The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams. Scene 3
This scene highlights the conflict between Amanda and Tom. Tom is a man of the night and enjoys going out to the movies and getting a drink, but Amanda and her controlling attitude pries into Tom's life and pushes him over the edge. Amanda fears that Tom is becoming like her husband who walked out on the family and was an alcoholic. She accuses Tom of being an alcoholic and being just like his father.
While Amanda seeks control, her children hold most of the responsibilities like doing chores and Tom even says "House, House! Who pays rent on it, who makes a slave of himself. (Williams, 1246)" He is suggesting that despite the fact that he controls how Amanda lives and where she lives, Amanda still fights him for control where it is not her place.
This scene really shows how Laura is a child mentally. Whenever there is some argument or traumatizing event, Laura goes back into her room and plays with her glass figurines. She lacks knowledge of how to deal with social problems, because her family has not taught her how to. This is crucial in understanding how she relates to the hostility between Tom and Amanda.
No comments:
Post a Comment