter their dreams like glass. This continuing struggle is a large part of the major theme of The Glass Menagerie, glass menagerie essay. Just as the glass menagerie represents all of the characters as a whole, it also represents each character individually.
Though Amanda blames her children alone for relying on false illusions, she too carries this fault. Although it is obvious that the glass menagerie represents Laura because of her frailty, Tom, Amanda, and even Jim are exemplified too. They all concentrate their powers in illusions, only in different ways. More specifically, the glass menagerie unravels the character of Laura and lets the reader into her true personality. Glass itself, being so fragile, glass menagerie essay, is the perfect item that can symbolize Laura.
Just as it can shatter so easily when exposed, glass menagerie essay, Laura can too. Though it is learned that Laura has a physical handicap, and emotional handicap lies within her also. It enables her to lead a normal lifeand restricts her to illusions, glass menagerie essay. The glass menagerie symbolizes this because it shows that Laura as an unreal image, not made of the human characteristics others possess. Drained of the courage and self-esteem needed glass menagerie essay face the world, all that is left is a defenseless girl unable to face the world. The menagerie also symbolizes the change, which takes place when Laura is exposed to Jim.
Jim reveals a side of Laura that the reader is not familiar with at this time. He recharges her self-confidence and boasts her courage and trust, but this does not last. It is obvious that Laura has changed, but this change does not become permanent, glass menagerie essay. Throughout the drama, Amanda tells her children about the life she lived when she was young and living at Blue Mountain. She recalls her dozens of gentlemen callers and her popularity at the time. Seeing how time has changed for Amanda from her youth to the time presented in the play, it is plain to understand why she would try to relive her past. Amanda wishes that her life would be as simple and enjoyable as it was when she was young.
She also wants to create such a happy childhood glass menagerie essay her two children. Amanda tries to force upon her views to Laura and Tom, and in turn wants to live in the past. She yearns for Laura to have gentlemen callers as she had, and tries to make this dream a reality, glass menagerie essay. Amanda tries to freeze her life to preserve the girl she once was. Glass menagerie essay specific member of the glass menageriethe unicorn, plays an important part in symbolizing the situation between Laura and Jim the gentleman caller. As Jim and Laura become more closely acquainted, Jim changes Laura and makes her a more solid being.
Metaphorically, this occurs right after Jim reveals his marital situation to Laura. When Laura finds out that Jim is engaged to be married, a part of her breaks too. In high school, Laura was the unicorn in a society full of horses, glass menagerie essay. Because she was shy and had a leg brace, she was considered an outcast, and overall, different. Originally, Laura is delicate and unique, glass menagerie essay, as is the unicorn. She is different because of her disability, but internally, she is a girl who missed a couple steps while growing up.
When the unicorn loses its horn and becomes like the rest of the animals in the glass menagerieit loses its uniqueness. Likewise, when Laura gains confidence through Jim, she realizes that she is not too different from everyone else. This is a characteristic that glass menagerie essay able to be overcome, but just needs some assistance Ross 1. At first, Laura does not mind. She is too thrilled with the prospect of being normal to care whether her glass unicorn has lost its distinctive horn. Laura now knows that she belongs to a different world from Jim. This quote depicts the situation perfectly. Laura is shattered though when she realizes he cannot be an animal in her glass menagerie essay, and that they are not members of the same world.
Lighting techniques and other such icons create a balanced set of qualities in the characters glass menagerie essay, and add meaning to the entire story itself. Lighting gives the scenes added significance by providing more details towards the theme. All of the characters struggle to make their dreams come true, but they all end up failing in each situation. Light symbolizes hope in The Glass Menagerie. The disappointment and sorrow is evident, and the light depicts this exactly. Another situation between Amanda and Tom also includes symbolism through lighting. The small amount of light shown by the moon represents the small amount of hope that the wish will come true.
The blackout which starts off the seventh scene is used to make the transition back and forth between hope and pain. The lights flicker, and then go out, leaving the scene in complete darkness. Directly following the blackout, candles are glass menagerie essay by Jim. The significance in this is that Jim sets the mood of the scene, putting him in complete control over the events to come. The flickering of the candle light in this scene shows that the situation is wavering between hope and disappointment light symbolizing hope. Just as Jim set the scene with hope represented by the flames, Laura took that hope away after Tom tells her to blow out her candles. Tom realizes that there is no hope left for them, and that there is no point in trying to overcome glass menagerie essay inevitable failure.
This comment reflects on all of the Wingfields. The family tries to team up against the harshness of the world and fails Scanlan As quickly as hope is presented, it is erased, glass menagerie essay. The image of a rainbow is also used in this play to symbolize hope. Adding to the continuing theme, every situation in which this symbol is used ends up disastrous. Tom uses a magic scarf in order to change a goldfish into a bird. This shows his need to escape his imprisonment and fly away. The rainbow gives him hope, but it is proven that Tom actually never does leave his pain. He does escape, but the memory and Laura and his mother still haunt him. The chandeliers at the Dance Hall create rainbow prisms.
This foreshadows the hope instilled in Laura during her dance with Jim. Though she feels at peace with him during their encounter, this also ends up in disappointment Harris 1. Though the glass menagerie and imagery are symbols used throughout the entire drama, there are also other symbols that play brief, but important roles. Though this may seem like a random nickname, it actually has a large significance to the character of Laura. Jim tells Laura that she is unlike all others. They are all weeds but she is Blue Roses. Though Laura says that blue is wrong for roses, because she is different, they are right for her. Just as blue is a unique color for a rose; Laura is unique Williams Roses are frail and beautiful but cannot be blue.
This is also symbolic of the imaginary presence of Laura. Adler Though glass menagerie essay is a visible human being, her appearance is too frail to be one of a real woman. The fire escape is used by all of the characters symbolically. Amanda uses it as an escape; it is the only way a gentlemen caller can come and rescue Laura, glass menagerie essay. For Laura, it is an escape from the world. She is proven weak when she has to leave the apartment and stumbles. Tom uses it as an escape to the outside and from his mother Mendez 1. Tom uses movies as a get-a-way from his unhappy life in the apartment. He goes to the movies instead of moving, but as he explains, glass menagerie essay, he wants to move.
Tom escapes to the movies, glass menagerie essay, but then finds that he wants adventure of his own, in real life. Each character has separate traits, which are revealed by these images. The theme of the drama is the destruction and failure of hopes and dreams. Each of these symbols helps display this thesis individually, but they all add together to prove it glass menagerie essay a whole. All of the developing characters in The Glass Menagerie together produce a central theme, which is reliant on symbols. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Menu Study Resources Essays Essay Outlines Essay Topics Lectures Assignments Research Papers Literature Study Guides Subjects Science Biology Microbiology Math History Homework Help Blog Donate a paper.
The Glass Menagerie by Tennesse Williams//Analysis \u0026 Critical Appreciation American Playwright
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The glass menagerie ’embodies the fragility of Laura’s world, her search for beauty; it registers sensitively changes in lighting and stands in vivid contrast to the harshness of the outer world which can (and does) shatter so easily’; (Stein ). Glass itself, being so fragile, is the perfect item that can symbolize Laura Dec 01, · Best The Glass Menagerie Topic Ideas & Essay Examples. The Glass Menagerie Illusion vs Reality [Essay] One of the major themes of the play is considered to be the characters’ inability to meet reality, and the meaning of illusion for them. Characters in The Glass Menagerie and The Death of Salesman. For example, one of the main characters in Jul 07, · The Glass Menagerie Essay. Written by Tennessee Williams, The Glass Menagerie is a masterpiece and it passes as a memory play for it exposits Tom Wingfield’s thoughts. A wishful poet, brother to Laura, and son to Amanda and ever absent Mr. Wingfield; Tom works hard in a shoe store to provide for his mother and sister
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