"His nature is not remorseless, but to escape from a trap he has to act without pity." Consider Tennessee Williams' presentation of Tom in the light of this statement

"His nature is not remorseless, but to escape from a trap he has to act without pity." Consider Tennessee Williams' presentation of Tom in the light of this statement The character of Tom in Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie is perhaps the most interesting in the play, in that he is in some ways the most real character, even more so than Jim, in a world of memories. The main reason for this is that Tom is Williams' autobiographical character, which is especially evident in the narrative aspect. The early life of Williams was very much like that of Tom, with the same sort of domestic problems occurring, and so through Tom we have a window into Williams' life. Therefore Tom is going to be shown in a generally flattering life, as he is a reflection of Williams, and thus we see a character who is quiet, artistic, caring, tender and deeply regretful of having to abandon his mother and sister to their fate. Tom's actions throughout the play cement his quiet, caring nature, except for the odd argument, although even when he loses his temper completely he never strikes anyone, but does have some quite cutting things to say. However, at the end, he does the unexpected, leaving his mother and sister to fend for themselves. I do not believe this makes him remorseless, as he is within his rights to leave, and Laura isn't completely helpless - only in her mind (Jim's analysis

  • Word count: 939
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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How does Williams present the relationship between Amanda and Laura in Scene 2?

How does Williams present the relationship between Amanda and Laura in Scene 2? The second scene of Tennessee Williams' play The Glass Menagerie is mainly about the relationship between Amanda and her daughter Laura. Williams uses every way possible to give the audience an idea of this relationship, from body language, stage directions and language, to the set, clothes and props. Throughout the play, Williams uses images set against screens to accentuate the mood, or theme, of the upcoming scene. The image presented at the start of this scene is "blue roses", this being the nickname Laura was given at school by a boy she was fond of - "When I had that attack of pleurosis - he asked me what was the matter when I came back. I said pleurosis - he thought that I said Blue Roses!" Ironically, blue roses is more than just a name for Laura - she is portrayed as a rose, pure, innocent and delicate, and the adjective blue gives the impression of coldness, which could be linked to Laura's sad and lonely state. Laura's mental and physical state is central to Amanda and Laura's relationship, as it is through this that difficulties arise (although it is quite likely that Amanda would always be a rather demanding mother). Laura is crippled - we are given the impression that it isn't particularly serious, but conversely, nothing to be brushed lightly aside either. Amanda's inability

  • Word count: 1244
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Writing from the perspective of a director, about to brief the production team for"the glass menagerie", explain in detail your initial ideas for the interpretation of the playwright's stated intentions for the creation of "memory" play.

WRITING FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF A DIRECTOR, ABOUT TO BRIEF THE PRODUCTION TEAM FOR "THE GLASS MENAGERIE", EXPLAIN IN DETAIL YOUR INITIAL IDEAS FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE PLAYWRIGHT'S STATED INTENTIONS FOR THE CREATION OF "MEMORY" PLAY, BASED CLOSELY UPON THE MATERIAL PRINTED IN THIS PAPER. In my briefing of a production team for "The Glass Menagerie" I would try to explain how I want to emphasize the fact that is a memory play. This would be done through mostly technical devices. The set should clearly convey the fact that the audience are watching a memory. I want this achieved through a non-naturalistic set. The set should be distorted as a memory often is. I want this done most through proportion. I would want things like the dinning room table and other props to be of a larger than life size; this is to emphasize how small Laura feels in comparison to the world around her. This relates to some productions of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" when the would is made to appear larger than life to give a feeling of intimidation towards the character's and to highlight the lovers and mechanicals are in a different world; the world of the fairies. It also accentuates Laura's feelings of lack of control over her mother when Amanda forces her to stay seated at the table. Laura's chair should be smaller than Amanda and Tom's as they do not lack in confidence and this creates a

  • Word count: 823
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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How and to What Effect are the Key Themes of The Glass Menagerie Presented in Scene One?

How and to What Effect are the Key Themes of ‘The Glass Menagerie’ Established in Scene 1? Essay ‘The Glass Menagerie’ by Tennessee Williams incorporates a numerous amount of themes throughout the play. As it is known to somewhat reflect on the playwright’s own life, some of these themes are notably profound and evocative, allowing the audience to maintain an ample grasp on the messages put forward by Williams. Primarily, the idea of memory is established in Scene One. The play inaugurates with lengthy description as to the setting and stagecraft, followed by the entrance of the narrator, Tom Wingfield, who soon states that ‘the play is memory’ and makes it clear that we are viewing events through the lens of his memories, intensifying emotions and extracting significances in the way that memories do. When the scene progresses, we as an audience also have an insight to recollections within recollections, such as those of Amanda as she recounts her days as a girl and her inept attempts to relive this time of her life. This complex theme is an imaginative device which Williams uses effectively to express truth, and one of the methods he uses to establish this is through the stagecraft. To begin with, the lighting is key in the portrayal of memory, because it displays the interior as ‘dim and poetic’. This not only helps us to distinguish the contrast

  • Word count: 1396
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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In The Glass Menagerie Amanda is a bad parent who puts her own needs before her childrens. Discuss.

‘The Glass Menagerie’ Amanda is a bad parent who puts her own needs before her children’s. Discuss. It could easily be perceived by many that Amanda is a bad parent to Laura and Tom, through the way in which she seems to put her own needs before her children’s in many of the situations within the play, ‘The Glass Menagerie’. A case of Amanda being a bad parent and putting her own needs first, could be demonstrated through the way in which she constantly takes control and dominates every situation only thinking of herself, as well as shirking her responsibilities at times on to her son, Tom. Amanda as the mother should be solely responsible, making sure they are cared and provided for. However, Tom seems to regularly have both Amanda and Laura’s problems unfairly unloaded upon him, and then he is expected to solve these problems. Such as, Tom was forced into finding a job at the warehouse in order to support both his mother and his sister, effectively taking over the main parenting role of Laura. This can be seen when Amanda states how as soon as Laura is provided for, married and independent, then Tom will ‘be free’ to go in the direction he so desires. As a parent, Amanda displays key characteristics such as selfish and domineering behaviour. This can be seen directed mainly at Tom throughout the play and a key example of this behaviour is how she

  • Word count: 768
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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