Laura Wingfield: Amanda's daughter and Tom's older sister, Laura
suffers the results of a childhood illness
which left one of her legs malformed and in a brace. As a result, Laura is painfully shy and has withdrawn herself the outside world. She is much like her beloved glass figurines: delicate and frail.
What does Laura represent in The Glass Menagerie?
The glass unicorn in Laura's collection—significantly, her favorite figure—represents
her peculiarity
. As Jim points out, unicorns are “extinct” in modern times and are lonesome as a result of being different from other horses. Laura too is unusual, lonely, and ill-adapted to existence in the world in which she lives.
What disease does Laura have in The Glass Menagerie?
Her nickname, “Blue Roses,” derives from Jim's mishearing of
“pleurosis
,” the disease that left her crippled. Both Tom and Jim see Laura as like a blue rose, exotic and frail in her rarity. Yet despite her fragility, Laura does not willfully delude herself about the nature of her reality.
Is Laura from The Glass Menagerie autistic?
Laura Wingfield of The Glass Menagerie, the Williams heroine most strictly based on Rose, is also
the most clearly autistic
.
What illness did Laura suffer from as a child?
In By the Shores of Silver Lake, Laura attributes Mary's blindness to
scarlet fever
: “Mary and Carrie and baby Grace and Ma had all had scarlet fever.
Why does Jim Kiss Laura?
Why does Jim kiss Laura?
He is politely telling her good by
. Tom has paid him to do it. He is showing his contempt of Amanda and her silly ideas.
Why did Laura quit school?
Q. Why did Laura quit business college?
A boy in the class was making passes at her and she got scared
. She was nervous in class and became physically ill during her first speed test.
How does Amanda make extra money?
Amanda tries (obviously without much success, considering the family's difficult economic circumstances) to
sell magazine subscriptions over the telephone
to earn income.
Why does Laura give the unicorn to Jim?
Laura presents the broken unicorn to Jim
as a souvenir
. The figurine becomes a memory of Laura that Jim can bring with him when he leaves Laura and returns to his life, but it also signifies the normal woman that Laura will never become.
What does Laura from The Glass Menagerie look like?
Laura is
as rare and peculiar as a blue rose or a unicorn
, and she is as delicate as a glass figurine. Other characters seem to assume that, like a piece of transparent glass, which is colorless until light shines upon it, Laura can take on whatever color they wish.
Did Rose Williams have schizophrenia?
Rose Isabel Williams was born in Columbus, Miss., in 1919, two years before her brother, Thomas (later Tennessee). …
Williams was schizophrenic
, and she underwent a prefrontal lobotomy and was institutionalized for the rest of her life.
When was Rose Williams diagnosed with schizophrenia?
Rose was diagnosed with schizophrenia in
June of 1937
and a violent episode the following month led her to accusing her father of attempting to rape her.
What word does Amanda never allow to be used?
We don't even notice she's
crippled any
more. AMANDA: Don't say crippled ! You know that I never allow that word to be used ! The last time the word is uttered, Amanda finally admits what she really thinks of her daughter's condition.
What advice does Jim give Laura?
Jim explains to Laura that
their kiss can't lead anywhere
. He does not apologize for the kiss.
How does Laura Wingfield escape reality?
Laura escapes from the imposing structures of reality into worlds she can control and keep perfect: her memories, the glass menagerie, the freedom of walking through the park. When Amanda confronts Laura, she tries to escape by playing music loudly enough to block out the argument.
Why does Amanda blame Tom for the evening's failure?
Why does Amanda blame Tom for the evening's failures?
Because Jim is Tom's “best friend” at the warehouse, she thought he would know that Jim would be engaged
. What do we learn about tom and Laura in the first scene? In the play, how does Amanda treat her children?
