The Glass Menagerie Dysfunction Analysis

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A Portrait of Dysfunction Life can be tough for some, especially with everything going on in the world. Sometimes reality can seem bleak. Illusions are a safe place that the mind creates when life becomes disappointing. Tennessee Williams’ screenplay, The Glass Menagerie, is an illustration of a dysfunctional family. The dysfunction comes in the form of the Wingfields refusing to live in reality, creating their own illusions about life, and denying each other’s delusional thinking. Initially, the Wingfields seem like a normal family. As the play develops, it is revealed that each member of the family has their own form of escape from reality. The playwright uses several elements to signal escape. Williams incorporates the past as Amanda Wingfield’s crutch. It is apparent that she “is obsessed with the rituals and the values of her Southern upbringing” (Topham). He also uses the movies as a form of a getaway for Tom. Williams uses this symbol to show that Tom’s life is mundane so he “uses the movies to fill a void in his life” (Kullman). …show more content…

“Tennessee Williams's Dramatic Charade: Secrets and Lies in The Glass Menagerie.” The Tennessee Williams Annual Review | 2000 Journal, www.tennesseewilliamsstudies.org/journal/work.php?ID=30. Accessed 20 Oct. 2017. Kullman, Adam. “The Theme of Escapism in ‘The Glass Menagerie’: How Tom Wingfield Uses Poetry and the Movies.” LetterPile, 26 Nov. 2016, letterpile/books/Escapism-in-The- Glass-Menagerie. Accessed 21 Oct. 2017. Levy, Eric. “‘Through Soundproof Glass’: The Prison of Self-Consciousness in The Glass Menagerie.” Modern Drama, vol. 36, no. 4, 1993, pp. 529–537. Literature Resource Center [Gale], doi:10.3138/md.36.4.529. Accessed 20 Oct. 2017. Topham, James. “'The Glass Menagerie' Review.” ThoughtCo, 5 Mar. 2017, www.thoughtco.com/the-glass-menagerie-review-739904?print. Accessed 20 Oct

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