The Glass Menagerie Symbolism

In Tennessee Williams’ play The Glass Menagerie, the mother, Amanda, is very outgoing, controlling, and manipulative. Tom, Amanda’s son, provides the support for Amanda and Laura, his sister. Laura is very shy, self-conscious, childlike, and handicapped. Tom feels as if he is entrapped by his family and desires to leave. Amanda controls Tom by making him find Laura a gentlemen caller, who eventually gains Laura’s affection and then leaves, telling her that he is engaged. Each character’s desires are represented by different symbols in the play.
Firstly, the dress and the photograph of her husband symbolize Amanda’s desire to live in the past. While Amanda and Laura are preparing for Jim’s visit, Amanda pulls out the dress she wore in her youth. Amanda tries to display and relive her past by displaying her dress that, “[She] sashayed around the ballroom. . .” (Williams 769. 82-83). Also the photograph of Amanda’s husband is another symbol of her desire to live in the past. After her husband had been gone for sixteen years, she still talks proudly of him as if he had always been home. When Jim arrives for the evening, Amanda points to “[t]hat gallantly smiling gentlemen” (Williams 773. 87-88) revealing her remaining feelings for her
husband as if he had never left. Obviously, Amanda’s dress and photograph of her husband displays her attachment to the past.
Secondly, the glass menagerie and victrola symbolize Laura’s desire to stay at home.
Laura collects glass figures, which she often polishes and leaves on the shelf. Just like Laura’s glass menagerie that stays on the self, she is also “too exquisitely fragile to move from the shelf” (Williams 751.). Laura’s Victrola is a part of her home and symbolizes her desire to stay at home. When Laura answers the door for Jim “She turns awkwardly and hurries into the front room. She pauses a second by the Victrola” (Williams 771. 70-72). Laura is driven to her glass menagerie and Victrola illustrating the glass menagerie and Victrola are symbols of Laura’s desire to stay at home because they are the parts of her home that she finds comfort
in.
Lastly, the movies and the shoes at the factory symbolize Tom’s desire to escape from his family. Tom often goes to the movies alone at night to escape from his family and eventually the adventure of the movies persuades him to find adventure on his own. Tom sees adventure in movies and expresses how he feels about them when he tells Jim “I’m tired of the movies and I am about to move!” (Williams 772. 77-78). While at work at the shoe factory, Tom expresses to Jim how he desires for the adventure of traveling. Tom is reminded by his desires for adventure whenever he picks up a shoe and tells Jim “I know [shoes] doesn’t mean shoes- except as something to wear on a traveler’s feet!” (Williams 772. 91-93). Obviously, the movies and shoes symbolize Tom’s desire to leave his family in search of adventure.
Amanda, Laura, and Tom have desires that are represented by different symbols in the play. Amanda’s desires are displayed by the symbols of her dress and the photograph of her husband and Laura’s desires are defined by her glass menagerie and Victrola showing her desires to stay at home. The movies and the shoes at the factory illustrate Tom’s desire to leave his family. These differing symbols show the differing desires and individuality of each character.