Glass Menagerie Essay

568 Words3 Pages
November 30th, 2009 Symbolism in the Glass Menagerie “I have a poet’s weakness for symbols,” says Tom Wingfield, the narrator and a major character in the play “The Glass Menagerie” by Tennessee Williams. In Tom’s opening speech he says,” I give you the truth in the pleasant disguise of illusion.” Through the eyes of Tom, the reader gets a glance into the life of his family; his mother who clings to the past, his sister, Laura, who is too fragile to function in society, and himself, a struggling man who works in a warehouse to pay the bills for his family. Symbols are a major part of this play. One of the major symbols is the fire escape, which has a different meaning for everyone in the family. For Tom, it is a way for him to leave his daily life of paying bills and working behind him. For Amanda, Tom’s mother, it symbolizes the hope she has of getting Laura a husband. Finally, for Laura it is the path back to the safety of her own little world where she can hide. This is proven when Laura is sent down the stairs to do a chore for her mother and falls. The glass menagerie that Laura has collected is used many times in the play. It represents how fragile Laura is. The first time the menagerie is used is when Tom and his mother get into a fight. While Tom is trying to get his jacket on he becomes clumsy because of his anger and he throws his jacket into the menagerie and breaks some of the glass by accident. When this happens Laura “cries out as if wounded”. This shows how Laura reacts when even the littlest change in her world. The menagerie comes into play again when Laura and Tom are having a conversation and it quickly goes to the glass. Laura says, “Glass is something you have to take care of.” Which show how she needs to be taken care of too. The unicorn in Laura’s menagerie has more significance because it represents Laura herself. The unicorn and
Open Document