Are You My Mother?

Amanda:  "I've seen such pitiful casses in the South - barely tolerated spinsters living upon the grudging patronage of sister's husband or brother's wife! - stuck away in some little mouse-trap of a room - encouraged by one in-law to visit another - little birdlike women without any nest - eating the crust of humility all their life!" ("The Glass Menagerie" Scene 2 - p. 1243)

In "The Glass Menagerie," Laura suffers from many different obstacles.  At the beginning of the story, we find that Laura is crippled and wears a leg brace.  Later, Laura reveals that she dropped out of business school because of her shyness.  Laura has an extremely hard time fitting in with society; I believe she has a mental condition such as autism which causes her to be timid and obsessed with one thing such as the glass horse. 

In the excerpt above, Amanda, Laura's mother, tells Tom her worries about Laura.  Amanda is worried that Laura will never find a husband and spend her life dependent on the family.  Amanda uses a metaphor to describe her daughter as a lost bird without any nest.  Amanda worries that without a feeling of belonging, Laura will possess low self-esteem; however, this is ironic because Laura already possess a low-esteem due to her mother's pressure and outlandish actions. 

This part of the story reminds me of a Dr. Seuss book called "Are You My Mother?"  Throughout the story, the little bird tries to find its' home and family just as Laura attempts to find a husband she can belong to.