Escape Mechanisms in the Glass MenagerieIn Tennessee Williams' play, The Glass Menagerie, the four members of the Wingfield family chose to hide from the reality. Amanda tries to relive her past through Laura and denies everything she doesn't want to accept. Laura is afraid of the real world and chooses to hide behind her limp, her glass menagerie and the victrola. Tom hides from his reality by going to the movies, writing poetry, and getting drunk. Mr. Wingfield hides from his reality by leaving his family and not contacting them after doing so. Each member of the Wingfield family has their own escape mechanism that they use to hide or escape from the real world. Amanda chose to hide from reality by trying to relive her past. She lives in the unreality of her youthful memories and sees herself still as young as Laura when she says to her: "No, sister, no, sister, you are the lady this time and I will be the black" (p. 237 ). She remembers a “Sunday afternoon at Blue Mountain” (p. 237) in which she received seventeen calls from gentlemen, and then tries to relive it through Laura. She arranges for Tom to bring home a nice young man...... middle of paper......1987. 85-94. Levy, Eric P. “Through Soundproof Glass: The Prison of Self-Awareness in the Glass Menagerie.” » Modern Drama, December 36, 1993. 529-537. Rasky, Harry. Tennessee Williams: a portrait in laughter and lament. New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1986. Thompson, Judith J. The Plays of Tennessee Williams: Memory, Myth, and Symbol. New York: Peter Lang, 1989. Williams, Tenn. The Glass Menagerie. In Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing, 4th ed. Ed. Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1995. 1519-1568.