Essay on the Use of Symbols, Tensions, and Irony in The...

Use of Symbols, Tensions, and Irony in The Glass Menagerie The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams, is a perfect example of how Williams incorporates symbols, tensions, and irony to help express the central theme of the play. One of the most dominant symbols in the play is the fire escape. It represents something different for each of the characters. Tom uses the fire escape to escape from his cramped apartment and nagging mother. Therefore, the fire escape symbolizes a path to the outside world. For Jim, the gentleman caller, the fire escape represents a means of entering the Wingfield apartment and by doing so, entering the Wingfields lives. The mother, Amanda, sees the fire escape as a possible†¦show more content†¦Tom talks of his rainbow-colored scarf that was used at a magic show to change a bowl of goldfish into flying canaries. Like the canaries, Tom hopes to escape from his prison and fly away. The rainbow reflections at the Dance Hall, created by the chandeliers, foreshadow the dance between Jim and Laura. This dance gave Laura a sense of hope for herself. Later though, Tom looks at the pieces of colored glass, like bits of a shattered rainbow, which represents Lauras broken hop es and dreams. Tom uses irony as a means of keeping pain and himself apart. Amanda accuses Tom of going out drinking every night, and to this Tom makes up a humorous story about how killer, killer, Wingfield spends his nights in opium dens, dens of vice and criminals hangouts... By Tom agreeing with his mother and turning what was an argument into a form of art, based completely on exaggerations, he ends up ironically protecting himself. By turning the situation into a joke, Tom distances himself from the situation and the pain. Tom also makes a joke out of his fathers abandonment. He recalls his father as a telephone man who fell in love with long distances. He also speaks of the last time he heard from his father with another ironic twist, a postcard saying nothing but, Hello-Goodbye. Ironically, the last words spoken by Tom in the play are the same as his fathers-and soShow MoreRelatedwisdom,humor and faith19596 Words   |  79 Pagescreativity, serenity, humility, clarity about what is, empathy, insight, intuitive understanding, patience, reality, self-awareness, and truth.3 Another prominent wisdom researcher, Robert Sternberg, believes that â€Å"people are wise to the extent that they use their intelligence to seek a common good. They do so by balancing, in their courses of action, their own interests with those of others and those of larger entities, like their school, their community, their country, even God.† In fostering wisdom,