Show:
Characters
Symbols
Production Notes
Plot/Action
Miscellaneous
100
This character is both the narrator and the main character
Who is Tom Wingfield
100
This symbol represents Laura's fragile nature
the glass menagerie
100
This plays in the background at times throughout the play to enhance the emotions we, the audience, should be feeling
music
100
In Scene 1, when we first meet all of the characters, what are they eating while they talk at the dinner table?
Nothing; they hold imaginary utensils and only pretend to be eating.
100
What is a prefrontal lobotomy?

a surgical procedure in which the nerve pathways in the prefrontal lobe of the brain are severed from those in other areas.

200
This character is very fragile and insecure; mom's got big plans for her
Laura Wingfield
200
this symbolizes Laura coming to terms with her self-esteem issues
the broken unicorn
200
This displays words and images while the characters are acting, accenting certain values in each scene.
screen device/projector
200
In Scene 2, where does Laura go instead of to the business college for her typing class?

She goes on walks to the zoo, parks, movies, bird houses, and a glass house that contains tropical flowers.

Why is this ironic?

200

When and where is the setting of The Glass Menagerie?

1937 in St. Louis, Missouri.  Right toward the end of the Great Depression.
300
This character lives in the past and tries to control her children's lives
Amanda Wingfield
300
this symbolizes Tom's escape not only from the house but from his life
the fire escape
300
Tennessee Williams cleverly used this to turn the play into a "memory play"; it focuses on different characters at different times and at one point is gone completely
lighting/lights
300
Why does Jim call Laura "Blue Roses?"

He mishears Laura's explanation of the lung disease she had had in high school called pleurosis.

Any other significance to the name "Blue Roses?"

300
Why is this play considered a memory play?
It is based on real-life events that occurred in Tennessee William's life.  The play loosely recreates memories that Tennessee Williams had of his own family life.
400
This character is important even though he never speaks........
The father (remember, he left the family.  His portrait is a constant reminder to the family of his absence and his faults)
400
This symbolizes Tom's selfishness and strong desire to run off on the family
the unpaid electric bill
400
Tennessee Williams included these in the play but removed them from the first actual Broadway show.
the screen device/projector
400
What does Amanda want Tom to do for Laura at the end of Scene 4?
Find a gentleman caller from Tom's work (the warehouse).
400
Overall, what is the significance of the unicorn that breaks in Scene 7?
This is the moment that Laura, whom the unicorn represents, finally realizes that despite her "defects" (her unique qualities--like a unicorn), she is just like everyone else (a horse).  Jim was able to help her overcome her insecurities about herself.
500
Amanda wants Laura to keep herself and fresh and pretty all the time for these.  Jim O'Connor was supposed to be one of these for Laura.
gentleman callers
500
this symbolizes Tom's boredom with reality and is one of his many escapes from Amanda's controlling ways
the movies
500

Why were the production notes included in The Glass Menagerie?

so that The Glass Menagerie can be "presented with unusual freedom of convention."  These production techniques further distort reality and make the play feel more like a memory (which can't be fully trusted and taken as completely true).

500
Describe the last scene of the play.  Who were the main characters in this scene?  How did it start, and how does it end?
It starts with the lights going out.  Amanda brings out a candlestick, which Jim lights and brings to Laura in the living room.  Jim and Laura drink wine and slowly, Jim breaks Laura out of her shell.  He lies to her, telling her he's single and dancing with her, which ultimately ends in him kissing her.  Then we find out he's actually engaged.  Finally, the scene ends with Laura blowing the candles (as Tom is talking about how he wished he could be there to stop her from "blowing out her candles" (getting the prefrontal lobotomy).
500

In "The Catastrophe of Success," how does Tennessee Williams describe his life after the fame and success he received from The Glass Menagerie?

He explains that success made him less human, less appreciative of others, less social, and ultimately less alive.  He needed something to take him away from the spotlight, the fame, the tons of people he no longer cared for or trusted.  His eye surgery finally gave him that release.  He decided to live in Mexico to continue writing and to start life afresh.