"Brief Encounter" dealt with the issues of sexuality and desire by using a lot of different techniques.

Brief Encounter Question 1 "Brief Encounter" dealt with the issues of sexuality and desire by using a lot of different techniques. Some of the main ones included the lighting that was used, which would always heighten the facial expressions of the characters that were in the scene (inevitably it was Laura and Alec). This then led to the viewers noticing how the lead characters dressed and talked. Although the lighting emphasised their expressions, this led to Laura's clothes being less noticeable. The way that Laura talked was with a first person narrative, like it was her conscience speaking, but to her husband Fred. The director David Lean has used the music to try and emphasise the moment in the film, for example when at the beginning of the film Laura is in the lounge area with her husband Fred, the music is calm, soothing, and slow, to match Laura's mood and feelings at the time. Also throughout the film, there are lots of examples of symbolism, which adds to or dramatically heightens the growing love affair between Laura and Alec Harvey. For example when Laura and Alec first meet at the café, she has a small piece of grit in her eye, and along comes Alec and helps to get rid of it for Laura. I read this as symbolising, that there was a small love beginning to materialise itself between Laura and Alec (a doctor who just happens to be in the right place at

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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The Glass Menagerie - Symbols used to describe the characters

The Glass Menagerie The Glass Managerie In "The Glass Managerie",by Tennesee Williams, symbols are used to describe the characters in the play. Laura, a very frail and insecure character from the play, lives in a world of illusions. Crippled with one leg shorter than the other from a childhood illness, she lives her life through her collection of glass animals. They provide Laura's refuge from reality. One particular glass animal the "fragile and rare" unicorn symbolizes the character's sufferings. The brilliant use of the imagery of the glass unicorn helps express the emotional anguish of Laura. Only when the unicorn loses its horn, and become like the other glass horses does Laura too break free from her fantasy world and snap into reality and realize that she is not a "freak" as she thought she was. The obsession that Laura has for her glass ornaments is first eminent in scene two where she is seated in her delicate ivory chair, washing and polishing her collection. It is also in this scene where it is obvious that her mother has criticized her many times for her unusual fascination of the glass animals because at the sound her mother approaching, she nervously shoves away them away. And before entering the room, the mother, Amanda, peeks through the door to see what Laura is doing and "purses her lips, opens her eyes very wide, rolls them upward and shakes her head" (11).

  • Word count: 1220
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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IRA Attack.

IRA Attack The beam of white light that penetrated the atmosphere brought everyone and everything to a halt. A thunderous noise that seemed to shatter the eardrum ripped through the sky. The aftershock of the explosion had knocked most people off their feet. Consequently chaos followed, but it had not always been this way. Docklands had been a peaceful place. The early stages of development had begun in the areas surrounding the docks, but it still possessed the tranquillity that was appreciated by the residents. Famous for its innovation and stature, Canary Wharf stood proud and firm. Never was it predicted that its foundations would quaver. Laura ran her fingers through her hair. Startled, she felt water trickling down her scalp. She dropped her hand to her lap, surprised as red smeared across her leg. The white linen of her trousers changed into a clear blue denim and she unwillingly felt herself drift into a painful memory. The patch of blood was now much larger and the pain had shifted to her left thigh. She peered at the children's bike that lay crooked on the pavement. Tears filled her eyes but she hastily controlled herself. She did not desire comfort or any nature of attention. She was a nervous child and believed herself too insignificant to concern individuals with her problems. Despite people's comments on her sweet personality and cheery composure,

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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The Glass Menagerie - Amanda Wingfield

Amanda Wingfield If there is a signature character type that marks Tennessee -Williams's dramatic work, it is undeniably that of the faded Southern belle. Amanda is a clear representative of this type. In general, a Tennessee Williams faded belle is from a prominent Southern family, has received a traditional upbringing, and has suffered a reversal of economic and social fortune at some point in her life. Like Amanda, these women all have a hard time coming to terms with their new status in society-and indeed, with modern society in general, which disregards the social distinctions that they were taught to value. Their relationships with men and their families are turbulent, and they staunchly defend the values of their past. As with Amanda, their maintenance of genteel manners in very ungenteel surroundings can appear tragic, comic, or downright grotesque. Amanda is the play's most extroverted and theatrical character, and one of modern American drama's most coveted female roles (the acclaimed stage actress Laurette Taylor came out of semi-retirement to play the role in the original production, and a number of legendary actresses, including Jessica Tandy, have since taken on the role). Amanda's constant nagging of Tom and her refusal to see Laura for who she really is are certainly reprehensible, but Amanda also reveals a willingness to sacrifice for her loved ones that

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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The Glass menagerie - 'Being a memory play, it is dimly lighted, it is sentimental, it is not realistic'. To what degree is the play memory and to what degree is it realistic?

ENGLISH LITERATURE LONG ESSAY MEMORY AND REALITY (IN TENNESSEE WILLIAMS' THE GLASS MENAGERIE) 'Being a memory play, it is dimly lighted, it is sentimental, it is not realistic'. To what degree is the play memory and to what degree is it realistic? "When a play employs unconventional techniques, it is not trying to escape its responsibility of dealing with reality, or interpreting experience, but is actually attempting to find a closer approach, a more penetrating and vivid expression of things as they are" (Tennessee Williams). The Glass Menagerie is one of Tennessee Williams' most eminent works and no doubt qualifies as a classic of the modern theater. Often referred to as a 'memory play', both the style and content of The Glass Menagerie are shaped and inspired by the memory of the play's narrator, Tom Wingfield. According to Tom, due to the play's origins in memory, 'it is sentimental, it is not realistic' and may be presented with unusual freedom from convention. Consequently, the play is subject to numerous peculiarities, such as dim lighting, frequent use of music and overblown, almost 'too-perfect' symbolism. Most fictional works are products of the imagination, which attempt to convince the audience of its realism, through realistic conflict, drama and setting. The Glass Menagerie, however, although drawn from memory, is not 'attempting to escape its responsibility

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Discuss the dramatic impact of Scene One in the Glass Menagerie. Tennessee Williams uses a vary of dramatic techniques in Scene One

Discuss the dramatic impact of Scene One in the Glass Menagerie. Tennessee Williams uses a vary of dramatic techniques in Scene One, to encourage the audience to engage in what is truly behind this spectacular play. He uses mood music, lighting, symbolism, language and gesture, contrast in characters and also a screen device. These are very visual to the audience and help them understand what is going on in certain scenes and important moments. The audience see a change in Tom's role at the beginning of the play. Williams uses him as a character and also the narrator of the play. He transfers us from real-time back into his memory of the past events and a good director would choose to do this smoothly in order to give maximum effect. All these techniques that Williams uses form a "plastic theatre", which emphasizes the exaggerated props used on the stage. The first dramatic impact the audience receive from the opening scene is the fact that the play starts at the end. Tom has left the household and has become a merchant sailor. Even though he has achieved the life he has wanted, he still has that emotional attachment to the past and to Laura. The play demonstrates the unhappiness that Tom is feeling and how hard it is for him to let go of the past events. The stage directions in The Glass Menagerie give the audience a focus on what detail the play has. It helps them

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Symbols of The Glass Menagerie.

Symbols of The Glass Menagerie. Symbolism plays the major aspect in Tennessee William's popular play, "The Glass Menagerie." On the surface, the short view in picture of life story seems to be simple. Cleverly, if the reader digs deeper they will find that there are several symbols that give the play a deeper meaning. Each character defines each symbol in a different way. Aside from character symbols, there is overall symbolism in this play. It is set in a memory, so it creates a soft, dream-like setting. This lends to the whole idea behind the play that the characters are unable to function in reality. "None of the characters are capable of living in the present. All of the characters retreat into their separate worlds to escape the brutalities of life." (Levy). There are some very noticeable symbols that have been analyzed many times since study has begun on "The Glass Menagerie." The first is the actual glass menagerie that represents the fragility of the Wingfield's dreamlike existence. The second is the fire escape, which reflects each character's tendency to escape from reality in their own ways. The third is the yellow dress, which represents youth and the past. "The gentleman caller, Jim O'Connor, represents change and also hopes for the future, as well as a reflection of Amanda's past" (Parker). Tom also has his own symbols of escape. He uses his poetry and the

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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'A Play Is Not Just Language...'

'A Play Is Not Just Language...' If The Glass Menagerie were performed without the effects Williams wrote into the script, then the play would barely have a plot. Williams' use of music, lighting and a television screen add depth and meaning to the play. He uses effects to portray the feelings of the characters, rather than their words or actions. In Tom's opening speech he states that 'The play is memory.' Because it is about his memories of his mother and her memories. They both spend the play living in the past. Tom is obviously living in the past because the play is based around 'post-war Tom's' memories of his life prior to the war when he was living with Amanda and Laura. Amanda seems to be divided between her world as an abandoned mother of two, and her youth back in Blue Mountain. When Amanda first appears in the play, so does the legend on the television screen 'Ou sont les neiges' and later, 'Ou sont les neiges d'antan?' which means 'where are the snows' and 'where are the snows of yesteryear?' this emphasises the idea that Amanda is longing for the past. She then begins to tell her children- and judging by Tom's reaction, for the hundredth time- of her youth and her many gentlemen callers and how wonderful her life was. The Glass Menagerie is a very static play, the audience do not leave the two rooms of their apartment and the characters lives are so

  • Word count: 983
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Passage Based Essay of the last page of Scene 7 in the play: The Glass Menagerie.

Passage Based Essay of the last page of Scene 7 in the play: The Glass Menagerie. The play The Glass Menagerie is a memory play. Tom Wingfield acts both as the narrator and a character within the play. The play uses a lot of imagery and symbols as the playwright Tennesse Williams wrote 'memory takes up a lot of poetic license' as it is 'seated predominantly in the heart'. Tim has been handled somewhat fluidly being a memory play. We see Tom as a character in his memory and at the end scene as he reviews his past and how is has shaped his present. Tom still feels attached to his sister a 'cripple' Laura, for his desertion. Laura's character is symbolised as 'pieces of coloured glass', she is fragile yet still delicately alluring. Tom's desertion is his ultimate betrayal to Laura, yet the key issue is his guilt, Tom is 'more faithful' than he ever intended to be'. While Tom left his 'two by four situation' behind physically, he never achieves true escape instead being 'swept about' like 'dead leaves'. The natural symbolism of being 'torn away from the branches' reinforces the idea that Tom no longer has roots or a stable family to turn to. Though Tom has travelled 'a great deal' like a leaf being blown in the wind, he is not settles and will soon root away from the tree. This creates sympathy for Tom as the audience realises he left to achieve his own goals yet is hindered

  • Word count: 536
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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The Glass Menagerie - To what extent to you agree to the critic who claimed that "these are the most important speeches in the whole play"?

Remind yourself of Tom's short soliloquies at the beginning of scenes 1, 3, 5 and 6 and at the end of scene 7. To what extent to you agree to the critic who claimed that "these are the most important speeches in the whole play"? In his first speech, he compares himself to a magician who gives "truth in the pleasant disguise of illusion" and establishes himself as a poet and as the narrator of the play. He tells the audience that the play takes place in the thirties, when there was war in Spain and a different kind of turmoil here in America. He warns that the play is a work of memory, and therefore is not realistic. There will be music, unrealistic lighting, certain events amplified and emphasized. He describes the characters: Amanda, his mother; Laura, his sister; a gentleman caller who will appear later in the play; and Tom's and Laura's absent father, who never appears, but is nonetheless an important figure in the play. Their father occasionally sends the family postcards from all over the world; the last one contained a two-word message of "Hello! Goodbye!" He abandoned the family many years ago. Tom also tells us that he is going to give the audience truth disguised as illusion, making the audience conscious of the illusory quality of theatre. By playing with the theme of memory and its distortions, Williams is free to use music, monologues, and projected images to

  • Word count: 988
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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