Williams Use Of Dialogue And Symbolism example essay topic

Tennessee Williams' masterpiece, The Glass Menagerie, appears as a living, breathing symbol in itself. Williams portrays a vast array of subtle references to human nature in a poetic, yet realistic form. One can discover his immense use of symbolism throughout the play. Amanda's character portrays one for of symbolism that Williams uses, whereas, the glass menagerie, the fragile unicorn, "Blue Roses", and the fire escape pertain to the abstract and in depth form of symbolism. His use of symbolism assists him in becoming one of the best-known literary figures on the American scene and also one of the most controversial. Despite the fact that critics consider Tennessee Williams one of the most controversial American writers, many critics praise the skillful author.

Thomas Lanier Williams' birth occurs on March 26, 1911, in Columbus, Mississippi. Williams' father, Cornelius Coffin, makes his living as a prominent traveling salesman. Williams, originally born as an Episcopalian, later converts to Roman Catholic in 1969. During his youth, Williams contracts diphtheria and this causes partial paralysis in his legs. Williams' frequent ill health during the 1960's culminates in several severe mental and physical breakdowns in 1969. Williams' receives his education from the University of Missouri and later goes to the University of Iowa.

Williams' becomes a full-time writer, writing plays, novels, poetry, and short stories. His first publication occurs in 1927. In 1965, Williams becomes president of the American Automatic Control Council. The fact remains that Williams' homosexuality does not appear as a peripheral issue, but rather a sentimental issue that he uses throughout his writing. In 1948, Williams wins his first Pulitzer Prize for A Streetcar Named Desire.

On February 24, 1983, Williams chokes to death in his suite at Hotel Elysee located in New York City (Falk 48). His burial ceremony occurs in St. Louis, Missouri. Throughout his life, Tennessee Williams undergoes many aspects that enable him to become one of the greatest American writers of his time. Surprisingly, critics praise Williams for his use of dialogue and symbolism. Mary McCarthy, Williams' rival, states that Williams remains the only American author with an ear for dialogue. She also states that although occasionally he abandons real speech and uses his own "poetic prose", he knows speech patterns which each of his characters abstractly possess.

Another area of appraisal from critics consists of Williams' use of symbolism, which he comments as "the natural language of drama" (Falk 84). His variety of symbols includes Laura's glass animal, the paper lantern, and the legless birds of Orpheus Descending. Several critics believe Williams' use of symbols provides flavor to his writing, however, other critics, such as Weales, argue that Williams, like The Glass Menagerie's Tom, has "a poet's weakness for symbols" (Falk 33). Cohn sides with Weales. He also believes that a certain weakness of symbolism "is built into the fabric of the drama" (Falk 31). Williams attempts to tell the harsh reality of things through his writings.

Critics in the past praise him as America's greatest living playwright; however, they criticize him for his over exaggerated melodrama. His work characteristically concerns the conflict between illusion and reality. Williams' use of dialogue and symbolism helps create the atmosphere that a reader witnesses throughout his writings. Critics immensely argue that Williams' virtue lies in his characterization. Critics favor Williams' ability to find spiritual significance in ordinary people. In many cases Williams' detractors believe that he does not exhibit a clear philosophy of life.

Although Williams' characters constantly remain hurt by those around them, something within each character torture them with primarily guilt and fear. They argue that Williams uses unacceptable ambiguity in judging human flaws and frailties that his characters portray. The Glass Menagerie recognizes the prototype of the American histrionic trend that explores the misleading hopes of the dispossessed. Contemporary American Dramatists contributor Dennis Welland notes that The Glass Menagerie "has lyrical, sad gentleness that separates if from the savage cruelty of much of his later work (Deckle 368).

Whatever the final judgment of literary historians on the works of Tennessee Williams certain facts remain clear. Williams remains the most quotable of American writers, and even those who detest poetic dialogue remain in awe because of the uniqueness his language brought to modern theater. The symbolism found within Laura's glass menagerie proves as the most effective and important symbol within the play. As the title of the play informs the readers, the glass menagerie, or collection of animals, serves as the play's central symbol.

Laura's collection of glass animal figurines represents a number of facets of her personality. Like the figurines, Laura remains delicate, fanciful, and somehow old-fashioned. Glass remains transparent in the dark, however, when light shines upon it correctly, it refracts an entire rainbow of colors. Similarly, Laura, though quiet and bland around strangers, brings versatile delight to those who choose to look at her in the right light. The menagerie also represents the imaginative world to which Laura devotes herself-a world that appears colorful and enticing but also the basis of fragile illusions. Laura's best elucidates her fragility when she shows and describes her small collection to Jim.

Laura tells Jim that her miniature world revolves around her glass menagerie". My glass collection takes up a good deal of time" (Williams 98). The glass unicorn in Laura's collection-significantly, her favorite figure-represents her peculiarity. The glass uniform also serves as an augury to Laura because at the end of the play both experience the same appalling fate. As Jim points out, unicorns are "extinct" in modern times and linger about in desolation as a result of their differences from other horses. "Unicorns-aren't they extinct in the modern world?" (Williams 101).

Laura remains too unusual, lonely, and ill adapted to existence in the world in which she lives. The fate of the unicorn also represents a smaller-scale version of Laura's fate in the last scenes of the play. When Jim dances with and then kisses Laura, the unicorn's horn breaks off, and it becomes just another ordinary horse. Jim's advances endow Laura with a new normalcy, making her seem more like just another girl, but the violence with which this normalcy that Jim thrusts upon her means that Laura cannot become normal without somehow shattering. Eventually, Laura gives Jim the unicorn as a "souvenir". Without its horn, the unicorn appears more appropriate for him than for her, and the broken figurine represents all that he has taken from her and destroys in her.

The reader ultimately discovers the true fragility found within Laura. The reader also discovers that the best things in life come at an extreme price. When Laura experiences her first taste of intimacy, Jim takes the good feelings away from her when she finds out that he has a fianc'e. Laura's untimely fate proves as the reason she keeps to herself and does not open to just anyone.

She proves this theory when she finally opens up to Jim and then he shatters he heart when he tells her of his engagement "No Laura, I can't call. As I was just explaining, I've-got strings on me. Laura, I've-been going steady" (Williams 107). Like the glass unicorn, "Blue Roses", Jim's high school nickname for Laura, symbolizes Laura's un usualness yet allure.

The name also associates with Laura's attraction to Jim and the joy that his kind treatment brings her. Furthermore, it recalls Tennessee Williams's sister, Rose, of whom the character of Laura serves as the basis. His characters usually derive from actual people throughout his life. Leading out of the Wingfield's apartment, appears a fire escape with a landing. The fire escape represents exactly what its name implies: an escape from the fires of frustration and dysfunction that rage within the Wingfield household.

Laura slips on the fire escape highlighting her inability to escape from her situation. Tom, on the other hand, frequently steps out onto the landing to smoke, anticipating his eventual getaway. Tom tries immensely to move forward with his life, however Amanda's constant bickering confines him to the crucial fate that he must serve as the supporter of Amanda and Laura. Amanda's austere bickering also forces Tom to react in certain ways and they end up having a heated dispute.

Amanda ultimately proves as a guile, but furtive person to her children. She ultimately defiles and obtrudes her children into believing in her own natural beliefs. Amanda, in many aspects, represents the human desire to live in the past. Her actions prove her attempt to reattach to her old southern ways. When she discovers that Tom locates Jim, a gentleman caller, for Laura, she spends hours cleaning the Wingfield house and getting Laura ready to meet her fate. By doing so, Amanda attempts to assimilate to her old southern traditions.

Amanda refuses to live in the present time period. She remains fusty in her own reality that derives from her younger years as a southern belle. When Jim arrives Amanda attempts to flirt with him using her garrulous words as she did in her youth. Laura has a constant detachment from reality. Laura lives in her own world of beauty and fragility. Laura's friable menagerie best describes Laura's simplicity and longing to live in beautiful things.

Beautiful and garish things fascinate Laura and thus keeps her driven to live within her own glass menagerie. When Jim arrives Laura becomes exceptionally gelid because she discovers that she knows Jim from high school. A feeling of angst overcomes her and she refuses to come to the table. Towards the end of the play, Jim gets Laura to open up to him and that night becomes a night of firsts for her. Jim gesticulates and ultimately gives into his emotion and kisses Laura. That night she receives her first kiss, dance, and heart-to-heart talk with the only man that has ever taken her breath away.

Jim's blithe and magnanimous actions towards Laura help her to open up and trust him for the first time. This night proves as the first night that Laura experiences her first taste of intimacy. Never in her life has anyone ever expose the beauty of intimacy between a man and a woman, until the charming and gregarious Jim O' Conner. The personalities that Williams creates in Tom, Amanda, and Laura each pertain to different aspects and views of beauty. As one might think, Laura and Amanda seem opposite of each other in beliefs, however their antipodes seem to close to home in resembling each other.

Each character long for different "adventures" and they each maintain their own views on how they live their lives. Williams establishes these aspects through his miraculous use of symbolism. Although several critics claim that Williams overuse symbolism, he weaves together a literary tapestry that contains the vital element of a classic: always discovering something new in the material. Williams' use of symbols gives a physical reality to abstract concepts, without loosing the strength of these concepts. This aspect has become one of the most effective reasons why critics consider Williams one of the most influential and best-known literary figures of his time..