The Matriarch Behind William’s The Glass Menagerie Essay Example

dances, and the afternoons consisted of long, extensive drives. I also enjoyed picnics during this beautiful time of year - May, when the state was adorned with delicate cornel flowers.

According to Williams, Amanda Wingfield's home was overflowing with jonquils. This is just one example of her lavish background. She boasted about having approximately 17 gentlemen callers in one afternoon, reminiscing about her Southern past. She even listed her suitors, describing them as "gentlemen all!" and some of the wealthiest young plantation owners in the Mississippi Delta.

Champ Laughlin eventually became the vice president of the Delta Planters Bank. Hadley Stevenson, who tragically drowned in Moon Lake, left his widow "one hundred and 50,000 in Government bonds." Bates Cutrere, who was fatally shot during a confrontation at the Moon Lake Casino.

The man passed away carrying Amanda's picture in his pocket. He left behind only "eight or 10 thousand acres. that's all" for a widow whom he never loved. Finally.

There was a man named Duncan J. Fitzhugh, known for his remarkable success in various endeavors. He was often referred to as "the Wolf of Wall Street." (p.)

In the drama The Glass Menagerie, Amanda Wingfield's memories of her life before moving to an urban, industrialized North elevate it above the rest. These memories are described as being "seated preponderantly in the bosom." According to Williams, this urban area is essentially a "basically enslaved subdivision of American society" (p. 9-10).

3) The tragic aspect of the drama revolves around Amanda, as neither of her children possess the same perspective as their mother.

Currently, people are hungry in the light of a previous time (Howell. 1970). Amanda can be perceived as an average

woman who is somehow transformed by her recollection of her early years in Mississippi and attempts to pass on the impact to her children.

She embellishes her praises, such as the portrayal of gentlemen companies. However, there is a genuine desire for a distinctive way of life, which is sufficient to establish her as the predominant focus in the drama.

When she negotiates with Blue Mountain, her kids support her and laugh behind her back. "I know what's coming," Tom says. "Yes, but let her say it."

“Laura says. ‘She loves to state it’ (p. 7). And so Amanda does not mind her son and daughter to live over the high life she recalls as a Southern belle. Tom wants to know how she managed to entertain all those gentlemen companies.

She was skilled in the art of conversation, as Amanda replied. In those times, a young woman needed more than just physical attractiveness. "Although I wasn't overlooked in terms of appearance," she had to possess the ability to communicate and discuss meaningful topics. "Never anything rude or ordinary or crude."

This is the reason why Amanda somewhat regrets her choice of marrying a telephone man, as she could have potentially become the wife of a millionaire. In the current scene of the play, Amanda is now a fading southern belle abandoned by her husband, who is a telephone man "who fell in love with long distances" (p.).

5) Amanda is attached to her past and memories of her refined upbringing in Blue Mountain. However, she also demonstrates a strong determination to overcome her difficult circumstances and frequently pushes her children to fulfill their family responsibilities and plan for the future.

Amanda's desire to escape the mundane present differs from Tom's and Laura's.

Amanda believed that together, she and her family could strive to escape their current situation. However, in her own way, she is starting to come to terms with it by trying to financially support Tom and ensuring a bright future for Laura through a career or marriage. "Both of my children—they’re unusual kids! Don’t you think I know it? I’m so—proud!" (p. 31) The men that Amanda entertains are not just meant to reflect her popularity, but rather to show her children the bigger possibilities that life has to offer, which they are unable to fully comprehend due to their limited experiences. Howell (1970) suggested that only Amanda understands this.

As the narrative progresses, a definite significance of the drama emerges. The gentlemen companies start as a parody, with Amanda herself being a parody in the eyes of her children and their generation. However, Williams' portrayal of a completely different lifestyle in his native South allows him to transform the eccentric mother and her aspirations into something that is noble and authentic.

In her broader meaning, Amanda's tragedy serves as a cautionary tale that highlights the inadequacy of modern life. Moreover, Amanda's connection with Laura Wingfield, who is her daughter and Tom's younger sister in The Glass Menagerie, portrays Laura as an extremely shy individual, even suffering from emotional distress.

immature adult female. She has a brace on her leg, which makes her appearance noticeable. Laura's collection of glass animals gives the play its title.

She does not work and is unable to complete a typewriting class due to her nervousness. Despite having once liked a boy in

high school, she has never had and is unlikely to have any kind of romantic relationship. In the play.

The responsibility of taking care of Laura becomes the main concern of the Wingfield family. Amanda eloquently expresses the humiliation experienced by abandoned wives and unmarried women in Southern society. She is afraid that Laura will become a "front porch girl," someone who spends her evenings watching others get married and start families. Tennessee Williams frequently references this forgotten woman throughout the play.

Who is not suited for the matrimony game, cannot gain a life in the modern world, and has no role in modern fragmented household units. In an earlier time.

By the 1930s, she would have been the unmarried aunt who was moved from one family member to another, becoming a shared responsibility.

Households rarely lived in spacious, expansive houses with enough room to accommodate long-term guests. The small family, separated from extended family in their apartment or cottage, were crowded into urban areas without space for extra dependents.

Without the presence of a community of concern, Laura becomes not only Amanda's responsibility but also Tom's. (Tischler, 2000, p. 31).

In terms of Amanda's relationship with Laura, it can be observed that her boundaries are rooted in a concern that often becomes excessively overbearing, to the point of being cruel. This is evident when Amanda later presents herself as a symbol of the "overprotective mother" in the play, despite initially appearing nurturing.

She controls and restricts her children, not only their eating habits, but also their entire lives, keeping them securely in the nest with her. She presents herself as someone who is suffering because of their demands.

She heavily depends on

their involvement to satisfy her own ego, further oppressing Laura with her dreadful expectations. In the play, Laura's collection of glass objects reveals her childlike immaturity and an isolated world of imaginary creatures and fragility. It serves as a representation of Laura herself.

The writer skillfully incorporates the delicate and exquisite qualities of the unicorn as a metaphor to convey a multifaceted idea, which is subtly suggested in the duologue.

According to mediaeval literature, unicorns are associated with virgins and by extension, with gender. Amanda consistently bothers Tom to find a suitable male companion from his coworkers. After much persistence, Tom concedes and agrees to bring his friend Jim O'Connor to dinner. This makes Amanda very happy.

Amanda fully engrosses herself in preparations for Jim's visit, which brings back memories of her former boyfriend in Blue Mountain, Laura. However, Laura is anxious and becomes physically ill upon Jim's arrival.

Jim is a lively and immature adult male who believes in the power of self-improvement classes and the future of television. He is also the popular guy that Laura secretly had a crush on in high school. When they are left alone after dinner, Jim gradually makes Laura feel comfortable with his friendly manner and eventually convinces her to dance. Their movements on the dance floor are awkward.

Nevertheless, they bump against the table that supports Laura’s glass unicorn, interrupting its horn. Therefore, when Jim accidentally breaks off its horn.

He has not transformed it into a horse: it still remains a unicorn. However, it is now a damaged unicorn that is able to resemble an ordinary horse. In a similar manner, Amanda has distorted Laura's true childlike nature to make her

appear like all the typical young women being pursued by kind young men. Laura's pained reactions to her mother's harsh questioning about her plans for the evening reveal the torment caused by her vulnerable fears that have plagued Laura since the beginning of the play.

Amanda's Relationship With Tom: Tom, the storyteller of the drama, is often portrayed as a supporter of the drama. He is both a brother to Laura and a son to Amanda. However, due to his overbearing mother's wretchedness and intrigues, Tom also fantasizes about leaving his family.

He is stuck between his job, where he often shirks his duties to write poetry, and his home, where he gets in trouble for reading contemporary literature that was viewed as shameful at that time, just like his father did.

Despite his claims of going out to watch films every night, it is also likely that he frequents a tavern as he occasionally returns home intoxicated. Eventually, Tom yields to Amanda's concerns and agrees to bring a "gentleman caller" home to meet Laura.

Despite seemingly caring for Laura, Tom's primary motivation is to escape from the household's dark and restrictive environment. This is evident when he functions as a storyteller several years after the events of the play, as it becomes clear that he has physically left but is still burdened emotionally. As previously mentioned, Tom's desire to alleviate his defeat stems from his oppressive circumstances.

Tom's conflict with his mother, Amanda, was the primary source of difficulties in The Glass Menagerie. Initially, Tom both provides narration and takes part in the events on stage.

The speaker recommends to the viewers in his gap monologue that "the drama

is memory" and includes characters who represent different aspects of his own consciousness, which is influenced by sentimentality. His reflective commentary persists throughout the play and serves as a humorous contrast to the unfolding events. In reality, Tom is a poet stuck in a mundane job at a shoe warehouse.

Tom aspires to become an author and seeks solace in the movies every night, living out the adventures he longs for. However, when Amanda questions Tom's frequent outings to bars, he defends himself by claiming he is going to the movies. In response, Tom vehemently expresses his deep hatred for his mother by calling her an "ugly-babbling old-witch".

24). Tom's dreams are slowly being crushed as his mother Amanda constantly pressures him to take on the role of the family's provider and help his sister find a man who will take care of her in the future. According to Beaurline (1965), the play's body imagery vividly portrays Tom's awareness of the hopeless situation of the Wingfield family and the unresponsive nature of their once beautiful memories.

One of the most memorable moments in modern theatre unfolds when Amanda steps onto the stage to acknowledge Laura's gentleman caller. Not a word is spoken for a few seconds; all eyes are fixed on Amanda's dress—the ball gown she wore years ago when she led the cotillion. This dress, which she had once worn proudly and had won the cakewalk in, and had also worn to the Governor's ball in Jackson. In this moment, the dress holds great significance.