The Glass Menagerie Symbolism Essay

In the memoir, The Glass Castle, it was evident the Glass Castle was not just a physical object itself, but holds a deeper meaning of symbolism towards the author, Jeannette Walls. After completing the book, it has been noted that the Glass Castle symbolizes the constant reminder of Jeannette’s hope that one day both her family and house will be in a stable, working position. Throughout the novel, the Glass Castle was vaguely mentioned as the Walls family continued their journey through the United States. However, through their ongoing journey, Jeannette’s view of the Glass Castle changed, as it was inevitably just a vision that her father had implanted in her brain but never actually built in reality.

Authors use symbolism in order to prove points, represent emotions, or even to show ideas. In the memoir, The Glass Castle written by Jeanette Walls, the 'Glass Castle' itself represents the ray of hope that each child had as they grew up in a financially troubled and twisted family. The Glass Castle design was also used by her father as a way to get his children to trust that he will always try to provide for and protect his family. Rex Walls, Jeanette's father stated that the Glass Castle would have glass staircases, heating and cooling powered by solar energy, and even a water purification system. He planned the rooms with extreme precision and, “Carried the blueprints for the Glass Castle wherever [they] went” (Walls 25). He even had the kids, “Work on the design for our rooms” (Walls 25). All of this would be funded by his Prospector machine which would separate gold from other rocks. However, this machine was never used and Rex's drinking and gambling habits would always force the Walls family to move to a new location, putting the idea of the Glass Castle in the back of their minds.

For instance, the flower Rose is holding represents multiple things for her. The flower, being a rose itself, symbolizes Rose herself losing her identity. Rose has spent as much time as Troy investing in their marriage and their family, but her husband does not see this. For eighteen years of her life, Rose dedicated herself to trying to “Be everything a wife should be…Be everything a wife could be” (Malik, 2017) and now that her husband is confessing he will make another woman the mother of his child, she has no idea who she is without him. Another way to analyze the rose’s meaning would be to consider the flower as the classical symbol of love; Rose dropping it represents the downfall of her marriage.

Individuals often find the definition of identity complex and difficult to comprehend. A balance must be struck between the contending concepts that a person’s identity is founded on how they view themselves, or how others perceive them to be. During the 20th century, strict adherence to archetypal roles was expected. Who an individual was, how they interacted with others, and their status in society, was determined through the judgement of others and subsequently, the archetypal roles they were placed in. For Stephen, a young fifteen year-old who is struggling on achieving true self-fulfillment in a society that is male dominated, he drives his sense of identity and self-perception from how others see him.

One use of symbolism in the novel is when Mayella Ewell is compared to the red geranium. “One corner of the yard, though, bewildered Maycomb. Against the fence, in a line, were six chipped-enamel slop jars holding brilliant geraniums, cared for as tenderly as if they belonged to Miss Maudie Atkinson, had Miss Maudie deigned to permit a geranium on her premises. People said they were Mayella Ewell’s” (pg. 194). Known as the “poor man’s rose,” the red geranium symbolizes gentility. The flowers growing in the filthy jars represent Mayella and the conditions she lived in. Mayella was a young girl that was living a terrible life and had no form of beauty in her life. Attending to those flowers had finally gave Mayella a form of beauty and hope. They showed Mayella that underneath the ugly and unappealing, there is still beauty.

I also chose a blue rose because of how caring and loving they were to each other. Carlotta thinks about her friends as they are having a meeting in Blossom’s office. She comments “I wondered how Ernie or the other guys in the room must felt” (Walls Lanier 60). She thought back to Emmett Till and compared him to Ernie. If they did something at the wrong moment nobody knew what could happen. They all keep up with each other and made sure that people are making a good representation of their name. In conclusion, A blue rose represents the Little Rock nine in many ways. The Little Rock Nine are the reason that we are all able to sit in school and learn

John Steinbeck's "The Chrysanthemums" is a story that is full of symbolism. After the first read, it might seem like an innocent tale about a woman and her garden. However, upon further examination, the reader learns it is actually a story about a woman's desires and frustrations in her life. Steinbeck uses many examples, such as the flowers to symbolize the thoughts and ideas of the main character, Elisa, in this story.

   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.

Besides the story’s other symbols, the “rose” itself is the most important symbol and the title of the story is not coincidence. It is not suggest just a rose flower, but rather a symbol of the Homer and the father's love for her, town's love and admiration for her, and also foreshadows her eventual destruction. The rose in the title symbolizes the absent of love which is a

Written in 1944, Tennessee Williams wrote a play during World War II when people were barely making ends meet. Centering on the Wingfield family, the story consisted of five characters: Amanda Wingfield (the mother), Laura Wingfield (the daughter), Tom Wingfield (son, narrator, Laura’s older brother), Jim Connor (Tom and Laura’s old acquaintance from high school) and Mr. Wingfield (father to Tom and Laura, and Amanda’s husband)- who abandoned the family long before the start of the play. The title, “The Glass Menagerie”, represented a collection of glass animals on display in the Wingfields’ home. At one point or another, these animals then represented each character when they couldn’t accept reality. The theme of this play were about the

I believe that both the new blue flowers Myop finds and the fact that she is wandering off on her own, which is unusual, are symbols of her leaving the security of the childhood behind and going off into the unknown. The symbols are characterized by all relating to the themes growing up and loss on innocence.

Even though the rose is distinctly only in the title, it emerges as allegorical and symbolic throughout the story. Getty states, “The "Rose" of the title extends far beyond any one flower or literary allusion in its implications for the story's structure. The "Rose" represents secrecy: the confidential relationship between the author and his character, with all of the privileged information withheld” (Getty 230). The view of the warmth of love and fondness is to be thought when

The very first symbol to appear in the novel is the red rose. Hawthorne uses the rose bush to symbolize hope and beauty. The rosebush is the last vision of beauty criminals see before entering the prison where they will enter a depressed state of mind. It is also the last sight seen by criminals heading out to be executed. “But on one side of the portal… was a wild rosebush… with its delicate gems, which might be imagined to offer…their fragile beauty…in the token that the deep part of nature could pity and be kind to him” (Hawthorne 56). This description emphasizes Hawthorne’s theme of the rosebush symbolizing hope and beauty. Later in the story, it is implied that Pearl is like the rosebush. She is beautiful and

But neither one wants to part with this beautiful house. I found symbolism all throughout this movie from the title to the pets and the children. Starting with the title to have chosen the last name Rose, was a symbol it's self. A Rose is a complex flower, and the beauty of this flower indicate new beginnings

Roses are given to people so often. Who among us does not attach some type of personal significance to the image of a rose? I would venture to say that no one has not given, been given, or wished to give or receive a rose. Roses are delivered from florists by the dozen during all holiday seasons, for anniversaries, for apologies, for courting. . . And it is in this obsessive usage that the meaning of the rose has been exploited. What delivers more