The Glass Menagerie

The Glass Menagerie Worksheet Questions

1. Who do you think is the main character of the play- Tom, Laura, or Amanda? Why? Is the main character the protagonist? Is there an antagonist?

2. What might happen to Laura after Tom's departure? What might happen to Amanda?

3. Discuss the symbol of the glass menagerie. What does it represent? Does it represent the same things throughout the play, or does its meaning change?

4. Generally, plays do not have narrators. How does the fact that Tom is the narrator affect the style and content of the play? Would your appraisal of the events be different if there were no narrator?

5. Discuss the significance of the unicorn in The Glass Menagerie. How does the unicorn relate to the play’s major themes?

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1. Tom is the main character of the play. It is, in essence, his story and tells of what he wants out of life and how he reacts to life.

2. Laura will continue to withdraw into her shell. Amanda will, in all likelihood, step up and support Laura in some fashion.

3. The glass menagerie is a symbol of Laura and all of her fragility. It is essentially the same throughout the play.

4. Many plays have narrators (i.e., Our Town). The effect of having Tom as the narrator means that we see things from his point of view. Were there no narrator, we might have a more omniscient point of view.

5. The unicorn is a symbol of the uniqueness of Laura. However, once the horn is broken off, it is only a horse like any other. Perhaps there are people who cannot live in the world in the same way that there are no unicorns; Laura really is disconnected from the world.

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