Female Roles in Tennessee Williams Plays, similarities/ differences

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Female Roles in Tennessee Williams ' The Glass Menagerie and A Streetcar Named Desire

American playwright Tennessee Williams focused his plays on real-life characters who were in conflict with a given status quo (Thisisby , n pag . However , what made his plays noteworthy was their almost-stereotypical portrayal of women (Levy , n . pag . On one hand Williams ' heroines were extremely sensitive , fragile , and weak (Levy , n . pag . On the other , they were strong-willed , stubborn determined , and a bit masculine (Levy , n . pag

One theory behind this

characteristic was that the Williams movies are essentially character studies of women (Levy , n . pag . It must be noted that Williams began writing in the 1950s , a conservative period whose notion of gender was based on aphorisms (Levy , n . pag . A very clear line of demarcation existed between proper ' and improper feminine behavior - a woman was either the submissive virgin who followed the rules or the slut who assumed an immoral ' lifestyle (Levy , n . pag

Another explanation , according to the feminist critic Molly Haskell was that (women ) were products of his fantasies of true love and particularly his homosexual fears of aging (Levy , n . pag . Like most homosexual men , Williams was hopeful that he will experience true love (Levy , n . pag . However , he must have felt that his sexual preference will condemn him to a life of loneliness and isolation (Levy , n . pag In sharp contrast , a woman may grow old , but she will always be able to enjoy the love and companionship of a man (Levy , n . pag

Amanda Wingfield of The Glass Menagerie (1945 ) was a strong-willed and ambitious woman (123HelpMe , n . pag . Unfortunately , she wouldn 't use these positive qualities of hers to improve the lot of her family Instead of facing and solving her problems , she ran away from them by (retreating ) into (her ) own separate (world ) of illusion and lies (123HelpMe , n . pag

Amanda and her children , Tom and Laura , lived in poverty after her husband abandoned them (123HelpMe , n . pag . But rather than work hard to provide for her children , Amanda spent her time looking back at her old life as a southern belle (123HelpMe , n . pag . She completely relied on Tom to financially support her and Laura (123HelpMe , n . pag . Amanda was so fixated on her past that she unconsciously regarded her children as her means of getting back the glittering life that she lost (123HelpMe , n . pag

Despite Laura 's handicap (she has a crippled leg , her mother still believed that she will get herself married into a rich family (123HelpMe , n . pag . When Tom announced that he will be bringing home his friend Jim for dinner , Amanda immediately assumed that he will marry Laura , never mind if she haven 't even gotten to know him yet (123HelpMe n . pag . She forces Laura to meet Jim , telling her that when she was younger she recevied seventeen gentlemen callers (123HelpMe , n pag . It was not certain whether or not Amanda was telling the...