It was during the second half of the play that the symbolism of Laura’s glass menagerie began to really come together. I think that Williams intended the glass menagerie to symbolize life. Glass is very breakable, and like life, you can try to keep it safe and perfect but sometimes things happen that are out of your control. Laura keeps her collection pristine, as she does her own life. She plays it safe, is very shy, reserved, and remains to herself and within the confines of the apartment. Jim, however, has a different relationship with life. He was the one that by dancing broke a piece of the glass menagerie. He also is the one to break the mold socially; he is outgoing, and seeks to take advantage of all that he can in life. Even though he is still stuck on the “glory days” of high school, he is working on making progress. He pursues a better career through taking public speaking classes. He also pursues the girl he loves. It is an interesting contrast between the two males in the story, and for that matter, there is also a contrast between the two females. As I said, Jim knows what he wants out of life, and he goes after what he wants. Tom, on the other hand, does not know what he wants out of his life and instead, he simply tries to escape his own reality by going on adventures and to the “movies.” As for the women of the play, Amanda knows what she wants out of life. Like Jim, she is the social butterfly, and knows the ways of the world. She knows how to put on a show and how to entertain. Laura, on the other hand, is more closely related to Tom. She does not know what she wants from her life other than her glass collection and her infatuation with Jim. Even though all of the characters in the play have hard lives due to the aftermath of the Great Depression, Laura is the most sympathetic character. Not only was she born slightly crippled and very shy, but during the play, she is teased by getting a glimpse of how happy she would be with Jim and then having it taken away from her in an instant. The characters in the play have an interesting dynamic and the ending leaves the reader to think about how the lives of each of the characters continue.
An example Williams uses to show Jim's "fame" during his high school days is through the dialogue between Jim and Laura, discussing Jim's singing. Laura begins: "Mr. O'Connor, have you-kept up with your singing?" "Singing? Me?" "Yes. I remember what a beautiful voice you had." Jim was always very popular in high school and excelled in sports, debate, and singing. People would have expected him to go far in life, so it is surprising that he ended up working at the factory with Tom. Jim also expected himself to have a better job by this point, which is why he has invested in public speaking classes. He is also very motivational, as exemplified by his encouraging Laura: "People are not so dreadful when you know them. That's what you have to remember! And everybody has problems, not just you...For instance, I hoped when I was going to high school that I would be further along at this time, six years later, than I am now. You remember that wonderful write-up I had in The Torch? " While Jim is good at encouraging Laura, and she is enamored by him, he is still very concentrated on his own goals, as shown in the ladder part of the quote.
ReplyDeleteIn the end of the story, Tom decides to finally leave and pursue his own goals, not to be tied down to his family. He is tired of working at a job he hates just to pay the bills for a mother that is unappreciative. The last thing his mother says to him as he walks out the door is, "Go then! Go to the moon-you selfish dreamer!" Amanda will never understand Tom's dreams, and it is ironic that she is calling him selfish when all she has ever done is been selfish at his expense. Even though Tom is finally "free," he can't seem to shake the feeling that he is abandoning Laura. At the very end, Tom is describing a dream and he says, "Then all at once my sister touches on my shoulder. I turn around and look into her eyes. Oh Laura, Laura, I tried to leave you behind me, but i am more faithful than I intended to be!"
Vocabulary Words:
1. Portieres: a curtain hung in a doorway, either to replace the door or for decoration.
2. Unobtrusive: inconspicuous, unassertive, or reticent.
3. Jonquil: a narcissus, Narcissus jonquilla, having long, narrow, rushlike leaves and fragrant, yellow or white flowers.
4. Tumultuous: full of tumult or riotousness; marked by disturbance and uproar: a tumultuous celebration.
5. Perturbation: mental disquiet, disturbance, or agitation
6. Desolation: dreariness; barrenness.
7. Jauntily: easy and sprightly in manner or bearing: to walk with a jaunty step.