Tom’s double role in The Glass Menagerie—as a character whose recollections the play documents and as a character who acts within those recollections—underlines the play’s tension between objectively presented dramatic truth and memory’s distortion of truth. Unlike the other characters, Tom sometimes addresses the audience directly, seeking to provide a more detached explanation and assessment of what has been happening onstage. But at the same time, he demonstrates real and sometimes juvenile emotions as he takes part in the play’s action.
This duality can frustrate our understanding of Tom, as it is hard to decide whether he is a character whose assessments should be trusted or one who allows his emotions to affect his judgment. It also shows how the nature of recollection is itself problematic: memory often involves confronting a past in which one was less virtuous than one is now. Because The Glass Menagerie is partly autobiographical, and because Tom is a stand-in for the playwright himself (Williams’s given name was Thomas, and he, like Tom, spent part of his youth in St.
Louis with an unstable mother and sister, his father absent much of the time), we can apply this comment on the nature of memory to Williams’s memories of his own youth. Even taken as a single character, Tom is full of contradiction. On the one hand, he reads literature, writes poetry, and dreams of escape, adventure, and higher things. On the other hand, he seems inextricably bound to the squalid, petty world of the Wingfield household. We know that he reads D. H. Lawrence and follows political developments in Europe, but the content of his intellectual life is otherwise hard to discern.
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We have no idea of Tom’s opinion on Lawrence, nor do we have any indication of what Tom’s poetry is about. All we learn is what he thinks about his mother, his sister, and his warehouse job—precisely the things from which he claims he wants to escape. Tom’s attitude toward Amanda and Laura has puzzled critics. Even though he clearly cares for them, he is frequently indifferent and even cruel toward them. His speech at the close of the play demonstrates his strong feelings for Laura.
But he cruelly deserts her and Amanda, and not once in the course of the play does he behave kindly or lovingly toward Laura—not even when he nocks down her glass menagerie. Critics have suggested that Tom’s confusing behavior indicates an incestuous attraction toward his sister and his shame over that attraction. This theory casts an interesting light on certain moments of the play—for example, when Amanda and Tom discuss Laura at the end of Scene Five. Tom’s insistence that Laura is hopelessly peculiar and cannot survive in the outside world, while Amanda (and later Jim) claims that Laura’s oddness is a positive thing, could have as much to do with his jealous desire to keep his sister to himself as with Laura’s own quirks. Amanda Wingfield
If there is a signature character type that marks Tennessee Williams’s dramatic work, it is undeniably that of the faded Southern belle. Amanda is a clear representative of this type. In general, a Tennessee Williams faded belle is from a prominent Southern family, has received a traditional upbringing, and has suffered a reversal of economic and social fortune at some point in her life. Like Amanda, these women all have a hard time coming to terms with their new status in society—and indeed, with modern society in general, which disregards the social distinctions that they were taught to value.
Their relationships with men and their families are turbulent, and they staunchly defend the values of their past. As with Amanda, their maintenance of genteel manners in very ungenteel surroundings can appear tragic, comic, or downright grotesque. Amanda is the play’s most extroverted and theatrical character, and one of modern American drama’s most coveted female roles (the acclaimed stage actress Laurette Taylor came out of semi-retirement to play the role in the original production, and a number of legendary actresses, including Jessica Tandy, have since taken on the role).
Amanda’s constant nagging of Tom and her refusal to see Laura for who she really is are certainly reprehensible, but Amanda also reveals a willingness to sacrifice for her loved ones that is in many ways unparalleled in the play. She subjects herself to the humiliating drudgery of subscription sales in order to enhance Laura’s marriage prospects, without ever uttering so much as a word of complaint. The safest conclusion to draw is that Amanda is not evil but is deeply flawed.
In fact, her flaws are centrally responsible for the tragedy, comedy, and theatrical flair of her character. Like her children, Amanda withdraws from reality into fantasy. Unlike them, she is convinced that she is not doing so and, consequently, is constantly making efforts to engage with people and the world outside her family. Amanda’s monologues to her children, on the phone, and to Jim all reflect quite clearly her moral and psychological failings, but they are also some of the most colorful and unforgettable words in the play.
Laura Wingfield The physically and emotionally crippled Laura is the only character in the play who never does anything to hurt anyone else. Despite the weight of her own problems, she displays a pure compassion—as with the tears she sheds over Tom’s unhappiness, described by Amanda in Scene Four—that stands in stark contrast to the selfishness and grudging sacrifices that characterize the Wingfield household. Laura also has the fewest lines in the play, which contributes to her aura of selflessness.
Yet she is the axis around which the plot turns, and the most prominent symbols—blue roses, the glass unicorn, the entire glass menagerie—all in some sense represent her. Laura is as rare and peculiar as a blue rose or a unicorn, and she is as delicate as a glass figurine. Other characters seem to assume that, like a piece of transparent glass, which is colorless until light shines upon it, Laura can take on whatever color they wish. Thus, Amanda both uses the contrast between herself and Laura to emphasize the glamour of her own youth and to fuel her hope of re-creating that youth through Laura.
Tom and Jim both see Laura as an exotic creature, completely and rather quaintly foreign to the rest of the world. Yet Laura’s crush on the high school hero, Jim, is a rather ordinary schoolgirl sentiment, and a girl as supposedly fragile as Laura could hardly handle the days she spends walking the streets in the cold to avoid going to typing class. Through actions like these, Laura repeatedly displays a will of her own that defies others’ perceptions of her, and this will repeatedly goes unacknowledged.
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FAQs
Who are the three main characters in The Glass Menagerie? ›
- Character List.
- Tom Wingfield.
- Amanda Wingfield.
- Laura Wingfield.
Amanda. The protagonist has to be Amanda because in the classic plot of a tragedy, she fulfills the role of committing to a dream and then having that dream completely squashed.
Who is the most flawed character in The Glass Menagerie? ›The safest conclusion to draw is that Amanda is not evil but is deeply flawed. In fact, her flaws are centrally responsible for the tragedy, comedy, and theatrical flair of her character. Like her children, Amanda withdraws from reality into fantasy.
What type of character is Amanda Wingfield? ›Amanda is both a very comic and deeply tragic figure. Her exaggerated, larger-than-life statements and actions are often so out of touch with reality that they seem quite funny. However, her self-delusion and inability to see the world around her is also sad and painful to watch.
What type of character is Laura in The Glass Menagerie? ›Laura is presented as an extremely shy and sensitive person. Her shyness is emphasized even more by being contrasted with Amanda's forceful and almost brutal nature. We are made aware almost immediately of Laura's overly sensitive nature.
Is Amanda Wingfield a good mother? ›In fact, as annoying as all the nagging about keeping one's elbows off the table is, Amanda is actually a very loving mother. Other than shooting the breeze about when she used to have gentlemen callers in her youth, Amanda doesn't really think too much about herself.
What does The Glass Menagerie symbolize? ›The title of the play, and the play's most prominent symbol, the glass menagerie represents Laura's fragility, otherworldliness, and tragic beauty. The collection embodies Laura's imaginative world, her haven from society.
Who is the main protagonist of the play *? ›The most common definition of protagonist is the leading character of a drama or literary work. You can see the relation to its Greek root word in the sense that the character is important in the plot. Sometimes, the term hero refers to a male protagonist. Heroine refers to a female protagonist.
Is Amanda selfish in The Glass Menagerie? ›Free Essays - The Glass Menagerie
Despite any views people may have on it being difficult to differentiate the actions of a bad mother from those of a good mother, it was made obvious that Amanda was a selfish mother, putting her needs ahead of her children's.
Tom Wingfield: Tom is the younger of the two Wingfield siblings, but he is the primary breadwinner of the family. With his father absent, the family relies on Tom's earnings from the factory where he works. Tom, though, is a poet, and dreams of running away to a life filled with adventure.
What is the main characteristics traits of Amanda? ›
Amanda can, at any moment, turn on a volley of chatter, be exceptionally lively and gay; Laura, on the other hand, lives in a quiet, sensitive world. But Amanda possesses strong attributes. She does devote herself to her children. She does possess a great determination and strength.
Is Tom Wingfield selfish? ›Tom's rejection of his family was not a selfish, egocentric escape. Instead, Tom recognized that he must escape in order to save himself. It was a means of self-preservation. He knew that if he stayed, he would be destroyed as a man and as an artist.
What does Amanda symbolize in The Glass Menagerie? ›Amanda is a good mother that let her flaws get the best of her. She was symbolized through the father's picture, the cotillion gown, and blue roses. Amanda overall tries to make her past her present. Her life is full of insecurities and unless she forgets her past, she will never truly enjoy all that life has to offer.
Why is Amanda the antagonist of The Glass Menagerie? ›As far as the antagonist, Amanda fits the role because she is always trying to correct her children's decisions to the way she wants them. In the first scene of the play, Tom is the first to speak as the narrator and he explains to the audience the setting as well as the characters.
Why is Laura the tragic hero in The Glass Menagerie? ›The tragic hero of this story is Laura Wingfield, Tom's sister. The physically and emotionally crippled girl is the only character that never does anything to hurt anyone and tries so hard to please everyone. Her shyness is her fatal and in the end will be the cause of her demise.
What does Laura symbolize in The Glass Menagerie? ›Similarly, Laura, though quiet and bland around strangers, is a source of strange, multifaceted delight to those who choose to look at her in the right light. The menagerie also represents the imaginative world to which Laura devotes herself—a world that is colorful and enticing but based on fragile illusions.
Why is Laura Wingfield so shy? ›Tom's sister and Amanda's daughter. Laura is deeply fragile, both emotionally and physically: she is painfully shy, and a childhood illness has left one leg slightly shorter than the other, making her walk with a limp.
What is the theme of glass menagerie? ›The main themes in The Glass Menagerie are memory and nostalgia, filial piety and duty, and gender roles. Memory and nostalgia: The Glass Menagerie takes place in Tom's memory. Tom, Laura, Amanda, and Jim each feel the pull of both painful memories and nostalgia.
What is the conflict in The Glass Menagerie? ›The Conflict of Amanda and Tom Wingfield
In this play, Tom who is a sensitive person, is aware about financial condition of his family and wants to escape to preserve his creativity. For the majority of his adult life, he had to work to support his mother and sister because his father had abandoned the family.
Tom is clearly the protagonist of The Glass Menagerie. Although he is not heroic and will probably never triumph over his obstacles, he does take action by the end of the play." Amanda Wingfield, Tom's mother is the closest thing to an antagonist in the play, she is the clearest villain in Tom's life.
Why does Amanda want Laura to get married? ›
Amanda believes that marriage is a necessary step for her daughter to live comfortably, to be supported by a man. This play also calls into question the lasting nature of marriage, as the marriage of the mother figure (Amanda) and her missing husband has been destroyed by his abandonment of her.
What does the father's picture symbolize in The Glass Menagerie? ›The giant, grinning picture that Tom describes as almost being a fifth character, during his part as narrator (Williams 656), stands as a reminder to Tom of how, if he leaves his family, he will be following in his father's footsteps.
How does Amanda change in The Glass Menagerie? ›Amanda Wingfield In The Glass Menagerie
She constantly badgers at her son Tom and struggles to cope with the handicaps of her daughter Laura. Amanda chooses to withdraw from the everyday stresses of reality, but she continues to relive the fond memories of when she was in her prime. Amanda likes to relive her youth.
Glass is very symbolic, and the idea of rebirth is prominent in glass symbolism. When you are broken like glass, a new self can emerge and be strong. There are many symbols when it comes to these fragile comparisons.
What is the climax of The Glass Menagerie? ›Climax. It turns out that James is the Jim Laura used to know, and she becomes paralyzed by fear during their dinner and has to be helped to the sofa. Tom confesses to Jim that he's paid his dues in the Union of Merchant Seamen rather than the electricity bill that month, and he will be leaving soon.
What symbolizes Amanda Wingfield? ›To begin, Amanda Wingfield is represented by the cottilion gown in which she used to wear during her youth. It represents her youth and her southern grace that she once had. It shows the transition from being a child to an adult and how Amanda has never gone back to being a child ever since.
Who is the main character in story? ›Protagonist: The main character of the story is the protagonist. They should be carefully crafted with a logical backstory, personal motivation, and a character arc over the course of the story. Often the story will be told from their point of view.
Who is the main character? ›The main character is a central character who acts as the audience surrogate—we experience the story through their eyes. The main character is involved in the story, interacts with the secondary characters, and is personally impacted by the plot's main conflict.
Who is the character in the story? ›A character is any person, animal, or figure represented in a literary work. Characters are essential to a good story, and it is the main characters that have the greatest effect on the plot or are the most affected by the events of the story.
How is Tom selfish in The Glass Menagerie? ›In The Glass Menagerie, Tom lives with his mother and disabled sister and works at a job that he hates to help support them. But he spends most of his home life arguing with his mother and goes to the movies every night to get away from his family.
Why is Tom Wingfield unhappy? ›
Tom feels fettered by the constraints of his job and his family and yearns for escape in all aspects of his life. Dissatisfied with his monotonous warehouse job, he writes poetry on the side and plots a future in the merchant marines.
What kind of girl was Amanda? ›Explanation: Amanda is a moody type of girl as mentioned in the final stanza. Ans: hunch – to raise, slouching – bending, drifting – moving slowly, roaming – wandering / purposelessly moving about, hushed – silent, tranquil – relaxed / calm, nagged – disturbed.
What is the character sketch of Valli? ›valli was a very courageous ,sensitive, self-respecting and intelligent girl. She was only 8 years old but behaving like a more mature woman than her age. She wanted to ride a bus so she started collecting every penny came to her by avoiding every temptation for buying toys and other playing instruments .
How many characters are in The Glass Menagerie? ›| The Glass Menagerie | |
|---|---|
| Characters | Amanda Wingfield Tom Wingfield Laura Wingfield Jim O'Connor Mr. Wingfield |
| Date premiered | 1944 |
| Place premiered | Chicago |
| Original language | English |
Tom is clearly the protagonist of The Glass Menagerie. Although he is not heroic and will probably never triumph over his obstacles, he does take action by the end of the play." Amanda Wingfield, Tom's mother is the closest thing to an antagonist in the play, she is the clearest villain in Tom's life.
Who is the fifth character in The Glass Menagerie? ›Mr. Wingfield is introduced by Tom as “the fifth character” in the play. He was a telephone salesman who “fell in love with long-distance” and abandoned his family.
What does Jim represent in The Glass Menagerie? ›Jim O'Connor
For Laura, Jim is an embodiment of 'normality', which is the one thing she is most fearful of. Her whole life, Laura has been different and has never got to lead a normal life because of her physical condition.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is Jim's nickname for Tom? | Shakesphere |
| What is Mr. Wingfield doing in the picture on the wall? | Smiling in his uniform |
| Where did Laura, Jim and Tom attend school? | Soldan High School |
| Laura's special theme music is? | Underlying sorrow |
The tragic hero in “The Glass Menagerie” is Tom because as a result of examining his desires, he is prepared to abandon his family. Although he assumes paternal responsibilities in his home, his repetitive lifestyle forces him to venture out for freedom and adventure.
What is the conflict in The Glass Menagerie? ›The Conflict of Amanda and Tom Wingfield
In this play, Tom who is a sensitive person, is aware about financial condition of his family and wants to escape to preserve his creativity. For the majority of his adult life, he had to work to support his mother and sister because his father had abandoned the family.
What are the themes of The Glass Menagerie? ›
- Freedom and Confinement. ...
- Duty. ...
- Family. ...
- Memory and the Past. ...
- Weakness. ...
- Deception and Lies. ...
- Dreams, Hopes, and Plans. ...
- Abandonment.
| The Glass Menagerie | |
|---|---|
| Characters | Amanda Wingfield Tom Wingfield Laura Wingfield Jim O'Connor Mr. Wingfield |
| Date premiered | 1944 |
| Place premiered | Chicago |
| Original language | English |
Mr. Wingfield's abandonment evidently leads to Tom's abandonment of his mother, Amanda, and his sister, Laura; in addition, Mr. Wingfield's desertion foreshadows Jim's abandonment of Laura. Although Mr.
Why did Tom leave in The Glass Menagerie? ›Tom explains that he was fired soon after from the warehouse for writing a poem on a shoebox lid and that he then left the family. He says that he has traveled for a long time, pursuing something he cannot identify.
Does Jim like Laura? ›...
Works Cited.
| The Glass Menagerie | |
|---|---|
| End | Jim, after kissing Laura, must explain that he is already engaged and must go. Some years later Tom is thinking about his sister Laura whom he will never forget |
Thus, the term “gentlemen callers” implied courting, chivalry, gentlemanliness and girls' prospects for a bright future. As such, the gentleman caller represents Amanda's link to the past she is obsessed with. References to her past appear throughout the entire play.
Why did Jim Kiss Laura in The Glass Menagerie? ›Extremely apologetic, Jim tells her that she is different from anyone else he knows, that she is pretty, and that if she were his sister he would teach her to have some self-confidence and value her own uniqueness. He then says that someone ought to kiss her. Jim kisses Laura on the lips.
Why is it called The Glass Menagerie? ›The title of the play, The Glass Menagerie, refers to a collection of glass figurines that can be seen as a representation of the family because each embodies elements of emotional fragility, and they are all merely reflections given to us through Tom's memory.
What is the ending of The Glass Menagerie? ›Like Tennessee Williams, Tom thinks of the warehouse job as destructive to his creative endeavors. At the end of the scene, Tom's violent action causes some of Laura's glass to be shattered. Tom returns to pick up the glass but is unable to utter a word. This symbolically represents Laura's inner feelings.
Why is The Glass Menagerie important? ›The Glass Menagerie is considered to be Williams' masterpiece not only for its story and characters, but also because of its inventive, theatrical elements including: The play's form and structure. Tom, the play's narrator, directly addresses the audience at the beginning of the play.