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Summary: The Glass Menagerie
Review: Tennesse Williams struggled for years to get his break as a writer and more specifically as a playwright. Williams finally got his break and came into his own when THE GLASS MENAGERIE was performed at the Civic Theatre in Chicago in 1944. The show was an instant success and finally brought Williams the fame and recognition he had been seeking most of his life. Though there are several differences (for instance, Williams' father never left his family--in fact the family wished he was absent more than he was) the play is a somewhat autobiographical play. The play has just four characters: Amanda Wingfield, the devoted and loving mother; Laura Wingfield, the fragile as glass daughter; Tom Wingfield, the supportive and oppressed son; and Jim O'Connor, Tom's friend and the "gentleman caller" who's visit brings about the play's climax. Williams called the play a "memory play" and that is exactly what it is--a look at time and family and the search for one's identity all through the lens of memory. Even though audiences have changed a great deal over the years, the play still resonates, almost as strong as it did when it was first written. Williams was a playwright, but he wrote almost everything in pure poetry and every line of THE GLASS MENAGERIE is filled with his poetic imagination and genius. As a side note, the play is usually interpreted as a straight drama. However, performed as a comedy, the play works just as well with very little substance getting lost. After all, it's all about memory and sometimes we need to look at something in a different way to remember it a little better.
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Summary: A Simplistic Story of Human Emotion
Review: The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams is what many refer to as a memory play about the Wingfield family set in St. Louis during the 1930's. The narration is doused with nostalgia so the reader never receives a true sense of reality when reading the story. The dialogue is simple and easily understandable. The story's message shines through and the general public can relate to the characters because of this very fact.
Williams interweaves symbolism between characters with their surroundings or objects in several instances throughout the play. Whether Williams is comparing Laura's innocence with the fragility of her glass figurines or Jim, "the gentlemen caller", with the hopes and dreams of the whole Wingfield family, symbolism is a key literary device used in the play.
However, despite the symbolism being intriguing and fun to figure out, the social ideals of the time might be hard for younger generations to understand or relate to. One could easily find Laura's extreme shyness and unwillingness to leave the house for school quite perplexing. Also, the way in which her innocence was revered by Jim for being precious might also confuse some readers. Moreover, Amanda's many stories of gentlemen callers and the pressure she puts on Tom to find one for his sister Laura is not a situation most people are faced with in this day and age. However, if the reader can look past these differences and focus on the family dynamic of the three characters I think they'll be able identify better with the story.
I could connect with the character of Laura's sense of awkwardness because of being "handicapped" and also felt sympathy towards Tom's feelings of obligation for his family. I enjoyed this play very much and would recommend anyone to read it. I think any reader could appreciate this play because it is so easy to read and we all have family and friends who we share a dynamic with similar to the ones provided by the characters in the story.
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Summary: Cast delivers that realism
Review: Glass Menagerie was 20th-cent. realism @its zenith, although I didn't know that in high school when this play was assigned. Desperate to read & understand, I found the recording with Monty (Misfits) Cliff & Jessica (Miss Daisy) Tandy in the local library. I read along with the recording, & when I was done, I read it again.
When the time-warped Amanda Wingfield crows, "What? Not one gentleman caller?," you wanna smack her. Sure it's depressing: all these realism guys--O'Neill, Williams--were miserable & depressed. That's why what they cranked out was "art," as opposed to advertising.
It makes a difference to me who's reading or performing: the actors here were top-notch, the material was complex & agonizing. Complex: @the beginning of a play about failure & defeat, who can beat a line like Tom Wingfield's "My father was a telephone repairman who fell in love with long distance?" Etc.
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Summary: "What shall I wish for, Mother?"
Review: This drama of the Wingfield family is one of the twentieth century's great American plays, and it is no surprise that it is still taught throughout the country as an example of fine theater. The characters are psychologically true for their 1930's setting, and they reveal themselves brilliantly through their dialogue. The story is simple, the symbolism is obvious and readily understandable, the claustrophobic and depressing atmosphere is heightened by the fact that all the action takes place in a small apartment, and the line between reality and dream world, while clear to the audience, is tragically unclear to the players on stage. Though the play may be structurally and aesthetically satisfying to an older audience familiar with this period, it may be less successful, after sixty years, to a contemporary audience. Amanda is so meddlesome that her good heart, her dreams for her family, and her control over Tom are unrealistic by today's standards. Tom, with his sense of obligation toward the family, sometimes appears personally weak. Most difficult, however, is Laura, so pathologically shy and introverted that she is happy to stay indoors all day, polishing her glass animals and remaining completely dependent on her brother and mother to support and protect her. This has always been one of my favorite plays, but reading or watching it now feels a bit like watching a costume drama. Though it is brilliantly written, its characters and dramatic situations are so different from our twenty-first century lives, that the play and characters really come alive only when analyzed in conjunction with the social context in which they were originally presented. For a modern audience, Laura may be more pathetic than tragic. Mary Whipple
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Summary: "The Glass Menagerie" Book Review
Review: This timeless play has been studies and performed around the world since 1945. Tennessee Williams', "The Glass Menagerie" has been classified as legendary for decades and will continue to appear in classrooms and theaters for decades to come. This play is still so popular today because it can still be related to today. It has effective description, realistic characters, and modern language so it is easily understood.
This play seems ageless although it was written over a half of a century ago. There are several similarities with today's society. In the play, tom, the narrator and main character is less than satisfied with his life. He works as a shoemaker but has big dreams for himself. He complains about his job and life when he says, "Listen! You think I'm crazy about the warehouse? You think I'm in love with the Continental Shoemakers? You think I want with-fluorescent-tubes! Look! I'd rather somebody picked up a crowbar and battered out my brains-than go back mornings"(page 23). Tom wants to be a poet and experience adventure. We can all relate to this. At times we are not satisfied with life and it's good to dream a little and have goals for yourself.
Another good aspect of this play is how realistic the characters are. The main characters Tom, Amanda, and Laura don't lead a perfect life. They all have weaknesses. Tom hates his job; Amanda has problems raising and supporting Laura and Tom; Laura has a physical disability. The family goes through real life situations and problems.
The description and overall narration of the play is a key role in its effectiveness. The characters and plot are described so you can get a picture in your mind of the people and the apartment they lie in. The narrator being a character helped a lot with getting a visual of things. This description of the Wingfield's apartment is an example of the detailed description in the play. "The Wingfield apartment is in the rear of the building, one of those vast hive-like conglomerations of cellular living-units that flower as warty growths in overcrowded urban centers of lower middle-class population and are symptomatic of the impulse of this largest and fundamentally enslaved section of American society to avoid fluidity and differentiation and to exist and function as one interfused mass of automatism"(page 3).
Sometimes when reading plays it can be difficult to fully grasp a good sense of the plot. However, it is not the case in "The Glass Menagerie". The plot is fully developed through the characters actions and dialogues. Also, the vivid description Tom gives is very helpful. It is easy to understand because Tom comes right out and tells you what to expect like when he tells us, "I am the narrator of the play, and also a character in it. The other characters are my mother, Amanda, my sister, Laura, and a gentleman caller who appears in the final scenes"(page 5).
Not only is this a well written play, but also it is an easy read. It uses everyday language. It's not difficult to comprehend as it uses modern speaking and dialogues. It's a short play that will grasp you attention and be over before you know it. "The Glass Menagerie" is so popular for a reason. It's a classic play that will be studied and referenced for years to come. It's amazing how a play written so long ago is not obsolete and still relates to today's society.
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Summary: Overview of The Glass Menagerie
Review: The Glass Menagerie, by Tennesse Williams is a tale of desperation and a longing for something more. The characters within this incredible stories pages yearn for more than the mundane facts of life. Amanda, who plays the mother, grew up a pure southern belle. As she describes it, men practically kissed the ground she walked on. Wouldn't you think her daughter Laura would be the same? The answers no. Laura is a shy, crippled girl who is forced to wear braces on her legs. Unlike her mother, Laura rarely has gentlman callers and this bothers Amanda. Her mother, not knowing what to do with Laura, signs her up for business classes which Laura secretly skips. Her brother Tom is an aspiring poet who is forced to work in a shoe warehouse so he can support his family. Their father ran out on them at an early age and the only thing they have recieved from him in years is a single postcard.
The Glass Menagerie is one of the few books that has ever caught me by surprise. You can't help but feel the agony of repression these three main characters feel. The novel, which was originally written for the stage, only takes place over a very short period of time in late 1930's. It was a time of change and growth of the human spirit. The beliefs of youth and age clashed and no matter who you were you longed for something different. But as our character Tom figures out at the end, change isn't always what you need.
I feel the most interesting quality this novel contained was it's use of symbolism. The fire escape had so much meaning behind it, it was practically impossible to miss. It was their only way of escaping the pain that was inside the walls of their home. The music that was often cued in the play took a major part in creating the essense behind the story. Music relates to memory and that is what this play comes down to, memories of how it should be, or should I say, the delusions the Wingfield family created.
Overall this book impressed me. It had all the elements a good story should have,(pain, pleasure, humor, distruction and healing). I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking to sit down and sink into a well written story. After all, everyone lives within their own glass menagerie.
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