The glass menagerie - Research Paper Example

In the production notes , Tennessee Williams says that ‘The Glass menagerie’ is a memory play This statement refers to a major theme of the play , namely , all the characters getting stuck up in memories of their past. He himself confesses that the play is string of memories ‘of his own youth. It follows the events and people in William’s true life experience in St. Louise between the years of 1934 and 1936. His mother, his sister, his job in shoe factory, and the glass menagerie were all part of his’ earlier life”.

Besides Tom Amanda also live in constant pursuit of her bygone youth. She was extremely well-liked and cute young lady but she lost her chances. Now the realities in front of her are consciously ignored y her. The way she treats Tom and Laura is another evidence of her fanciful life. She prevents these two from becoming responsible young people by treating them as children. Without accepting the reality, she insists Laura to imitate her youth and hopes to recreate what she missed in life through her daughter.

Thus Laura is bound to her mother always. The glass menagerie Laura lulls the infantile world with the glass menagerie. Thus she is also not raised to the level of a woman. Another character hounded by his memory is the father, who had left the family to travel long distance. The whole family lacks a father who supports them. The absence of such a father figure adds something more to their memory, the love and care of a father is also a memory to the children . Thus memory prevents all the characters to live in present and also to lead a happy life.

Through Tom Winfield, Tennessee Williams was portraying himself as a young man. According to Presley “No one has even reviewed the bare details of his biography can overlook the obvious similarities between the record of his early life and the events described in The Glass Menagerie”. There are many similarities between his life and Tom’s life. Tom says “ I am the narrator of the play , and also a character in it. The other characters are my mother, Amanda, my sister, Laura (1147). Thus the first resemblance between Tom and Williams is, he stands for the writer, who tells the story.

Tennessee dropped out of the school according to his father’s instruction. After that he went to work in a shoe factory. The reaction of Tom in the play is relevant here. Tom says, “ Listen ! You think I am crazy about the ware house! You think I am in love with the Continental Shoemakers? You think I want to spend fifty-five years down there in that Celotex interior!! With Fluorescent tubes.”. Like Tennessee, To also liked to write poems and plays during leisure times. “He called me Shakespeare (1168).

The mental stress that Tennessee suffered is shown by his narrator character Tom also, and that lead both of them to write poems and plays. Tennessee William’s father was a salesman who always tried to keep away from home. The father character presented here was also a telephone man who loved to travel. The children were brought up by their mother. The place where Tennessee lives is similar to what Tom explains in the play.” The apartment faces an alley and is entered by a fire escape.’ (1146).

Tennessee was unwilling to remain in St. Louise school. In the play we can see Tom’s mother advises him to attend night –school course in accounting at Washington –“ U Just think what a wonderful thing that would be for you son(1162). Another similarity we can see is the relation between Tennessee