Introverts vs. Extroverts Essay

The pressures of society in The Glass Menagerie push Laura Wingfield to be a shy girl who does not have any contact with the outside world. Laura’s biggest flaw, her slight limp, cause her to shut out the world and become a hermit. Amanda, her mother, pushes her to go to college and find a man whom will take care of her. However, Laura’s insecurities kick in and she just about throws up during her first speed test in college, which shows just how serious her situation is. Her personality shines through her glass animals, whom she cares for with great tenderness. Laura has withdrawn from the real world and gone into a make-believe world which she creates from her set of glass menagerie.

We are sometimes known as our own worst critic and after reading Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use” and Tennessee Williams’ play “The Glass Menagerie”, we experience two characters that display this to be true. In “Everyday Use” we are introduced to Maggie, the timid and homely little sister who has burns throughout her arms and legs due to a house fire which occurred many years prior to when the story takes place. In “The Glass Menagerie” we read about Laura, an introverted character who suffers from a childhood illness causing her to have one leg shorter than the other leaving her to rely on the use of a

In her article Shyness: Evolutionary Tactic? author Susan Cain addresses many of the preconceived notions society has against introverted people. Cain argues that society tends to favor the outgoing and extroverted and shames those who prefer to be alone rather than socialize. The author utilizes certain writing strategies as a way to change her audience’s original views surrounding introversion. Cain’s use of comparing and contrasting, specific examples, and strong transitions that bridge various ideas to each other make her argument, that introverts are essential to society, much more persuasive.

“The Glass Menagerie” by Tennessee Williams, was written in the early forties but could be misconstrued as a present-day play, because of the family dynamic that has changed since the forties but has not been completed replaced. In this play, we are introduced to Tom Wingfield who is the breadwinner for the family, which consists of his mom and sister. Amanda Wingfield who is an overbearing mother that knows no boundaries, and Laura Wingfield who is the sweet, and embarrassingly shy daughter of Amanda. Their family dynamic is like most of ours. The mother loves her kids dearly but struggles with letting go of her old identity, the daughter who allows her disability to determine her happiness and the brother who is obligated to work but would rather drink and party his money away. I’m sure many of us can relate to this family in some form. My favorite character in “The Glass Menagerie” is Laura. I love Laura because I can relate to her in more than one way. I was a shy individual most of my life, but once people got to know me they realized I was no different from them. In the following paragraphs, I will share Laura’s character with you, the similarities between Laura and the glass unicorn and I’ll tell you how the glass unicorn represents Laura.

In our attempts to convert to a more extroverted society, the introvert has been all but erased, the only remnants a gross misrepresentation. Introverts are encouraged to display extroverted characteristics and conform. In other words, all the positive markers of the introvert have been erased. As an introvert thrown into an alternating ideal after living in Asia, this presented as a massive culture shock. Qualities that were encouraged were then hunted down and eradicated. Living in any sort of world that requires conformity is challenging, but the contrast between cultures make the difference all the more

It is fair to say she may be somewhat out of touch with reality due to a slight disability, in which her glass menageries comfort her. Amanda views her daughter, Laura as fragile, like glass. As the title of the play informs us, “The Glass Menagerie,” or collection of animals, is the central symbol. Her collection of glass animal figurines represents the different facets of Laura’s own personality. Comparable to the figurines, Laura is delicate.

Tennessee Williams’ famous work, The Glass Menagerie, features a disabled and very shy main character who eventually learns that her disability is not what makes her different, it is what makes her unique. This turning point occurs when she reconnects with an old acquaintance who taught her about change and truly embracing yourself, despite your flaws. It is by complete accident that Laura comes to this realization, her and her friend Jim are dancing around the living room when Jim accidently bumps the table where a few of Laura’s glass figurines are placed:

Be it rappers, outspoken politicians, flamboyant actors, or any number of outgoing personas, Americans admire individuals for their attention-commanding qualities. To quote Susan Cain, a former corporate lawyer, and Tedx acknowledged authority on introversion, “shyness implies submissiveness. And in a competitive culture that reveres alpha dogs, one-downmanship is probably the most damning trait of all.” THAT is why I find it so important to separate the concept of introversion from shyness: To dispel any notion of weakness, to deny any perception of social disadvantage, and to debunk the idea that introverts are in any way incapable of being functional members of society. After all, I’m a living contradiction to that

Apparently only 12% of the population is more introverted than I am. I was that rare teenager whose parents actually had to encourage him to spend time with friends and who had to ask me "so when are you going to get a date" - a shocking question from a parent even for a thirty-something. However, overall I find this measure of extroversion also to be of limited value. I am after all a public school teacher, a profession that I indicated I extremely enjoy because of the interaction it allows with students and colleagues. After hours though I like to "cacoon" in my classroom or home, which sometimes seem to be the same

My parents love to live vicariously through me, especially my mother, and while I understand their inclination to do this, it can make them a bit controlling of my actions. Williams exhibits in The Glass Menagerie the damaging effects of overbearing parents on the mental and emotional growth of their children. In the play, the mother inhibits the development of her children because she tries to control her children’s lives, which takes away the ability to become independent and focus on personal needs. Amanda treats Laura like a child and constantly makes decisions for her, and she and keeps him from enjoying his life.

The play The Glass Menagerie, written by Tennessee Williams, is told as a flashback from the point of view of the character Tom Wingfield. He narrates the play as well. It is set in St. Louis in the year 1937. Tom works to support his mother, Amanda, as well as his sister Laura. Laura is extremely shy, and her mother is not happy with her because she does not attract any “gentlemen callers.” Laura gets enrolled in a business school by her mother, in hopes that she will go into a business career and earn money for herself and her family. A few weeks after, Laura drops out of business school due to her shyness, and wanders the streets of St. Louis during the day. When she is caught by her mother after she visits the business school, Laura tells her “I’ve just been going walking” (Williams 1166). It is then decided that the only hope left in Laura is in marriage. Laura then begins to sell magazine subscriptions in hopes that this job will not only earn her money, but attract a gentleman caller as well. Tom, who works in a shoe warehouse, is a slight alcoholic. He tries to get away from the job that he doesn’t like by drinking, watching movies, and reading literature. Tom often argues with his mother Amanda, and in one of these frequent arguments, Tom accidently breaks a few of Laura’s glass animals. These glass animals are her most prized possessions, so Laura is upset but forgiving.

Every time Tom sees "…a piece of transparent glass…" (1310), or hears "…a familiar bit of music" (1310) he is reminded of Laura. So in the end, Tom isn't successful at escaping his realities. It is in the actual escape that he fails the most because he can't forget Laura. Amanda and Laura are the most pitiful characters in the play. Their methods of escape consist of what goes on inside their heads. Laura escapes through her menagerie. "[Laura's] glass collection takes up a good deal of [her] time" (1303). Laura is so engrossed with taking care of her glass collection that she forgets to live her life. Laura also hides behind her disability. She even admits that the brace on her leg "…sort of --stood between [her]-[and making friends]" (1301). Laura never tries to do anything but live in a reality where she is afraid of everything. Amanda however isn't afraid of anything except not being taken care of. Amanda also lives in a make-believe reality. In Amanda's mind she is still a girl receiving "gentlemen callers" (1270). Even when Laura is to receive a caller, Amanda gets more dressed up than Laura. Amanda even refuses to acknowledge that Laura is "…crippled" (1275). She illustrates this point by saying "…you're not crippled, you just have a little defect-hardly noticeable, even!" (1275). In Amanda's world men are still nice and polite, unlike her son Tom. There are no

Broken Glass and Breaking from the Past In Tennessee William’s 1944 play entitled The Glass Menagerie, Williams employed prevailing symbolism to illustrate Laura’s odd habit and ultimate fate. Laura escaped from reality when she was in the presence of her glass animals, and suffered emotionally due to her physical deformity of one leg being shorter than the other. The figurine in her collection that she admired the most was her glass unicorn, which also served as a powerful representation of her oddness and physical defect. Throughout this essay I will further discuss the significance of the glass unicorn, by giving further detail on the connections made between Laura and the glass unicorn.

A few years ago I was given a personality test and the result was that I was an introvert. This didn’t surprise me much because when I don’t know a person I have a tendency to be very shy and quiet. My goal is not to change that I am, but to be more open with people and show them that me being quiet doesn’t mean that I am judging them, I just don’t have anything important to say. The textbook defines introversion as quit, shy reclusive and cautious and while I think I may fit some of that, I am the opposite of reclusive and cautious. When I am with my friends I may not be the loudest or most outgoing person in the room, but I am far from the definition of introversion.

In The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, the main topic of discussion is trying to find Laura a suitable gentleman caller that Amanda, her mother, would approve; however the overall theme is much deeper than that. Laura lives at home with both her mom and brother Tom. What 's special about these 3 is that they lost their father to the world of adventure; he left them without even the blink of an eye because he wanted more than what their little