Not Alone

"People are not so dreadful when ou know them. That's what you have to remember! And everybody has problems, not just you, but practivally everybody has got some problems. You think of yourself as havinghte only problems, as being the only one who is disappointed. But just look around you and you will see lots of people as disappointed as you are."
The Glass Menagerie, pg. 1277

"The different people are not like toher people, but being different is nothing to be ashamed of. Because other people are not such wonderfull people. They're one hundred times one thousand. You're one times one!"
pg. 1283

I could find two themes throughout this play- one was very positive, and the other mainly negative. The first, represented by the quote on top, is negative. It basically says that there are many unhappy people in this world- that it is inevitable, that being unhappy is not a unique quality. This is sometimes true, although I like to think that there are a lot of happy people in this world. It reminds me of the song "Just Wait" by Blues Traveler:
"If ever you are feeling like you're tired And all your uphill struggles leave you headed downhill If you realize your wildest dreams can hurt you And your appetite for pain has drinken it's fill
I ask of you a very simple question Did you think for one minute that you are alone? And is your suffering a privilege you share only? Or did you think that everybody else feels completely at home?"
The song goes on to explain that things will get better, and that sharing troubles with others can make it better. Jim lightly touches on this, how Laura is not alone, which is comforting.
The second theme is better- it says that originality is prized. Jim points out that Laura is different, in a good way. In life we often can tire of the same things over and over again. Therefore, things that are different are good. Being original, even if it is a little weird, is good. I love this quote, and the theme that it conveys, because I consider myself a little different. But, as Jim says, it's something to be proud of!