Memory, Media, and Modernity in Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie: A Twenty-first Century Perspective

Abstract

This article explores how effectively Tennessee Williams in The Glass Menagerie uses ‘memory’ to add new dramatic elements by recounting historical occurrences, ‘media’ to accurately depict people’s circumstances and an authentic picture of society, and ‘modernity’ through his characters that affected their lives in the play. In this study, a descriptive study design with a component of qualitative analysis is used to find out answers to three research questions based on “memory, media and modernity” in The Glass Menagerie, and get a credible solution to strengthen our arguments. The in-depth analysis reveals Williams’ concerns about middle-class people, society, and the office’s authority during this era of transition. Additionally, it underscores how The Glass Menagerie incorporates shards of memories, media, and modernity to exhibit a congenial depiction of a modern spirit that Williams shares with the common people and readers whose voices he intercepts. The article intends to see how far Williams accomplished his objectives in portraying the deterioration of values, culture, traditions, and socio-economic problems to bring new force and genre to American drama. The in-depth analysis is sufficient to deem the play a quintessential, play for readers of all ages, a “Plastic Glass” genre that blends the middle class, experiences, characters’ displays, and cultures. Finally, the discussion proves that the new genre is enlivened by the common people and eternal survivors of the 21st century.