The Glass Menagerie first performance was on December 26, 1944, but the play's actual publication date was in 1945. Written by Tennesse Williams, whose real name was Thomas Lanier Williams III, but took on his nickname from college as his real name. He was born on March 26, 1911 in Columbus, Mississippi and died on February 25, 1983 from choking on a top from his eye medicine and was believed from a drug overdose also. He lived during the Great Depression which was part of the "setting" of the play. The character Laura in The Glass Menagerie is based on his sister Rose Williams, whom he was very close to. It was believed that Rose had mental issues because she allegedly accused her father for sexual assault. In 1937 by the permission of their parents she underwent a brain surgery that left her incapitated which was an emotional shock to Tennesse Williams. Williams childhood wasnt a very happy one he was sick and weak for a while he consider his mother as one of his heroines. His mother was very supported of his writing career that she gave him a typewriter. His father was an alcoholic and affected by the Great Depression during the 1930s. His father had disowned him when Tennesse declared himself a homosexual.
Williams top plays and performances were really famous and praised during the early 1940s and early 1960s by the motivation and his involvement with his partner Frank Merlo until his death. "Alcoholism, depression, thwarted desire, loneliness in search of purpose, and insanity were all part of Williams' world" which affected his daily life that sometimes lead to emotional breakdowns. By the change of society in taste and culture later on in the 1960s his plays became less viewed and famous.
"SparkNotes: The Glass Menagerie: Context." SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2011. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/menagerie/context.html>.
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