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The Glass Menagerie Research Paper

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Tennessee Williams relies heavily on symbolism that emphasizes significant characters, places, or objects in his plays. By interpreting symbols throughout plays one may gain a deeper insight into the action of the play, as well as the motivation of the characters. In the play “The Glass Menagerie,” by Tennessee Williams several of the symbols have a common idea in which they all symbolize a form of escape or difference between reality and illusion. Similarly then, every character in this play has his or her own form of escape from reality shown through symbolism. The following are some of the major symbols found when reading “The Glass Menagerie.”
Laura Wingfield’s collection of glass figurines is believed to be the most significant symbol …show more content…

This was mainly due to the fact that it has a horn, therefore it was different from the other horses, just as Laura was different from other girls. In scene 7, as she and Jim, the “gentleman caller," dance, he accidentally knocks the unicorn off the table, causing its horn to break off. Laura then comments that the unicorn will be just like the other horses and will not feel so “freakish." For a moment afterwards it appears that Laura also has a chance to be like other girls. For example, when Jim thoughtlessly kisses her, she seems astonished by what just happened. However, her small spark of hope quickly shattered as Jim explains that he has a fiancée. Just as the glass unicorn was broken literally, Laura was broken symbolically as her hope for love disappears. After Jim leaves, Laura withdraws even more from the real world and into her imaginary …show more content…

The nickname comes to represent her unique and individual self, a self that Jim and only Jim seems to recognize. “Blue roses cannot be achieved naturally so they represent the unattainable or the mysterious. Blue roses therefore embody the desire for the unattainable” (“Rose...). This corresponds directly to Jim’s description of Laura as a one-in-a-million girl. The name also associates with Laura’s attraction to Jim and the joy that his compassionate treatment brings her during the play. Furthermore, “Blue Roses,” recalls Tennessee Williams’s sister, Rose, on whom the character of Laura

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