Optimism In Tennessee Williams The Glass Menagerie

Optimism is traditionally a good thing, however sometimes it is excessive in certain situations, like in the play The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, Amanda attempts to be optimistic for children and ends up overestimating her children which led to disappointment. This can be considered the root cause of the Wingfield’s household problems. Laura has to go to business school against her will which she eventually drops out of since it was not what she liked. Tom is forced to work a job he does not want to do and yet he still does it due to Amanda’s desire to be able to help the family, and Amanda’s privileged past creates an overly optimistic fantasy for her future. This leads to expectations that are too high for Tom and Laura, since
Laura is constantly doing things that she does not want to do, like meeting Jim and going to study business, and since it makes her unhappy, both of those things failed “I couldn’t face it” (Williams 15), “No, Ma’am, not work but-Betty”(93). Amanda controls Laura’s life to accommodate which she thinks would be the best for her, however it ends up failing as Laura cannot go through with it as it is not her choice. With Tom, he is not happy because he cannot go on an adventure like his father, he is stuck at his home because of Amanda “I mean that as soon as Laura has got somebody to take care of her, married, a home of her own, independent-why, then you’ll be free to go wherever you please” (35). Amanda is giving Tom the freedom he desires but on her terms, which Tom did not meet which then leads to Tom being fed up with his mother and leaving her and Laura behind. These things created an unhappy lifestyle of the two children which resulted in tension and strained relationships that ultimately led to the destruction of the
Tom is unhappy with his job and Amanda will not let him quit. She believes that Tom should not be running off and pursuing his dreams because it would mean putting the family in jeopardy. However in the end, Tom does quit because he cannot stand his job and Amanda’s constant bickering and accusations “All right, I will! The more you shout about my selfishness to me the quicker I’ll go and I won’t go to the movies” (96). In the case of Laura, she is forced to go to business school against her will and ended up quitting because it was not what she wants “I went in the art museum and the bird houses at the Zoo… Sometimes I did without lunch and went to the movies” (15). She never had any plans to further her education but Amanda forces Laura to go against her will which ultimately ends up as a catastrophe. Therefore, the children of Amanda were never able to have a good career unless it was against their mother’s