Tom Wingfield proves to be trapped in the life he's living, yet he is searching for a means of escaping. He says he is bored with "the movies" and wants "to move". Just like Laura uses her glass collection as an escape from the awful reality the siblings live in, Tom uses the movies. He is constantly complaining about his family life and he is always attempting to leave, even if it is late at night. However, it is believed that he stays to take care of his crippled sister, Laura. It is made clear that Tom has had enough of his mother by the way he constantly lashes out at her and threatens to leave, yet he stays. He says to his mom: "Look! I’ve got no thing, no single thing…in my life that I can call my OWN! Everything is…Yesterday you confiscated my books!" (3.11, 3.13, 3.15, Tom). Also, he admits, not to his mother but to Jim, that he has used the electric bill money on something of his own, a hint that he is making moves to move on. Tom also believes that "man is by instinct a lover, a hunter, a fighter, and none of those instincts are given much play at the warehouse!" (4.76, Tom). After all of the hints of escaping, Tom finally leaves after convincing Jim, his coworker and ex-potential gentleman caller for Laura, that the warehouse life isn't for them, claiming they should rise above the mediocre life. 

# Post 2

After reading scene three, four and five from the play the Glass Menagerie  I have come to a decision that the common theme that I constantly keep seeing is that some of the characters are very secretive. for example in the play from scene one and two the daughter was lying to her mother about going to school, when really she wasn't. instead she was waling around town, going to the zoo, and going to the art museum. Tom on the other hand always lies about how he's always going to the movies, but Amanda didn't believe anything he had to say, because for some reason that was always his excuse for everything.

The Glass Menagerie 2

An ironic moment in Scene 7 is when Jim and Laura were dancing and they bump into the table, resulting in knocking the glass unicorn off. I found it ironic how Laura explained that it didn't matter that the horn broke off, while just right before she had explained to Jim how it was her favorite. It's ironic how just before Jim was telling her that she had this complex that she must overcome in order to be happy. Laura said that losing the horn made the unicorn feel "less freakish" and how it was a "blessing in disguise." Maybe she was talking about herself in a way. It sounded like she wanted to be like everyone else and not a "freakish" outcast. She could relate to the unicorn in a way.

Another part I also found ironic was when on page 75 Laura pointed out the sound her brace made while going up the stairs in class, while Jim said he never noticed it. That is very relatable to people because many people are insecure about things other people don't even notice. It is just ironic how the littlest things to some people, are big things to others.

The last thing I had found ironic in the last two scenes, was that Jim was actually already set to marry. All this time I thought he was acting like he was into Laura, but all the while it was just friendly gestures taking the wrong way. While reading, I had thought for sure they were going to end up together. I did not predict the ending.

I had selected this photo because in a way, this could look like a romantic setting. It looks like they are really getting along, but the thing you wouldn't expect is that Jim is already engaged and set to marry in June. 

The Glass Menagerie Post 2

The Glass Menagerie

Wingfields False Reality

A theme I have noticed in The Glass Menagerie is the difference of fantasy vs. reality, which is why I chose this picture.  The character closest to reality is Tom, everyone is in their own world.  Amanda with her false expectations and a lack of responsibility for her children and then Laura doesn’t have motivation.  Laura doesn’t pursue a romantic relationship, friends, or a job, she tries to escape in books and movies instead of facing reality.  Laura’s fantasy world consists of her glass animals which represent her life, fragile.  Each family member has a hard time overcoming what life throws at them, they don’t have motivation to fix what is wrong, they simply leave it as it is.  They all seek comfort in a false reality, but with Laura the one furthest into that world.  "It isn’t a flood, it’s not a tornado, Mother. I’m just not popular like you were in Blue Mountain."  This quote shows the fantasy that Amanda wants for Laura to be a social girl who gets gentlemen callers.  This also shows the lack of motivation Laura puts in, she doesn’t want to be social at all.  Laura rather live with her mother, who she doesn’t always get along with, rather than be social and find a life of her own.

The Glass Menageria blog post #2

The more I read this play, the more I find it so interesting. The mother, Amanda, really loves her kids but she just has a funny way of showing it. She tries to live vicariously through them, more so through her daughter Laura because she can relate to her more. As time goes on the mother really tries to get Laura to find a gentleman caller, more pushing then the beginning. We get to see how shy and timid Laura truly is when the play explains how she acted when she was with one her mother brought to her. She was Flabbergasted when the name her mother uttered was Jim, the guy she has a crush on. I believe Laura is only so nervous because of her birth defect, and she feels as though she isn't pretty and no one would like her. Amanda gets very angered when Laura or Tom says she is disabled, saying that she isn't disabled just different.When Jim comes to dinner, however, he only sees the good in her,  making her feel better then ever. When he kisses her she has pure shock rushing through her veins. In my opinion, I find that the mother did the best thing by pushing her kids as hard as she does. Yes, sometimes she can be too much but at the end of the day everything always works out. If Laura and Tom didn't have the mother they do, their lives would be incomplete. They may fight and want to leave but they have a special connection, a bond that all families have in their own way. I find the theme of insecurity throughout the book, everyone having something that they feel they need to hide. The mother feels like she is a disappointment to her kids, Laura with her defect, Tom with his whereabouts, all of these are things that each individual feels they need to work on. I'm really enjoying this play and glad that I picked it, I would reccommend it to others as well. It is an easy read and something that keeps you hooked until the very end.

What Makes Laura Beautiful

Something I really enjoyed about the glass menagerie was Laura’s character development. We go from seeing Laura as a nervous girl who spends all of her time alone, to seeing her develop into someone who can be confident and be able to spend time with others. As the ending of the glass menagerie approaches, Jim, Laura’s alleged gentleman caller arrives at her house. She spends the whole night hiding from him, she didn’t even want to answer the door because she claimed to be sick (scene six). The whole time Jim is at the house, she always finds a way to avoid him because she is nervous. After Amanda tells Jim to keep Laura company, is when she finally opens up a bit more. The two share old high school memories, the glass collection, and a waltz (scene seven). By Laura letting Jim dance with her and hold her glass unicorn, this shows although Laura was terribly shy, she is capable of socializing and opening up to those she feels comfortable around. Jim goes on to tell Laura how much she has to offer the world and how unique and beautiful she is. Laura has never experienced this before and gets an insight to how other people view her and how she can improve for the future. Jim ends his monologue with “You know what my strong advice to you is? Think of yourself as superior in some way!”

“What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction reminds me of Jim talking to Laura. He tries to explain to Laura that she is pretty and unlike anyone else and she should feel confident about herself He goes on to say, “I happened to notice you had this inferiority complex that keeps you from feeling comfortable with people. Somebody needs to build your confidence up and make you proud instead of shy and turning away and blushing.” (Scene seven) This song is written for a girl who is insecure and doesn’t realize that she is beautiful, but with help of guidance, she can finally realize how important, special, and beautiful she was all along. 

Brooke Lorup post #2

After finishing up the play, The Glass Menagerie, I am completely blown away as to how much Laura's character and personality has altered; only due to Jim's heart-warming presence in the final scenes. In the first five scenes of the play, it's obvious that Laura's brother Tom is rather condescending and doesn't have much faith in his own sister. On page 47, Tom and Amanda are discussing having Jim over for dinner to get acquainted with Laura. That's when Amanda states, "Once he sees how lovely, sweet and pretty Laura is, he'll thank his lucky stars he was asked to dinner. That's when Tom intervenes and completely talks down upon his sister stating that, “She only seems all of those things because shes family. Shes crippled, different from other girls and not in a good way, terribly shy and lives in a world of her own." This shows that Tom feels like she has no real purpose to the family because the only thing she does is "play old phonograph records", (page 48.) Tom is correct in some retrospect when it comes to his sister, yet completely wrong and judgmental in others. Yes he's correct when he says Laura is terribly shy because on page 14, Laura and her mother are having an argument about Laura dropping out of business school to walk the park in the middle of winter and risking getting pneumonia just because of her social anxiety and 'indigestion"(page 80). Yet, Tom is totally misinformed when he said Laura was different in a bad way because in scene 7, Jim compliments Laura in various ways. Jim says, " he’s glad to see Laura has a sense of humor, that she's surprisingly different from anyone else Jim knows, but in a nice way of course, and even takes it a step further and calls her pretty; words she's never heard before(87.) Due to Jim actually acknowledging Laura for more than a shy, anxious, crippled woman, she has no problem coming out of her shell and waltzing around the room with him. Throughout the play, Laura has always been looked down upon and never had a sense of self- worth. Jim’s presence boosted her confidence by admiring her differences, encouraging her to not be ashamed of herself, and even made her feel something that wasn't experienced at all through the play; happy.

I chose this picture because its a great depiction of how happy Laura is in the presence of Jim.

Deanna Regan

Johnston

English 4A

28 April 2016

Post 2

Reading the play, The Glass Menagerie showed three different characters. Amanda “the mother” is very bossy but she wants her children to have the best future. Laura in the beginning she really did not talk as much but by the end when she was talking to Jim she seemed herself. She has different sides of her, shy and funny. Unlike his mother and sister Tom is able to function in the real world. He has a job and pays for every bill and food in the house. By the end of the play when his mother was blaming him for Jim having a girlfriend, so it was time to go. His mother did not want him to be like his father and leave but by the end he did. “You don’t know things anywhere! You live in a dream; you manufacture illusions!” (William’s Scene 7). This quote shows how much his mother blamed him for everything. To some people they will think Tom leaving and going to the movies and bar is because of his mother. His mother did not want him to be like his father but when someone try’s so hard to keep someone to not turn out that way will sometimes end up that way. Tom could not handle it anymore so he had to get away.  This picture shows what a lot of people feel. To many people that read they play will understand that it connects to Tom. He was pushed so hard to make sure his family was okay and couldn’t leave. So when it came to the last fight he knew it was time to go and start his own life the way he always wanted. Why do you think Tom has left after they got into a fight one last time?

The Glass Menagerie 
     The title of the book, The Glass Menagerie symbolizes Laura’s life. Laura’s collection of glass animal figurines represents a number of her personality. Like the figurines, Laura is delicate, imaginative, and somehow old-fashioned. The Glass is transparent, but, when light is shined upon it correctly, it refracts an entire rainbow of colors. Kinda like Laura, even though she is quiet and bland around strangers, some people that choose to get close to her will see her in the right light. The menagerie also represents the imaginative world to which Laura devotes herself to a world that is colorful and enticing, but based on fragile illusions.
     The Glass Unicorn was Laura’s favorite figurine in the book. The figurine represented her peculiarity. As Jim points out, unicorns are “extinct” in modern times and are lonesome as a result of being different from other horse. Laura too is unusual, lonely, and ill-adapted to existence in the world in which she lives. The fate of the unicorn is also a smaller-scale version of Laura’s fate in Scene Seven. In scene seven, Jim and her dance together and then kiss, than the  unicorn’s horn breaks off, and it becomes just another horse. After kissing her, Jim takes back the kiss and tells Laura he is already engaged with another girl bringing Laura back down to earth. Laura discovers she is just another girl. Eventually, Laura gives Jim the unicorn as a “souvenir.” Without its horn, the unicorn is more appropriate for him than for her, and the broken figurine represents all that he has taken from her and destroyed in her.

Second Blog Post (TGM)

When Jim is talking to Laura, Jim just seems like such a happy soul. Jim makes Laura feel comfortable and makes sure that Laura knows her worth. Laura is very self conscious and has no confidence about herself whatsoever.  "A lack of confidence in yourself as a person. You don't have the proper amount of faith in yourself as a person. I'm basing that fact on a number of your remarks and also on certain observations I've made...You know what my strong advice to you is? Think of yourself as superior in some way!" (Williams 81, Scene 7). By Jim saying this to Laura, its not hard to tell how Laura's mood changes. Before hearing this, Laura believed that she had no talents, or had no real "use". But, then Laura started talking about the glass collection she had and by her lines, started talking more and seems to be genuinely happy. Jim being a positive person in general, and talking to Laura like a normal person changed Laura's mood. Amanda is so wrapped up around the fact that Laura is different and needs a husband that it has destroyed Laura's opinion on herself. Amanda has created the opposite of what she wants Laura to be. Jim's actions shows how positivity has such a huge affect on people. Even though Jim ended up being engaged, it seemed to be that Laura wasn't upset. Laura had joy and a new mindset because of Jim, and for that, Laura was thankful. This video reminded me of Jim telling Laura that Laura was pretty. Laura's reaction to the whole conversation they had reminded me of this video. 

The main conflicts that exist in The Glass Menagerie are all in a sense inner conflicts each character in the Wingfield family hides within. Tom, who is the narrator begins to describe his family’s life, we soon find out that Tom’s father left the family a long time ago leaving Amanda, who is the mother to raise the kids on her own. They like to reminisce about his with a photo they have in their living room. Amanda is a very sympathetic character, but is also demanding of her children. This becomes apparent when she instructs Tom , who is the breadwinner of the household to chew his food the “right” way. Also when Laura tried to clean the table, she is told to sit and be the lady while she does the work. She seems to have too high expectations for Laura to find gentleman callers, but Laura knows she isn’t as popular as her mom was at her age, Laura also believes her mother is afraid that she will be an old maid.

        

         The situation gets 10x worse for Laura when her mom finds out that she is skipping school to take walks, solo trips to the zoo, and to watch movies. Amanda ponders on what is next for the family now that Laura’s future in business is over, she then begins to believe that the only alternative is for her to get married, she wants the best for her kids but they should also make decisions for themselves and not be forced into doing something they don’t want to

The Glass Menagerie

The first scene started inside with the wing-field apartment, around a lower middle-class in St.
Louis. the time is in the late 1930s, About the time when american workers were struggling from the effects of the great depression. Tom the narrator/ and one of the main character's in the play, describes his life and the others within the play. His father abandoned the family years ago, and they have not heard from him since. but they keep a photo of him in their living room. In the play Amanda is Tom mother, and Laura is his sister. later on into the scene Toms mother Amanda kept talking about keeping herself fresh for a gentlemen callers in her home in Blue Mountain, Mississippi. Laura mother is afraid that she will end up an old maid.

The start of scene two begins Laura polishing her collection, when she heard her mother coming she immediately puts it away and acted like she was studying. her ponders on the idea about what will become of there family because, come to find out her daughter career is basically ruined because she had been skipping school and acting as though she was sick. there's this kid in the play name Jim, Jim is the kid that Laura had a crushed on when she was in high school. Tim made fun of her and called her Blue Roses.

One thing I will say is that there mother is very big on the idea of marriage, she feels as though her daughter will find a soul mate, even at a young age to marry. reason why I say this is because she is always telling her daughter to be classy, and act like the way a young lady should. in aspect of this i chose this picture because it shows her behaving like a young women should. 

The Glass Menagerie

As I was reading there was one major conflict that affects all the characters in the story, and that is their mother Amanda. From Amanda perspective it seems as though since she’s a single mother, and the way she was brought up she has to be way harder on her two kids. Laura and Tom seem to bare with their mothers obsessive ways like Amanda telling Tom how he should chew his food “Eat food leisurely, son and really enjoy it” (page6). Both of her kids are grown so for their mother to keep thrusting different demands on them can only lead to a more dysfunctional family. Amanda’s actions causes for her kids to be very separate from her. Just like in today’s society parents are always on their kids about different things. Telling us how to dress, speak, eat, when to go out, and who they feel you being comfortable around. They all say “were doing what’s best for you and your future”. In Laura and Tom’s case is it a time to stop and let your kids take flight. A major conflict that is unfolding is the “gentlemen caller”. Amanda wanting Laura to follow in her footsteps with finding a gentlemen caller; is it going to be for the better or worse? This kind of behavior shows that Amanda doesn’t take no for an answer. She is fully aware that her daughter is nothing like she used to be on Blue Mountain “she’s terribly shy and lives in a world of her own” (page47). It’s not only going to stir up mother daughter trouble, but also for Tom.  Amanda pushes his buttons to the limit and even puts him in a corner with telling a co worker about dinner, but not the full extent of why he’s truly there. Tom is truly a hard working man, and tries to please his mom the best way he can, but how much can he handle. Laura is kind of in the shadows during this conflict, and has no clue what’s being in store for her. If things do or don’t go well; will her perspectives change?

In the picture you can see the dysfunctional family going at each other in an argument. Tom arguing with Amanda and poor shy Laura not knowing what to do.

 Characterization

Laura in The Glass Menagerie speaks the least in the play but has an important role.  Her character is surrounded by the plots and the symbols of the play glass menagerie. The glass menagerie she collects and the blue rose she has represents a part of her. Just like Amanda speaks about the Jonquils in the first three scenes.  Blue Roses comes from the nickname her crush Jim gave because of her mysterious ways that was only meant for her. Explaining that a blue rose is rare and unique. She shares the same conflict as the glass menagerie which is beautiful, but yet very fragile. She could break at any sense of reality just like glass could break at any moment. When Jim comes into her life unexpectedly and opens up to him more than Tom or Amanda.  Unlike Amanda who tries to form her into what she was when she was younger Laura ends up being herself and Jim respects her for that. Laura is what brings a piece of relief between the arguments Amanda and Tom have on a daily. Laura is the only thing that brings Tom happiness in that house with Amanda constant demands. When he finally decides to leave he even realizes how much he cares for his sister “I tried to leave you behind, but I am more faithful than I intend to be”. I feel as though she changes the perspective of Tom, Amanda, and Jim when she starts to be herself instead of her mother’s image.

 The way that Jim looks at Laura when she doesn't notice