It's not what you say, it's how you say it!- Glass Menagerie Blog 3

The way The Glass Menagerie is written, by Tennessee Williams, is strange and unusual- even foreign to some readers. Not only do we have a dream within a play, but we have stage directions with as much importance as the dialogue, and diction that says everything!
    As it pertains to stage directions, we see them play a huge role especially with Laura. During Laura and Jim's time together, we see Laura's protective walls slowly come down, but not with what she says, but how she acts. For example, the stage directions read, "Laura stares at him, even her shyness eclipsed in absolute wonder,"(Williams 1280). We can tell by this alone that she is beginning to be more comfortable around him, her shyness is not painful, it is just as entranced as the rest of her.
   In regard to diction, Williams does a fabulous job picking the right words in the right situations. This quality is expressed throughout the play. We see her write: "ducks jauntily out," (Williams 1287) to describe the manner in which Jim left, "salmon loaf- with Durkees dressing!" (1258) to illustrate the dinner for the caller that will be elaborate, and "honest warehouse worker by day, by night a dynamic czar of the underworld..." (1246) which describes how stressed out and stretched thin Tom has become.  With all the descriptions, we as readers are more keen on those important details that make the play what is.