The Glass Menagerie

Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1945

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Summary

Play Summaries & Analyses

Part 1: Scenes 1-5

Part 2: Scenes 6-7

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Discussion Questions

Essay Topics

Tom describes The Glass Menagerie as a memory play. What elements of memory do you see at work? How does the idea of memory function? What does the theme of memory mean in the play?

In the 2017 Broadway revival of The Glass Menagerie, Madeline Ferris, a performer in a wheelchair due to muscular dystrophy, played Laura. She is believed to be the first disabled performer in a wheelchair to play a leading role on Broadway. How does this choice affect the meaning of the play? How does it color the ways that the characters describe or interact with Laura? Do you agree with this choice? Why or why not?

How does the play formulate disability? What does disability mean to the various characters in the play? What does it mean to Laura? Considering that the play premiered in 1945, how do you think the play’s depiction of disability would play to an audience today?