The Struggle Between Tom And Amanda In The Glass Menagerie

In the dramatic play, The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, Tom Wingfield, who is the narrator, and one of the main characters in the play, is struggling with disputes within his family that keeps him from pursuing his goals. Amanda, Laura, and Tom display the need “to escape the dull and depressing reality of their situation” and by falling back “into their own fantasies,” they push each other away (Kullman). By analyzing Tom specifically, it can be determined that one of his core issues is that he is unable to be happy because he has to sustain his family economically. This makes him deal with a moral quandary, knowing that if the does not follow his dream, he might end up like Laura and Amanda. To deal with these problems, Tom decides …show more content…
Straightaway, the play portrays that the conflicts between Tom and Amanda could affect Tom’s decisions throughout the play. Some of the factors that could affect his decisions are his drinking and smoking habits, and this may result on his antagonistic manners, mainly, towards Amanda, but it definitely impacts Laura when she witnesses the arguments between Tom and Amanda, making her worry about her two most important persons in her life. On one hand, Tom cares about Laura and that is one of the most notable reasons why he stays in the house. And on the other hand, Amanda’s forceful attitude towards Tom draws him away to the movies and temporarily escaping …show more content…
His family and him display a sense of escaping their miserable and dull lives which draws them apart even more. After evaluating Tom, it is clear that is very unhappy with his job and relationship with his mother, making him want to leave the house even more. Financial and family matters do carry a burden on Tom’s decisions and persona throughout the play. Also, a miserable job that is only an anchor to him and his goals, alcohol, smoking, and Amanda’s authoritarian behavior towards Tom, contribute to Tom’s depression and