The Portrayal of Women in the Work of Tennessee Williams...

Portrayal of Women in The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Orpheus Descending, Suddenly Last Summer, and Period of Adjustment Tennessee Williams has become one of the most well known literary figures in modern America. His plays are often controversial because of his preoccupation with sex and violence and his fearlessness to probe the dark areas of human life. Williamss earlier work often inspired his later plays and basic character types often reappear throughout each of his plays. A reoccurring theme in each of his plays is the role of the female. The women featured in the plays of Tennessee Williams all suffer from physical or emotional mutilation and seek fulfillment from a mate. An†¦show more content†¦Williamss mother, Edwina, had also been accepted into the Daughters of the American Revolution, and she was occupied with social events (Griffin 520). Williams described his mother as a woman whose endurance and once fine qualities continued to flourish alongside a narrowness of perception and only the dimmest awareness of human feeling (Griffin 121). Amanda easily mirrors this description of Edwina because of her selfishness concerning Laura and her being unattached. Laura Wingfield is very shy and does not want to be involved with the world outside their apartment. She collects tiny glass animals, and she treasures them more than actually participating in daily contact with the public. Amanda enrolls her in business school so that Laura will have some sort of trade with which she will be able to support herself in the future, but Laura is so shy that she does not attend classes and is eventually dropped from the enrollment. This identical situation happened to Williams sister Rose. Edwina enrolled her at the Rubicam Business College, hoping she could learn to be a stenographer, but she could not handle the group contact or the pressure (Griffin 20). When Williams created the character of Laura, he remembered his sisters gradual entrance into an inner world of darkness and unreality. Rose and Laura are so much alike that their gentleman callers had the same name, Jim OConnor. The situation thatShow MoreRelated Gender Roles in The Yellow Wallpaper and A Streetcar Named Desire1539 Words   |  7 Pagesfor all intents and purposes of opposition, the portrayal of the aspects and common traits of masculinity and femininity are separated in a normal manner. However, when one gender expects the other to do its part and they are not satisfied with the results and demand more, things can shift from normal to extreme fairly quickly. This demand is more commonly attributed by the men within literary works. Examples of this can be seen in Tennessee Williams â€Å"A Streetcar Named Desire†, where Stella is constantlyRead MoreA Streetcar Named Desire Analysis825 Words   |  4 PagesTennessee Williams’ 1947 drama, A Streetcar Named Desire, is a work of social realism which demonstrates the destructive impact of machismo on society in the late 1940s. In his raw representation of the human condition, Williams critiques the unrelenting gender roles which adversely affected so many members of his society. Although the drama is aimed at Williams’ society, as an audience member in the 21st century, Streetcar continues to be a confronting example of the past. Furthermore, the ongoingRead More Essay on Portrayal of Women in The Glass Menagerie and A Streetcar Named Desire1496 Words   |  6 PagesPortrayal of Women in The Glass Menagerie and A Streetcar Named Desire      Ã‚  Ã‚   The plays of Tennessee Williams are often controversial because of his preoccupation with sex and violence. 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Walter’s mother in settled in her traditional and old schools ways and views masculinityRead MoreA Streetcar Named Desire Compare And Contrast1187 Words   |  5 PagesA Streetcar Named Desire s original drafts were started in the early 1940s by playwright Tennessee Williams, who prepared and tested numerous titles for the work. Eventually, the completed play opened on December 3, 1947 in New York City staring Marlon Brando as Stanley Kowalski and directed by Elia Kazan. This run of Streetcar lasted 855 performances until 1949 and won Williams a Pulitzer Prize and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. Later, in 1951, the film version was adapted and staredRead MoreIs Stanley Kowalski a Tragic Villain?1849 Words   |  8 PagesStreetcar Named Desire, written by Tennessee Williams in 1947 is a play that is perceived with the varia nce between a man and his sister-in-law. Stanley Kowalski immediately captures the attention of the audience through Williams’ excellent portrayal of the intensely strong willed character, furthermore Williams forms Stanley into an exceedingly masculine character who will always have his way or no way and makes his opinions vey clear to those around him â€Å"why don’t you women go up and sit with Eunice† thisRead MoreEssay on Fashion Trends in the Fifties1517 Words   |  7 Pageschrome or lace, shimmering with sequins† (Baker 11). During the 1950’s, style was not only a portrayal of one’s sense of fashion – it was a portrayal of who you were. In the 1950’s, the role of a woman was to be in the home, and particularly in the kitchen. â€Å"Yet the usual media image of a housewife showed her not as a mother in comfortable trousers and sweater, or loose dress, suitable for such work, but as a doll-like figure dressed in rustling, full skirts, nipped waist and narrow-fitting