TENNESSEE WILLIAMS A MASTER OF EVASION

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS Born Thomas Lanier “Tennessee” Williams in Columbus, Mississippi. Mother was an aggressive woman obsessed by fantasies of genteel Southern living. Father was a traveling shoe salesman, both distant and abusive. Older sister, Rose, was emotionally disturbed and spent most of her life in mental institutions. Younger brother, Dakin, was favored by his father over the older children.

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS Tennessee was considered a shy, sickly, confused young man. Graduated from University of Iowa in Spent much of his adult life in New York, although he was a wanderer.

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS Writing Career 30 full-length plays Numerous short plays Two poetry volumes Five volumes of essays and short stories In 1945, “The Glass Menagerie” won three major drama awards. Two Pulitzer Prizes (“Streetcar Named Desire,” 1947; “Cat On A Hot Tin Roof” 1955).

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS Critical reviews Considered by many to have had more influence on development of American cinema than any other 20 th century playwright. Has been compared to Flannery O’Connor (“Good Country People”) and William Faulkner (“A Rose For Emily”), who present eccentric Southern characters.

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS Themes/Ideas Work focuses on Southern experience. Conflicts between sexuality, society, and Christianity are large part of his drama and his life. All major plays are “memory plays”: a character experiences something profound that causes an “arrest of time,” a situation in which time literally loops around itself. That character must re-live that profound experience (caught in the loop) until he or she makes sense of it.

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS Overall theme of his plays: the negative impact that conventional society has upon the “sensitive, non-conformist individual.” Emphasizes the irrational, desperate condition of humanity in a universe in which cosmic laws do not work. Examines the conflicts between the gentility of old Southern values and the practical Northern values.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Setting Time: 1945 (although action in the play occurs in mid-1930s). Place: Apartment house in a poor, shabby section of St. Louis, Mo. The action takes place in the Wingfield apartment and on the fire escape. Lighting: Impressionistic, selective (not fully illuminated). Music adds to the nostalgic, gently melancholic tone of the play. This is a “memory play,” and neither the settings nor the events are completely realistic. Tom, narrating while dressed as a merchant seaman, says he will provide “truth in the pleasant guise of illusion.”

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Themes: Illusion versus reality “inside and outside” lives (family/home versus larger world) Past versus present/future (change, loss) Family (dysfunctional) Escape Paradox and ambivalence

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Motifs: Obsession Escape Entrapment Deception (reality versus appearance)

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Lighting: In the play’s original production notes, Williams describes the lighting as “dim and poetic.” The lighting, along with the “gauze curtains,” lends an unreal aura to the set, suggesting that this family functions in a dream world. Lighting gives the “pleasant disguise of illusion.” It also focuses on absent characters, most notably Mr. Wingfield through his photograph.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Music is used throughout the play to evoke mood and haunt memory. Williams once described the recurring glass menagerie theme as a tune that is light, delicate, and as fragile as spun glass. He said: “It is primarily Laura’s music, and therefore, comes out most clearly when the play focuses upon her and the lovely fragility of glass which is her image.”

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Key symbols/motifs The glass menagerie: Laura’s collection of animal figurines represents the fragile relationships among all the characters. The glass unicorn is a symbol for Laura. The glass motif recurs throughout the play: For example, Laura visits the conservatory at the zoo, a haven for tropical flowers that are as vulnerable as she is outside of the glass world they live in. A glass ball that hangs from the ceiling of the Riverside Dance Hall reflects rainbow colors and represents the dreams of the dancers.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Color: blue is associated with Laura, and yellow is commonly linked to Amanda. Blue Roses suggests a phenomenon contrary to nature. There is an opposition between these strange, different flowers and the natural, sunny jonquils associated with Amanda. In the original version of the play, Amanda’s party dress (in Scene 6) was described as a “girlish frock of yellowed voile” and the light that surrounds her as “lemony.” Yellow equates to Amanda’s outgoing and optimistic attitude; blue denotes Laura’s melancholy outlook.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Vocabulary and allusions: Scenes 1 and 2 blanc mange: a sweet, molded gelatin dessert made with milk. Blue Mountain: small town in northern Mississippi where Amanda grew up. D.A.R: Daughters of the American Revolution; national women ’ s organization of descendants of patriots of the American Revolution. Doughboy: a nickname for WWI infantrymen. Guernica: a town in the Basque region of Spain that was the site of a massive and brutal attack during the Spanish Civil War. Metropolitan star: a star in New York ’ s Metropolitan Opera. “ Ou sont les neiges ” French: “ Where are the snows ” “ Ou sont les negies d ’ antan? ” French: “ Where are the snows of yesteryear? ” portiere: a heavy curtain hung across a doorway.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Journal entry #1 “The Glass Menagerie” is a memory play narrated by Tom. We learn much about his life and his family’s life through his narration. Pretend you are telling YOUR story. What would a “typical” evening in your house look like? What kind of interaction would be taking place? What would you be doing on a “typical” evening? What about your family members? Set the stage for us with descriptive setting details, much like Williams does at the beginning of Scene 1 (lighting, mood, background noise/music, etc.). Write in script form.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Vocabulary and allusions: Scenes 3-4 pleurosis: inflammation of the lungs Celotex: a type of fiber board used for building insulation. Hogan Gang: an infamous crime family from St. Louis. D.H. Lawrence: English novelist and poet best known at that time for “ Sons and Lovers. ” Daumier: French painter, sculptor, and caricaturist, known in his lifetime chiefly as a social and political satirist.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Vocabulary and allusions: Scenes 5-6 ash pits: large mounds of ash left over from coal furnaces. Berchtesgaden: an area of southeastern Germany, now a national park, known for breathtaking views of the German Alps. Franco: general during the Spanish Civil War who eventually became the ruler of Spain. jolly roger: the black flag with skull and crossbones associated with pirates. Merchant Marine: the fleet of U.S. ships that carried imports and exports during peacetime and became a naval auxiliary during wartime to deliver troops and war materials.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Vocabulary and allusions: Scenes 5-6 Purina: a hot, multi-grain breakfast cereal made from oats, wheat, and millet. cakewalk: a dance with a strutting step based on a promenade. malaria: an infectious disease transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. quinine: a bitter extract from cinchona bark used as a tonic to treat malaria. jonquils: a species of narcissus having a small yellow flower. cotillion: a formal ball where debutantes are presented.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE Journal entry #2 Responsibility is a major theme in “The Glass Menagerie.” Tom feels burdened by his responsibilities at home and tries to “escape” as often as he can, yet he still feels trapped in his life. Think about your life right now. If you could “escape” from a major responsibility in your life, what would you “escape” from and why? What would you do instead? What keeps you from “escaping” right now? Type a detailed response.

“THE GLASS MENAGERIE” Vocabulary and allusions: Scene 7 Century of Progress: an international faire held in Chicago from 1933 to 1934, the theme of which was science and industry. Mazda lamp: first lighted lamp invented by Thomas Edison.