Comparisons of Maggie of "Everyday Use" and Laura of "The Glass Menagerie"
English 1302
11 July 2013
“Two Different People, Same Problem”:
A Comparison of Maggie and Laura’s Physical Defects We are sometimes known as our own worst critic and after reading Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use” and Tennessee Williams’ play “The Glass Menagerie”, we experience two characters that display this to be true. In “Everyday Use” we are introduced to Maggie, the timid and homely little sister who has burns throughout her arms and legs due to a house fire which occurred many years prior to when the story takes place. In “The Glass Menagerie” we read about Laura, an introverted character who suffers from a childhood illness causing her to have one leg shorter than the other leaving her to rely on the use of a brace. Throughout both pieces of literature we learn that both young ladies are being held down by their physical defects, which is all fault to their own. Although both Maggie from “Everyday Use” and Laura from “The Glass Menagerie” are from two completely different backgrounds, both share low self-esteem caused by their physical defects.
In the beginning of each of the writing’s we are immediately portrayed the description of how both Maggie and Laura are not only shy and timid but we experience their lack of self confidence that each of them share. In “Everyday Use” after Alice Walker gives a brief description of the Johnson’s front yard, she instantly explains the lack of confidence that Maggie has for herself due to the scars that were caused by the house fire. “Maggie will be nervous until after her sister goes: she will stand hopelessly in corners, homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs, eyeing her sister with a mixture of envy and awe” (69). For Maggie her scars hold no prejudice, she is even ashamed of them to her own sister, one she hasn’t seen in quite some time. A sister that she has known her entire life but the scars prevent her from building a bond two sisters should share. Similar to
11 July 2013
“Two Different People, Same Problem”:
A Comparison of Maggie and Laura’s Physical Defects We are sometimes known as our own worst critic and after reading Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use” and Tennessee Williams’ play “The Glass Menagerie”, we experience two characters that display this to be true. In “Everyday Use” we are introduced to Maggie, the timid and homely little sister who has burns throughout her arms and legs due to a house fire which occurred many years prior to when the story takes place. In “The Glass Menagerie” we read about Laura, an introverted character who suffers from a childhood illness causing her to have one leg shorter than the other leaving her to rely on the use of a brace. Throughout both pieces of literature we learn that both young ladies are being held down by their physical defects, which is all fault to their own. Although both Maggie from “Everyday Use” and Laura from “The Glass Menagerie” are from two completely different backgrounds, both share low self-esteem caused by their physical defects.
In the beginning of each of the writing’s we are immediately portrayed the description of how both Maggie and Laura are not only shy and timid but we experience their lack of self confidence that each of them share. In “Everyday Use” after Alice Walker gives a brief description of the Johnson’s front yard, she instantly explains the lack of confidence that Maggie has for herself due to the scars that were caused by the house fire. “Maggie will be nervous until after her sister goes: she will stand hopelessly in corners, homely and ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs, eyeing her sister with a mixture of envy and awe” (69). For Maggie her scars hold no prejudice, she is even ashamed of them to her own sister, one she hasn’t seen in quite some time. A sister that she has known her entire life but the scars prevent her from building a bond two sisters should share. Similar to
Cited: Walker, Alice. “Everyday Use.” Backpack Literature: An introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X. J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. 4th ed. New York: Longman, 2012. 69-76. Print Williams, Tennessee. “The Glass Menagerie.” Backpack Literature: An introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X. J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. 4th ed. New York: Longman, 2012. 969-1022. Print