Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Essay

The fundamentals of the play

While discussing Tennessee Williams’s play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, I would like to highlight some fundamentals of the author’s work. First of all, I would like to point out that at the first time the play seems to be easy to read; however, it is only the first impression. Generally, there are a lot of complicated themes the author discloses in the play.

In my opinion, all the works written by Tennessee Williams reflect some biographical data. For instance, everybody knows that the playwright’s father was an adventurous and an alcoholic, and his mother was a submissive, but hysterical woman. So, how these facts can be interpreted? First of all, I have to admit that these data have direct relation to the plot of the play.

While reading Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, it becomes obvious that one of the main characters, Brick was an alcoholic. When speaking about the author’s relations with his mother, one can make a conclusion that feminist aspects must be considered in depth. Of course, nobody will deny the fact that the play is based on the author’s personal experience. The author reflected his inner world and the feelings he experienced when being a child.

The thesis statement

The major themes the author discloses in his plays are related to sexual violence, family and financial constraints. When speaking about Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, one is to keep in mind that the key aspects Tennessee Williams highlights are associated with “undertones of emotional, sexual, and spiritual need that are apparent in his character Maggie the Cat” (Fellows 1).

The basic points of an analysis

According to the plot of the play, Brick doesn’t support any relations with his wife; this point gives us an opportunity to suppose that lack of desire by husband and Maggie’s social standing can be explained by the time period in which Tennessee Williams’s play was written.

To my mind, one of the key themes of the play is considered to be absence of mutual respect and support. “It is obvious throughout the script of the play that everyone has their own agenda in the family, and no one is really there to support each other as a normal family should be” (“Cat On a Hot Tin Roof: Plot and Theme” par. 3).

The first family, which includes Brick and Margaret, is not rich; moreover, Brick aggravates financial situation in his family. The second family, which includes Gooper and Mae, is selfish. The most interesting fact, however, is that nobody wants to become a real family. Nobody understands what the term unity means and how important this word for both families.

On the other hand, it seems that the author added some elements of humor in his play. Thus, it is really funny to observe how hostile all characters are. Although, it seems that Tennessee Williams’s humor was not healthy, unfortunately…The fact that all characters are against each other is not comical, anyway.

In Cat, Maggie probably does love Brick, Big Mama probably does love Big

Daddy, and Brick loves Skipper and Big Daddy as surely as they have loved

him. Yet the lies separating those who would love are not easily vanquished.

In this web of familial, fraternal and marital relationships, Williams finds only

psychic ruin, as terminal as Big Daddy’s cancer and as inexorable as the

greed that is devouring the romantic Old South (Crandell 124).

In my opinion, it is uncertainty in family relationships which brought fatal consequences. On the other hand, it is not a secret that psychological support is one of the most important things people need to be happy.

In spite of the fact that Gooper and Mae were selfish for the wealth and had established jobs they were not happy. They had normal home setting; however, they lost the most important thing in family relations – they didn’t respect the strongest feeling in the world. On the contrary, they didn’t understand what they lost and what their real trouble was.

Another important theme of the play I would like to touch on is homosexuality. Taking into account the time period in which the play was written (1955), one can suppose that the second theme seems to be hidden. On the one hand, there is nothing unusual that Brick and Skipper were best friends.

However, one is to keep in mind that they were extremely close friends and Brick’s wife became jealous because of such friendship. “It is obvious Brick does not appreciate the devotion of Maggie. He is in a state of denial about life (and his possible sexual orientation and attraction to Skipper) and has degraded Maggie since the beginning of the relationship” (Fellows 1). So, again feminist aspect takes place.

There many critical articles concerning the play Cat On a Hot Tin Roof. In my opinion, the author reflects the conflict of the personality; so, a person’s inner problems and isolations caused unstable family relations. Thus, there is a need to remember the author’s childhood and the time period when he acquired poor social skills and most of his peers referred to him as ‘Miss Nancy’ (Londre 20).

The conclusion

Unfortunately, the driving force the main characters rely on is recognized to be some kind of lie. For instance, Mae and Gooper who are selfish for wealth lie not only to each other, but to other people who surround them. Of course, their lie is related to their affection for Big Mama’s husband. Moreover, it is evident that they neglect the fact that Big Daddy hates all their children and doesn’t like Gooper. On the other hand, Big Daddy can’t understand the basic reasons of the so-called pretence.

Taking into account the previous paragraph, I suppose that another important theme of the author’s play is considered to be the conflict between honesty and lie. This is a global theme, and in some way, one can call the theme unique, as it existed at all times.

Generally, I think Tennessee Williams is really a psychologist. He reveals the truth, the brutal reality and discloses helplessness of other characters. Let’s consider one of the examples:

BIG MAMA: You don’t mean that!

BIG DADDY: What makes you think I don’t mean it?

BIG MAMA: I just know you don’t mean it.

BIG DADDY: You don’t know a goddam thing and you never did!

BIG MAMA: Big Daddy, you don’t mean that (Williams 77).

This dialogue shows us that Big Daddy’s wife has no arguments to prove her thoughts or ideas. She doesn’t want to accept her husband’s brutality and denies his words. All the characters do the same; unfortunately, they can’t be honest and destroy their lives with their own hands.

Works Cited

“Cat On a Hot Tin Roof: Plot and Theme.” The Pennsylvania State University. Web.

Crandell, George W., ed. The Critical Response to Tennessee Williams. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1996. Questia. Web.

Fellows, Niki. Feminist Analysis of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”, n.d. Web.

Londre, Hardison. Tennessee Williams. New York: Frederick Ungar Publishers, 1979. Print

Williams, Tennessee. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. New York: Penguin Putnam Inc., 1955. Print