Tennessee Williams

From ArticleWorld

Tennessee Williams is a famous American playwright. His most renowned plays are: A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Glass Menagerie, The Night of the Iguana and The Rose Tattoo. Tennessee Williams was originally born Thomas Lanier Williams III on March 26, 1911. Williams died on February 25, 1983, at the age of 71 after a bottle cap got logged in his throat. Born and raised primarily in the South critics called Williams style of writing, Southern Gothic.

Background

Tennessee Williams was born in Columbus, Mississippi. When he was three his family relocated to Clarksdale, Mississippi. They finally settled in St. Louis, Missouri in 1918. Williams home life was complicated, his father was somewhat abusive, his mother overly-attached. Williams also had a one brother and a sister he was particularly close to named Rose. Rose was diagnosed with Schizophrenia, and after a botch frontal lobotomy she was confined to mental hospitals for the rest of her life. After Rose’s failed surgery Williams sank into destructive behavior where he drank and he also suffered from depression. However, many of his works were inspired by his family. Williams who is known for creating heroines who are emotionally troubled, these female characters are somewhat based on his sister Rose.

Characters

The characters in Williams plays were modeled directly from his family. For example, there was Rose, Williams sister who was Laura Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie, as well as, Blanche Dubois in A Streetcar Named Desire. Another example is that Williams mother is supposed to have been the inspiration of Amanda Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie. Then there was Tom Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie and Sebastian in Suddenly Last Summer, both representative of people Williams knew in real life.