Critical analysis of the opening scene of The Glass Menagerie By Tennessee Williams. The main functions of an opening scene are to obtain the audience or reader's attention, introduce the characters and prepare the audience for later events in the play. The Glass Menagerie starts with extensive stage directions about how the set should look, and information about the period the play is set in. The stage directions are full of metaphors concerning imprisonment and …showed first 75 words of 758 total…

…showed last 75 words of 758 total…long distances.' He is a symbol of escape for Tom, which is why the photograph has been exaggerated in his memory. As someone who has already done the coffin trick, Tom possibly looks to him as someone to model himself on to stop any guilt he might feel about leaving Laura. For Amanda the photograph symbolises abandonment. This is the image that will haunt both Tom and Amanda throughout the rest of the play.