Blog post #5 - The Glass Menagerie

Williams’ play The Glass Menagerie defies what we, the audience, believe to be modern play characteristics. He does this in a few key ways: the use of a screen during the play, the narration of the play by a main character, and by making the play a memory.

In the original writing of the play, Tennessee Williams had planned for a screen to be placed on stage with images projected onto it. These images would emphasize significance of an object or event or even foreshadow a coming event. For example, in the first scene, lines 76-85 Amanda is telling Tom how she had seventeen gentleman callers back in the day. According to stage direction the screen produces an image of Amanda greeting callers on a porch. In this part of the play the screen serves as a medium to show a flashback, even though the play in itself is a memory. In a separate part of the play the screen is used to emphasize key words in the play, such as in scene two when the screen shows an image of blue roses, the nickname Jim had given Laura in school.

Another characteristic of the play that is not typical to what we believe a modern play to be is the narration of the play by one of the leading characters, Tom. While narration of a play is common, Tennessee Williams decides to use Tom as both a narrator and main character in the play. In the opening scene the audience learns the background of the play through Tom’s narration. Tom then proceeds to enter into the play as a regular character and acts just as if he has been in the play the whole time. Contrary to the idea that the narrator should be of a third party and not in the play, Tennessee Williams decides to have Tom narrate as the play is of Tom’s own memory.

Tom’s narration allows for Williams to once again defy our understanding of a modern play by making the play that of a memory. We learn of this in scene one line 16 as Tom states “The play is a memory” to the audience. While plays that include flashbacks may be common, it is unusual that this play was created as a recollection subject to character Tom who experienced the actions firsthand in the future. The fact that the play is a memory also contributes to the abrupt ending we see in the play as Tom’s memory has ended.