The play ‘The Glass Menagerie’ by Tennessee Williams is full of illusions and false conceptions of reality. The illusions are mostly represented through music, magic, and movies, although each are used differently in the play. These are all significant in the lives of Laura, Tom, and Amanda, and develop either an escape or even conflict within their family. Movies, magic, and music seem to represent the fantasy in which they are all living. Wonderful illusions create escapes and adventure in the dreary lives of Laura, Amanda, and Tom through the significance of music, movies and magic.
Tennessee Williams's stage directions call for music to heighten key moments in a scene. This creates suspense in the moment, going along with the mood of the characters. Ironically, Laura and Amanda associate music with Mr. Wingfield, the…show more content… Amanda enjoys having Laura play the Victrola, and it provides Laura an auditory escape in contrast with the overpowering reverberation of the typewriter, which reminds her of her failed attempt to go to business college. Laura also associates music with Jim, who she met in the school choir, and Jim has a beautiful voice. Music is used often in The Glass Menagerie both to highlight themes, and to enhance the drama. Sometimes the music comes from outside the play, not from within it, and even though the audience can hear it, the characters cannot. For example, a musical piece titled The Glass Menagerie, written specifically for the play by the composer Paul Bowles, plays when Laura’s character or her glass collection comes to the forefront of the action. This piece makes its first appearance at the end of Scene One, when Laura