Is Abandonment Really the Solution?
In The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, the theme of abandonment is salient throughout the play. Tom contemplates whether he should stay with his family doing something he hates or leave them and follow his dream. His yen to be happy and fulfill his American dream controls his final decision. Through Tom's actions, thoughts, and the negative imagery of his father, Williams proves that abandonment is a viable solution in escaping challenges and reality, if it is tenable.
The way Tom acts on the difficulties and challenges that he faces at home not only affect him but his family as well. He escapes his troubles from home, due to the pressure, by going to the movies. Finally, his mother realizes and
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He justifies it by expressing his emotions towards his sister and his memorable times with his family, even though he leaves them. Tom says, “Oh, Laura Laura I tried to leave you behind me, but I am more faithful than I intended to be! I reach for a cigarette, I cross a street, I run into the movies or a bar, I buy a drink, I speak to the nearest stranger- anything that can blow your candles out” (scene VII). In this quote, Tom tries to justify abandoning his family to himself by expressing that he never forgets about them. He says that he is more faithful than intended, which in a way also brings him comfort for leaving them. Tom also justifies his abandonments towards his family because of his dreams. He says, “Movies, look at me them! All of those glamorous people- having adventures- hogging it all, gobbling the whole thing up! You know what happens? People go to movies instead of moving” (scene VII). He is implying that at the movies, a person can sit in one chair and fly across the world without getting on an actual plane. Likewise, Tom dreams of having adventures and when his mother pressures him into staying and taking care of the family, he, of course, gets frustrated and proceeds to the movies. This shows that abandoning his family is viable to Tom when it comes to his
The moral of this story is “Can life events cause us to change our priorities?” and the answer to this is yes. All of Tom’s life was change when he got stuck outside the window trying to get a piece of paper. A piece of paper that had 2 months’ work on it. After he gets in, he decides to go find his wife and watch the movie with her. Which I thought was amazing after what happened to tom that
Because he has recently gotten out of prison, Tom has no idea what is hapening. Tom's four-year absence from his family has placed a barrier between him and his family. Throughout the entire novel, one can see Tom as an outsider to his family.
Response: This quote characterizes Tom as a man who takes pride in what others think of him and his family. Even though he will probably never see the truck driver again, Tom feels the need to clarify that both he and his father are literate. Although it would appear that he and his father are not close because they haven't exchanged letters, Tom is quick to defend his father so he must care for him.
Another means of Tom’s escape are his outings to the movie, which are aided by the fire escape. Tom goes to the movies for several reasons; to satisfy his need for alcohol, to escape his home life, and to experience some adventure. Walter is a black man in the 1950’s supporting himself, his wife, son, sister and mother in a small apartment in Chicago. He and Tom are both treated less than what a human is worth.
| Tom wants his old life back prior to the accident and he sees the accident as the end of his life as he knew it. He loses his sense of identity and sense of family in particular.Feels guilty and ashamed about the irrevocable consequences his brother’s irresponsibility had for other people and their familiesRetreats into a depressed state which feels empty and black.
People from all backgrounds also appreciate the way the movie shows a family with having good times and bad times, especially in relation to the relationship between the family members. As Tom grew up, he had a good time with the mother and his brother mike as he shared in the warmth of the family. However, his life became the source of bad times when he decided to engage in
In the middle of reading Out of Nowhere, it became clearer and easier to be imagine Tom in reality as an actual person. For instance in the passages, it was emphasized that soccer as an important part of his life and matters a ton in
Williams’s play is a tragedy, and one of quietude. He once expressed that “Glass Menagerie is my first quiet play, and perhaps my last.” It is a play of profound sadness, and through relationships between characters, portrays the “cries of the heart.” There is no cry more powerful that the cry and inner desperation of the heart. Williams’s has very little social context, but rather focuses on the conflicts within a domestic family. Such a focus is powerful, and the playwright expresses this power and importance implicitly through the estranged relationship between Amanda and Tom Wingfield.
Although Tom is the protagonist of the novel, our first impressions of him are rather misleading. He seemed to be a rather manipulative individual at first due to the fact that he was guilt tripping the truck driver in the beginning of the novel. He also acts as if he does not care about anything like when he casually mentions, “‘Homicide … That’s a big word--means I killed a guy’” (Steinbeck). First impression-wise, the protagonist seemed to be incapable of compassion. This is definitely not whom Tom ends up becoming. In fact, he becomes a crucial member of the family that allows them to make the trip to California without fail. Although he is unable to make sure that everyone arrives safely, he is only human and he is hurt every time someone leaves. Noah’s decision to leave the family and live on the river has affected Tom in that Tom is unable to keep the family all together, but at the same time he respects Noah’s decision. When Tom tried to convince Noah to stay by saying, “How bout the fam’ly? How ‘bout Ma?”, Tom appealed to the idea of family and how they should stay as one. This contrasts early behaviors of Tom as in the beginning, he did not particularly care if his parents mailed him or not in jail. He talks about how they care about him, but he never revealed his own feelings towards them. He seems to be a stranger to his own family. To furthermore complete this newfound idea of family in Tom, he makes the ultimate sacrifice to leave the family. He knows that by staying, he will endanger the family and as much as he would want to stay with the family, he puts the family’s safety before his own. Tom had shown continued growth as a human throughout the novel and yet despite all of the sacrifices he has had to make, Tom still continued to
Tennessee Williams' play, The Glass Menagerie, describes three separate characters, their dreams, and the harsh realities they face in a modern world. The Glass Menagerie exposes the lost dreams of a southern family and their desperate struggle to escape reality. Williams' use of symbols adds depth to the play. The glass menagerie itself is a symbol Williams uses to represent the broken lives of Amanda, Laura and Tom Wingfield and their inability to live in the present.
In The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams uses the theme of escape to help drive the play forward. None of the characters are capable of living in the real world. Laura, Amanda, Tom and Jim use various methods to escape the brutalities of life. Laura retreats into a world of glass animals and old records. Amanda is obsessed with living in her past. Tom escapes into his world of poetry writing and movies. Jim also reverts to his past and remembers the days when he was a high school hero. Mr. Wingfield is referred to often throughout the play. He is the ultimate symbol of escape. This is because he has managed to remove himself from the desperate situation that the rest of the family is still
Tom is coffined in a cheerless life style which he tries to avoid through the exploitations of unrealistic or broken getaways. As the only man remaining in their family, Tom works to sustain his mother and sister, therefore leaving him with “no single thing in [Tom’s] life here that [he] can call [his] OWN!” (Scene 3:86-87; 89)
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams had ordinary people in an ordinary life that closely resembled the influences of Williams’ personal life while having reoccurring themes and motifs throughout the story. The play has been done by many with some variations in the scripts and setting while still clinging to the basic ideas of the original play.
At the onset of the book, Young Tom has just been released from prison and is interested in making up for lost time and enjoying himself. He is a strong family support during the journey but is among the first to begin reaching out to a larger family. At the end he has focused on the plight and abuse of all the homeless farmers and recognizes that they must
In Tennessee Williams’ play, The Glass Menagerie, all four members of the Wingfield family have chosen to hide from reality. Amanda tries to relive her past through Laura, and denies anything she does not want to accept. Laura is terrified of the real world, and choses to hide behind her limp, her glass menagerie and the victrola. Tom hides from his reality by going to the movies, writing poetry, and getting drunk. Mr Wingfield hides from his reality by leaving his family and not contacting them after he has done so. Each member of the Wingfield family has their own escape mechanism which they use to hide or escape from the real world.