The Glass Menagerie
             In The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams, Tom and Laura Wingfield share a special sibling bond. But, after many years of conflics with his mother, Amanda, who lives in her own fantasy world, Tom decides to leave home. The dependent relationship, a result of Laura's condition and her own family's view of her as a fragile, shelf-bound creature is suddenly broken. In Tennessee William's play, The Glass Menagerie, the characters of Tom, Amanda, and Laura are all like the "Glass Menagerie" in one way or another. The play is based around a fragile family and their difficulties coping with life.
             Tom Wingfield, a poet with a job in the warehouse and narrator of the play, is strong yet fragile like a piece of glass. Tom has an evident weakness but is overpowered by his strength of reality. In the beginning Tom feels trapped like a caged animal who needs to be set free. Obviously, Tom's weakness is his entrapment. He takes care of his sister and mother as a result of his father's leaving. Because of this, he is very often fustrated. The only place that Tom seems to get his sense of freedom is the movies. "I go to the movies because – I like adventure. Adventure is something I don't have much of it at work, so I go to the movies." All Tom really wants is to get away like his father had done. It fustrates Tom that he lowers himself to work in the factory to help support his mother and sister, when his mother insists that he only thinks of himself. Things continue to get worse between Tom and his mother, and their defferences finally boil ober when Laura's gentleman caller turns out to be engaged. Amanda thought that Tom brought Jim home to Laura to play a joke on the women. Again, Amanda accuses Tom of being selfish. Up until this point Tom had only dreamed about escaping, but his mothers continuous coments pushed Tom ...