One of the most prominent themes in the Glass Menagerie is that of abandonment by their father. When the father left it had a dramatic effect on the family. Tom began planning his own escape, Amanda slowly began losing her mind and the whole family was thrown into financial dependence on one another. Tom and Laura's father had more of an impact on the family after he left than when he was living with them. …showed first 75 words of 576 total…

…showed last 75 words of 576 total…during the 1930's. Back then a one-parent family was almost destined to fail do to the poor state of the economy and the stigma against single parents. If it wasn't for the father leaving, the family would be the same as all the others and the book wouldn't exist. The book was a look into the lives of some of the less fortunate people of the time period and how they dealt with their problems.