Personally, I found this play highly intriguing. The family conflicts reflected similar ones in "A Raisin in the Sun", rendering the play not only more comprehensible, but also more parallel to each other. The most interesting thing I found with the text was how close it mirrored Williams' life. Upon reading his biography, I learned that he mainly wrote the play to show his relationship with his dear sister. His sister, like Laura in the play, was also cripple. As a result, the play portrayed a more personal tone since Williams placed himself as Laura's brother Tom in the story. The correlations with "A Raisin in the Sun" were also intriguing, as there were many shared themes between the two. One main theme that stuck out from both plays was the theme of a mother letting her children go. It was interesting to see how Amanda and Mama in both plays showed unconditional love for their children, even when all their children wanted to do was to fly away from the nest. The relationships between the mother and the varying siblings or in-laws was also interesting to explore. Overall, I liked the play. The fact that we read a similar play previously had helped my comprehension, sparked my intrigue with the various relationships, and ultimately caused me to broaden my taste on great American literature.

Yours sincerely!
Kalyna Rieland.

I thought that this play had a very unsatisfying storyline and end, although, I was able to find many connections between this play and other literary works. Similar to Walter, from A Raisin In The Sun, Tom wants freedom from his mother and the ability to make choices for himself. Neither of them want to be held back by their sisters. The end of this play left me feeling sad and unresolved. Laura still has no husband, Tom does not seem happy and Amanda has lost her son. It may have been a realistic ending, but it sure was not what i had wanted.

Isabel Buie


    For me,the play was lacking some flavor, but overall I was intrigued. As a reader I could really get a feel for what the characters were going through. We can see that while Laura wants specific things for her children; her children don't necessarily want those things. Amanda wants Tom to stay and provide for the family, but Tom wants to get away and move on with his life. Amanda wants to find Laura a gentlemen, but Laura doesn't know what she wants in life. Throughout the play we see that Amanda needs to stop trying to mold her childrens lives and let the chips fall where they may. She needs to accept the reality of their situation. I thought that Amanda would realize this at the end of the play, but it doesn't happen. The ending was a little abrupt. It doesn't tie up the loose ends of the play