The Glass Menagerie- Unrealistic

"Now that we cannot hear the mother's speech, her silliness is gone and she has dignity and tragic beatuy." (Scene 7, page 1288)


Because The Glass Menagerie is Tom's memory, the characters' words and actions are exaggerated to the way that Tome remembers them. Throughout the play, Amanda is characterized as an overbearing mother who is constantly nagging Tom. The readers, especially teenage readers, first sympathize with Tom because his mother is constantly telling him he isn't good enough and that he can't do anything right. For example, when Mr. O'Connor is over, Amanda says, "I guess the fuse has burnt out. Mr. O'Connor, can you tell a burnt-out fuse? I know I can't and Tom is a total loss when it comes to mechanics" (Scene 7, page 1272). However, because Tom is retelling the memory, Amanda's portrayal is unrealistic. Yes she very well could have been a nagging mother, but she wanted the best for her children. Tom wanted to leave, he hated his life there because he had no adventure and no excitement. Tom is telling the story the way he is because he wants to show the readers how poorly his mother treated him. He is kind of saying to the readers, "see how she talks to me, you would want to leave to". I think it's hard to remember that because the play is a memory, the words and actions of the characters are unrealistic because it isn't exactly what happened, it is one person's account of what happened.