The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams (Book Analysis)

This practical and insightful reading guide offers a complete summary and analysis of The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams. It provides a thorough exploration of the play’s plot, characters and main themes, including memory, social injustice and the play’s use of symbolism. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.

This clear and detailed 50-page reading guide is structured as follows:

• Biography of Tennessee Williams
• Presentation of The Glass Menagerie
• Summary of The Glass Menagerie
• Character study
  • Tom
  • Amanda
  • Laura
• Analysis of The Glass Menagerie
  • Strings attached
  • Memory versus reality
  • Symbolism in the set

About The Glass Menagerie

The Glass Menagerie is one of Tennessee Williams’ best-known works. It tells the story of the Wingfield family: Amanda, the overbearing mother; Tom, the put-upon son; Laura, the anxious daughter; and the photograph of the absent father, overlooking the rest of the family from center-stage. Over the course of the play, Amanda’s frustration at Laura’s inability to attract any ‘gentleman-callers’ (which Amanda had had in abundance in her youth) becomes an unavoidable source of tension, until Tom finally invites Laura’s former crush Jim over for dinner one night, bringing these tensions to the boil.

About Tennessee Williams

With two Pulitzer Prizes, four New York Drama Critics’ Circle Awards and a Tony Award to his name, Tennessee Williams was one of the most celebrated American dramatists of the 20^th century. After a dysfunctional upbringing, Williams sought refuge in writing, and many of his plays draw on his troubled family life. His best-known works include A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Night of the Iguana and Suddenly Last Summer.