Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie
If The Glass Menagerie were performed without the effects Williams
wrote into the script, then the play would barely have a plot.
Williams' use of music, lighting and a television screen add depth and
meaning to the play. He uses effects to portray the feelings of the
characters, rather than their words or actions.
In Tom's opening speech he states that'The play is memory.' Because it
is about his memories of his mother and her memories. They both spend
the play living in the past.
Tom is obviously living in the past because the play is based around
'post-war Tom's' memories of his life prior to the war when he was
living with Amanda and Laura.
Amanda seems to be divided between her world as an abandoned mother of
two, and her youth back in Blue Mountain. When Amanda first appears in
the play, so does the legend on the television screen 'Ou sont les
neiges' and later, 'Ou sont les neiges d'antan?' which means 'where
are the snows' and 'where are the snows of yesteryear?' this
emphasises the idea that Amanda is longing for the past. She then
begins to tell her children- and judging by Tom's reaction, for the
hundredth time- of her youth and her many gentlemen callers and how
wonderful her life was.
The Glass Menagerie is a very static play, the audience do not leave
the two rooms of their apartment and the characters lives are so
uninteresting the highest point of the play is when a gentleman comes
to the house for dinner. The family have become so consumed by the
pressure and worries of the American depression, that their lives have
become monotonous and lacklustre. Their struggle for survival is so
apparent, that their dreams and life have been oppres...
... middle of paper ...
...s played to express Laura's silent fears but other
music is played in other scenes to express general feelings. For
example in scene five, dance music called 'The World Is Waiting for
the Sunrise', this is used to show society's general lack of
motivation not just the family's.
The last scene of the play is when Tom storms out of the apartment and
he is standing on the stairs telling the audience what he then went on
to do. In the background is Amanda comforting her daughter, and it is
not a side that the audience has witnessed of Amanda before. This
final moment is obviously a very important moment for Amanda and Laura
because they are bonding, yet Williams has this scene in silence. This
silence does not devalue this moment between the two at all, but makes
it more powerful, because acts speak louder than words, hence 'A play
is not just language...'.
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls deals with hardships with what she went through in her life. Life is just a big game in my eyes. For example things come unexpectedly that will knock you down over and over again, and it how you respond and react to the struggles that bring all of the success. So remember, that it’s not about how hard life hits, it’s about how many times you can get up, shake it off, and move forward in your life. That to me is the key to growing up successful. Like the Glass Castle, I have had hardships of my own.
In order to climb up the ladder of society, people oppress those characteristics that lead them to failure. During the 1950’s and 1960’s, homosexuality was seeing as a mental disease of the human race. Homosexuals did not fit in the schema of the American family. Tennessee Williams, in his play “The Cat on the Hot Tin Roof”, shows the effects of society´s views on homosexuals through the main character Brick. In addition to Williams´ play, the theatrical work, “Doubt” by John Shanley, also depicts the struggles that an African American kid undergoes in order to suppress his sexuality. Both plays show two characters in different social classes and from different races trying to survive the denial of society towards their sexual orientation. Through their oppression by male hegemony and with the help of the maternal figure in each play, both Brick and Donald struggle to overcome their fear of acceptance.
The Glass Menagerie closely parallels the life of the author. From the very job Tennessee held early in his life to the apartment he and his family lived in. Each of the characters presented, their actions taken and even the setting have been based on the past of Thomas Lanier Williams, better known as Tennessee Williams.
“Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” by Tennessee Williams explores two comparable, but dissimilar characters Maggie and Brick. Maggie’s character comes from a poor family; she is a lonely, sociable, jealous, seductive, devious, cunning, and greedy. While Brick comes from a rich family and is lonely, has a sense of guilt, is an alcoholic, unsociable, and a coward when it comes to problems.
good times, in a time of hardship in her life, and trying to find a
As one of the most renowned and well-known literary critics in the world of composition, Harold Bloom has self-importantly granted himself the privilege of specifying the reasons as to why we read. From human connection to self-actualization to the acquirement of knowledge, he adheres passionately and unquestionably that “the strongest, most authentic motive for deep reading…is the search for a difficult pleasure.” Bloom, as an experienced critic, fully recognizes the task of judging a book for its merit.
Every time the family comes to a confrontation someone retreats to the past and reflects on life as it was back then, not dealing with life as it is for them today. Tom, assuming the macho role of the man of the house, babies and shelters Laura from the outside world. His mother reminds him that he is to feel a responsibility for his sister. He carries this burden throughout the play. His mother knows if it were not for his sisters needs he would have been long gone. Laura must pickup on some of this, she is so sensitive she must sense Toms feeling of being trapped. Tom dreams of going away to learn of the world, Laura is aware of this and she is frightened of what may become of them if he were to leave.
Tennessee Williams was born on March 26, 1911. He was the second child of Edwina and Cornelius Coffin Williams. His father was a shoe salesman who spent most of his time away from home. Edwina was a “southern belle” she was snobbish and her behavior was neurotic. As a child, Williams suffered from diphtheria which almost ended his life. Williams attended Soldan High School, a setting he referred to in The Glass Menagerie. Later, he attended University City High School. He then attended the University of Missouri. (Tennessee)
Toni Morrison illustrates Pilate in complete opposition to Macon’s stubbornness, “instead of repressing the past, Pilate carries it with her in the form of her song, her stories and her bags of bones”. To seek comfort Pilate discovers music to take control of her past and bad history (Visvis). Pilate is able to create a healthy environment for her family as she is able to navigate through the history of her family, whereas Macon generates hostility (Chick). When Macon and Pilate found a dead body when they were kids, she did not take the gold they had found, but only traveled back for the skeleton. Pilate revealed to Macon and Milkman that her father’s ghost advised her to go back for the bones, believing that life is precious and should not
In the book, The Glass Menagerie, the main characters want to leave behind what they are
Tennessee Williams employs the uses of plot, symbolism, and dialogue to portray his theme of impossible true escape, which asserts itself in his play, The Glass Menagerie. Each of his characters fills in the plot by providing emotional tension and a deep, inherent desire to escape. Symbolism entraps meaning into tangible objects that the reader can visualize and attach significance to. Conclusively, Williams develops his characters and plot tensions through rich dialogue. Through brilliant construction and execution of literary techniques, Williams brings to life colorful characters in his precise, poignant on-stage drama.
Literature is the superlative resource when one is attempting to comprehend or fathom how society has transformed over the centuries. Many written works—whether fictional or nonfictional—express the views of gender roles and societies’ expectations. Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar is an exemplary novel that explores these issues. Ester Greenwood was portrayed the superficial and oppressive values of the mid-twentieth century American society through her experiences of gender inequalities and social conformities. Plath’s own life was correspondingly mirrored in this novel; which in turn left the reader aware of the issues in her time period. At the conclusion of The Bell Jar, the audience realizes that she was pushed to completely conform to society.
Oleanna by David Mamet The fast pace, repetition and interruptions evident in the interaction. between Carol and John are clear illustrations of the unwritten contest to have the last word and be right in act 1. The use of these dramatic and linguistic techniques are what make the interaction between the two characters, so fascinating. Both are constantly struggling to maintain their dignity and reputation.
Tom is a character many people in this generation can relate to. Although the play was written many years ago Tom is just like any other millennial from this day and age. He basically hates his job because it’s not fun. He can’t cope with the fact that he has to pick up all the slack his father left behind. He even seems to think that running away will fix everything. All of these things are very common in society today.
ending of the play is an integral part to the structure of the play in