"The Glass Menagerie" - Tennessee Williams (Scene 7 and Wrap Up)

28. Symbolizes Tom's letting go of the family, embarrasses Amanda and ruins her "perfect" evening, makes everything a little more intimate in the candlelight
29. He seems so polite and kind, and is very engaging and interested in Laura. He's focused on Laura's comfort and in actually getting to know her.
32. I felt sorry for him - after all, he was so set up. He seemed to be genuinely sorry that he couldn't pursue a relationship with Laura, and it was almost as though he was trying to convince himself that he did love Betty, and was happy with her. When he realized the expectations Amanda had, he did the right thing by making it clear to Laura that he couldn't meet them.
33. Symbolizes Laura herself and the fact that she felt as though she didn't fit in.

36. The Movies: Adventure, Tom's desire to escape into something that was exciting and different from the boring realities of life and hard work
The Paradise Music Hall: A way other people in the society escaped from their troubles, through drinking and sex. Different approaches than any of the Wingfields, but it shows us that really every of that time was looking for escape.
The fire escape: The idea of it being the way out, the escape from the little world inside their apartment. In the play, Tom spends the most time out there, and I can't think of once that Laura is out there.
Laura's leg brace: The handicaps or insecurities that hinder us all. In her case, she allowed it to dominate who she was.
37. When Jim kisses Laura, and we go from hopefulness to total disappointment.
38. I did sympathize with Amanda. She hasn't had the easiest of lives, and hasn't been able to be a mother and father to her children. While she is annoying, suspicious, and nagging towards Tom, we can sense that she truly does value him, beyond the paycheck he brings home. With Laura, especially at the end, we see that she beings to act more as a mother should, and is very comforting toward Laura. Tom is definitely both wrong and right. While almost anyone can sympathize with that feeling of wanting adventure, and to be out on their own, it's also not right to leave those you love alone and uncared for. I wish he could have found a balance, but I suppose that just goes further to indicating the entire hopelessness of society at that time. Laura was also wrong and right - while she never should have allowed her handicap and shyness to overtake her life, and never should have retreated into separation from society, we can definitely understand why she did. Sometimes, being different is too much to bear. I pity her that her circumstances weren't more conducive to becoming a well-rounded, socially adept young lady. But, while circumstances may be the reason for something, they are never an excuse. We can only hope that, after Tom left, she truly did move into reality and begin living as a more normal human being.