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Symbolism In The Glass Of Menagerie

1169 Words5 Pages

In the play “The Glass of Menagerie” by Tennessee Williams, she uses symbolism to recreate a memory about a family living in an apartment and who is struggling through the Great Depression. Laura Wingfield is one of the main protagonists who is shy and has a limp, which she wears a brace to help support it. She retreats from reality because her mother, Amanda is so rough natured. Amanda lost her husband and looks after her children. Her husband abandoned the family. She relies on her son, Tom Wingfield to support the family and to help Laura. Tom wants to become a writer and poet but is forced to work at a shoe warehouse to support the family. He feels trapped and is searching for new experiences in his life. Tom introduces Jim O’Conner to Laura, and he somehow breaks through Laura’s world. She begins to have a desire for him and faces reality. Through symbolism, Williams uses the glass of menagerie as a means of fantasy and escape for Laura. Escape is the theme for Laura because she is escaping from reality and into her own world. She does not want to confront her current situation, which is her lack of social opportunity. The play is a memory and it is shown through Amanda and Jim. Amanda always talks about her girlhood and Jim always wants to …show more content…

Tom invites Jim to dinner and extends his visits so he can talk to Laura. Amanda’s plan is for Laura to marry a young man. Laura shows Jim her glass of menagerie collection and tells him that they are fragile. He asks her to dance and accidently bumps into the table breaking the horn off the unicorn. This shows how Jim does not really listen to Laura’s warning about how fragile they were. The breaking of the glass shows how he mishandles Laura. He breaks her heart by telling her that he is engaged to another woman. The breaking of the unicorn’s horn symbolizes how Jim also broke her heart when he announced he is

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