"THE GLASS MENAGERIE & A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE" - читать интересную книгу автора (Cliff Notes)

Obviously, Amanda acts foolish much of the time. But she nevertheless has admirable qualities. Amanda tries hard to be a good mother. After her husband runs off, she does the best she can to provide for her family. Above all, she is strong, stronger than Tom and stronger than her husband. When all her efforts have failed, she sticks by Laura. She emerges tender and noble. And you can depend on her never to give up hope. At the end of the play, with Tom enroute to the seven seas and Laura brokenhearted over Jim, Amanda shows "dignity and tragic beauty." What, in your opinion, is the source of Amanda's transformation? Or might she have had dignity and tragic beauty within her all along?

^^^^^^^^^^THE GLASS MENAGERIE: LAURA WINGFIELD

It's more than coincidental that the play's title refers to the collection of glass animals that belongs to Laura. She is so fragile that she can hardly function in the real world. Not surprisingly, her favorite figure in the menagerie is the unicorn, a creature which Laura calls "freakish," which is precisely the way Laura has felt much of her life. Can you think of other qualities of the unicorn that resemble Laura?

Laura frequently escapes to a private, imaginary world occupied by fragile glass animals. When you consider Laura's personality, can you speculate on why the menagerie is glass rather than some other material?

Of the three Wingfields, Laura stands in the greatest peril, for she lacks both the strength of Amanda and the potential to escape, like Tom. Laura creates the impression that she's forever going to be a misfit. The world is simply too harsh for her. She confesses to Jim how awkward she felt in high school. She wore a brace on her leg and believed that everyone in school noticed her "clumping" around. As people grow older they usually overcome feelings of shyness. Why didn't Laura?

In spite of her fragility, though, Laura is the most serene member of her family. She leaves the worrying to Amanda and Tom. Sometimes she may remind you of a child who creates havoc and doesn't know it. In her innocence, Laura doesn't realize how Tom and Amanda bleed for her.

It's possible to think of Laura as merely a timid, neurotic little girl, totally absorbed in her own troubles. But can you find more substance in her character? Is she sensitive to Amanda and to Tom in any way? Does she contribute to the well being of her family? You may not have to search far to find likeable and sympathetic traits in Laura's personality.

Laura hides in her make-believe world. Only once, during Jim O'Connor's visit, does she venture out of it into the world of reality. Jim has given Laura a bit of self-confidence. He even convinces her to dance with him. During the dance, they bump the table, knocking the glass unicorn to the floor and breaking off its single horn. Do you see the symbolism of this mishap? Laura, for a short time, feels like any other girl who has been swept off her feet by the boy of her dreams. Unfortunately for Laura, though, the time of her life lasts no more than a few minutes.

When Tom leaves home for good, why do thoughts of Laura haunt his memory? Is he plagued by guilt? Does he love her more than a brother should? Does Laura have charms that have gotten under his skin?

^^^^^^^^^^THE GLASS MENAGERIE: JIM O'CONNOR

Tom tells you in his opening speech that Jim is an emissary from the world of reality. If that is so, reality must be a fairly dull place, for Jim is a nice, but rather ordinary, young man. On the surface, he is well-mannered, hard-working, and responsible. He is a pleasant guest, and he dutifully entertains Laura after dinner. He does all you'd expect him to. Why, then, is Jim so disappointing?

Even Jim himself knows that he's a disappointment, although he puts up a smooth-talking and self-confident front. When you consider his admirable high school record, he should be racing up the ladder of success by now. Instead, he's still in the pack.

Common wisdom, which Jim believes, says that if you work hard, you'll succeed. Jim has worked hard, but he hasn't succeeded. So he takes self-improvement courses in public speaking, thinking that greater "social poise" will help him land the executive position of his dreams. He's also studying radio engineering in order to get in on the ground floor of the new television industry. He seems to be doing all the right things and saying the right things, too, about opportunity and progress in America. But the ideas sound trite, as though Jim is mouthing someone else's words.

Although he's trying hard, you never know if Jim will make it big. Perhaps he will. On the other hand, when you recall that illusion dominates the play, you might suspect that Jim's plans are pure fancy, and that he's placed too much faith in a hollow dream. In the end, he may just plod along like everyone else.

After dinner at the Wingfields Jim is pleased with himself for winning Laura so easily. His conquest reminds him of his high school days when he held the world in his hands. Laura is good for his ego. He's driven to pursue his dream, even if he has to step on others as he goes. Finally, he dismisses Laura with the news that he's engaged. Dinner at the Wingfields' turns out to be only a brief stop along the way to elusive success.

Should Jim have revealed his engagement earlier in the evening? Was he under any obligation to do so? Or was it all right for him to wait until the end of his visit? If he had told his marriage plans earlier, Laura would have missed a few moments of happiness. Does that fact by itself justify Jim's action? What would you have done under similar circumstances?


^^^^^^^^^^THE GLASS MENAGERIE: SETTING

The whole play is set in the Wingfields' apartment, which faces an alley in the downtown slums of St. Louis. In the stage directions Tennessee Williams draws a vivid picture of the place. It's cramped and dark, almost like a jail cell. You can't tell it apart from the thousands of other apartments occupied by people trapped in drab and joyless lives. No one in the family wants to live there. But poverty forces them to. It shouldn't surprise you that "escape" develops into a major theme in the play.

The drawing shows you how the apartment might be arranged for a performance. In addition to the usual rooms, there is an important fire escape off to one side. The characters in the play sometimes stand on the fire escape. Tom delivers his speeches to the audience from there. The family uses it to go in and out every day. But it's an "escape" only in name because the people living here are "fundamentally enslaved" in their lower middle-class lives.

Across the alley you see the Paradise Dance Hall. Much of the music you hear during the play comes from there. Sometimes the melodies are subtle comments on events taking place in the Wingfield apartment. Almost every detail of the setting in some manner suggests a theme or contributes an idea to the play. Consider, for instance, the name "Paradise Dance Hall." The young people who meet and dance there will soon be going to war. Many will be killed. Could Williams be implying that this two-bit dance hall is as close to paradise as those boys and girls will ever get?

Think also of the smiling photo of Mr. Wingfield prominently displayed on the wall. Isn't it odd that Amanda, who expresses disdain for her husband, keeps it there? Perhaps Amanda preserves the photograph as a souvenir, a remembrance from the past. Or the photo, which hangs in the living room, may also be kept there to serve as a daily reminder to the Wingfields--especially Tom--that escape is possible.

When Tom steps onto the fire escape to introduce you to the play, the 1940's have begun, and World War II is raging. In his story, he takes you back to the 1930's, a decade of hopeless depression.

You might ask why Tennessee Williams wants you to know the world situation during the time of the story. After all, affairs of state don't directly touch Tom and the other characters. Is the play, then, meant to be more than just a drama of family life? Can you find parallels between the events in the apartment and events in the world? Would the play be less poignant if you didn't know about the civil war in Spain, the massive poverty of the Great Depression, and the growth of Nazism? As you think about the play, these are questions worth considering.

^^^^^^^^^^THE GLASS MENAGERIE: THEMES