The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams, is a memory play of things that have happened in the past.  The play contains only four characters, one of which does not appear until the last two scenes.  The characters include Amanda Wingfield, the mother of the family; Tom Wingfield, Amanda’s son; Laura Wingfield, Amanda’s daughter; and Jim O’Connor, the gentleman caller.  The Father of the family had abandoned them long ago, leaving the mother and children to fend for themselves, but his picture is hung above the mantle.  All of the scenes take place in the apartment of the Wingfield family and on the fire escape, which serves as a porch for the family.

            The play begins with the family sitting down at the table eating a meal as Amanda instructs them on how they should eat.  Afterwards Tom goes to smoke a cigarette and Amanda cleans up the table, after telling Laura not to because she needs to stay fresh for any gentlemen callers that may stop by.  She says gentlemen callers may come when they are least expected and begins to tell a story of her youth that the kids have heard many times before.  Amanda tells the story of the one Sunday afternoon at Blue Mountain where she received seventeen gentlemen callers.  Laura is then told to go to the typewriter or practice her shorthand so that she stays fresh for the gentlemen callers they will receive.  Amanda seems to think they will have to entertain many gentlemen callers, but Laura knows that they will receive none.

            Laura has been attending Business College and in the second scene she comes down with a cold and stays home sick for the day.  Amanda was currently attending a D.A.R. meeting, and she comes home early looking bewildered.  Amanda goes to the wall and takes the diagram of a typewriter and the chart of the Gregg Alphabet and rips them in two.  Laura asks her mother what is wrong and as Amanda begins to explain Laura immediately realizes what is wrong.  It seems that on the way to her D.A.R. meeting Amanda stopped by the business college to ask Laura’s teachers to excuse her for the day and ask about the progress Laura had been making.  When Amanda went to the typing instructor and introduced herself as Laura’s mother the professor had know idea who Laura was, and said there was no such student enrolled at the school.  Upon further inspection it was discovered that Laura had dropped out of school after only a few days attendance.  The instructor explained how Laura had been so nervous that her hands shook so bad that she could not hit the right keys, and the first time a speed test was administered she broke down and almost had to be carried to the wash room.  After that she never showed up again.  When asked where she had been going every day to make it look like she had been going to Business College, she said that she had been just walking around the park.  Amanda says that the only thing left for her to do now was to marry and asked Laura if she has ever liked a boy.  Laura tells her of a boy named Jim from high school, who called her blue roses, and showed her his picture in the yearbook.  Amanda then said that girls who are not cut out for the business world get married and that is what Laura will do.

             During the third scene Tom and his mother get into a bit of an argument.  Tom gets sick of arguing and leaves to go to the movies.  Amanda says that she doesn’t believe that Tom goes to the movies night after night and accuses him of drinking.  This sets Tom off and he leaves slamming the door behind him, Amanda then refuses to talk to him until he apologizes.  It doesn’t take long for the two to make up; the next day Laura begs Tom to make up with their mother.  Tom agrees to do this and as soon as he apologizes to his mother she begins to talk to him again.  Then Amanda tells Tom that they must make some provisions and plans for Laura’s future.  Since she is not cut out for the business world finding a husband for her is more important than ever.  Amanda begs Tom to ask a nice gentleman at the warehouse to come over so that Laura can meet him.  Tom eventually agrees to this and then he heads off to work.

            In the next scene Tom heads out to smoke and his mother soon joins him on the fire escape.  The moon is out this night and Amanda and Tom both make a wish on it.  This brings up the subject of gentlemen callers, because that is what Tom figures his mother had wished for.  Tom then reveals that he had asked a man at the warehouse, named Jim O’Connor, to join them for dinner tomorrow night and he had agreed.  Amanda then wastes no time in preparing for dinner tomorrow night.  The next day as Amanda is getting Laura ready for the gentleman caller she tells Laura the name of the gentleman caller, this is when Laura realizes that the gentleman caller was her high school crush.  Laura then becomes very nervous and pleads with Amanda to open the door for her but Amanda refuses.  When the men arrive Amanda is in the kitchen and refuses to open the door, so Laura is forced to let them in.  As dinner is prepared Tom and Jim read the paper and afterwards head out onto the terrace.  The two men have a conversation about the future; Jim says that he has been going to night school for public speaking to make him ready for an executive position.  Tom reveals how he is sick of the people from Hollywood having all the adventures in the movies, and that it was his turn to have some adventure and that he was sick of the movies and ready to move.  Then Amanda calls the boys in so that she can meet Jim, and then dinner is ready so the all head to the dining room.

            Laura refuses to eat dinner claiming that she is ill, but Amanda does not believe this and tries to make her come to the table anyway.  Amanda then realizes that Laura really is ill, so Laura lies on the couch while the other three eat dinner.  After dinner all the lights go out, Amanda has Jim check the fuses to see if one was burned out.  None of the fuses are burned out, it turns out that Tom neglected to pay the electric bill and their power was shut off.  Amanda makes Tom help her clean up dinner so that Jim and Laura are forced to spend time alone together.  Jim heads into the living room with a candle and some dandelion wine to keep Laura company.  Jim begins the conversation by saying hello and offering Laura a piece of gum.  Laura asks Jim if he remembers her and that is when Jim realizes he had went to high school with Laura, but did not recognize her name because he had called her blue roses.  Jim tells Laura that she should not have been so shy and that she should not have worried so much about the brace on her leg because everyone else has problems too.  After they finish talking about high school, Laura shows Jim her favorite animal from her glass menagerie, a glass unicorn.  Then they can hear the music coming from the dance hall and Jim asks Laura to dance with him.  Laura has never danced before but Jim shows her how, but during their dance they bump the table and knock the glass unicorn off breaking the horn off of its head.  Jim tells Laura that she is different from other girls, in a good way, and that she is very pretty and then he kisses her.  Jim is then very angry with himself for kissing Laura and tells her that he is engaged to be married and he cannot call Laura again.  Amanda then comes out from the kitchen to offer some lemonade, but Jim tells Amanda he is engaged and he must go, and he leaves.

Amanda yells at Tom for not telling her Jim was engaged.  Tom did not know that he was engaged but Amanda yells at him anyway.  Tom gets angry and heads off to the movies.  When Amanda yells at him and tells him to go wherever he pleases he gets very angry and leaves.  Tom left St. Louis but wherever he went he could not seem to get Laura out of his head for many things he sees reminds him of her, but he must get her out of his head and blow her candles out.