Oh Laura

I think that Laura's disability in the play is more her shy personality, rather than the brace she has to wear on her leg. She was able to walk around for hours when she was supposed to be in school, so I think that the disability is a front for her shyness and inability to meet people. However, her mother would rather pass her off as being a cripple, rather than actually being afraid of people. I think it is also possible that Laura is afraid of people and what they think because so much emphasis was made on her condition by her mother that she became too self-conscious about it. Therefore, not only is Laura a shy person, but she is a shy person with a defining disability that is pronounced by her mother at home. Poor Laura! She has always been told that her disability was something to hide and not discuss that of course she was going to be shy about it. I think that Amanda is what caused the problems for her children. She wanted to protect them so much that she actually drove them away and farther into themselves. Tom left home just like his father and Laura retreated into her shy self because it is what she thought she had to do since she was crippled.