The Glass Menagerie
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Assigned across 2 curriculum lists
Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams is assigned in US schools at grades 11–12. It appears across 2 curriculum references, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.
This page shows where The Glass Menagerie is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
- Grade range
- Grades 11–12
- Age range
- Ages 15–18
- Pages
- 144
- Reading time
- about 2h 40m (est.)
- First published
- 1944
- Genre
- Drama
- ISBN-13
- 9780811214049
New to these terms? Reading levels by grade
More formats & details
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About this book
Tennessee Williams's autobiographical 'memory play' follows the Wingfield family in Depression-era St. Louis: the domineering Amanda, her painfully shy daughter Laura and her glass animal collection, and the restless narrator Tom. The drama examines illusion, memory, family obligation, and the gap between dreams and reality. A frequent grades 11-12 and AP text for studying modern American theater.
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See all books like The Glass Menagerie→ — matched on theme + reading level.
Why widely assigned
This Drama title, typically at grades 11–12. Written in the 1940s; pairs with curriculum units on family and illusion and reality; cited across 2 curriculum frameworks.
Themes
Content notes
disability · family conflict
Where this book is assigned
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Common questions
- What grade level is The Glass Menagerie?
- The Glass Menagerie is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 11–12. It appears on 2 school reading lists, from grade 9 to grade 12. Exact placement varies by school and district.
- How long does it take to read The Glass Menagerie?
- It takes about 2h 40m to read The Glass Menagerie (144 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 160 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- What curricula assign The Glass Menagerie?
- The Glass Menagerie appears on reading lists for AP English Literature & Composition, Common Core State Standards (ELA). Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
- Is The Glass Menagerie banned in schools?
- The Glass Menagerie has documented removals from at least one public-school district in 2 states (TX, WI) per PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. Policies vary by district.
- What themes does The Glass Menagerie explore?
- Central themes in The Glass Menagerie include family, illusion and reality, memory, disillusionment.
Why this book is on this list
How we classifyHide
Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.
- Lexile measure
- Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
- Grade band
- Grades 11–12 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 2 curricula on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- Not yet documented in a state-level framework on this site.
- Removal / banning records
- Documented as challenged or removed in 2 states per PEN America’s Index of School Book Bans — see the full banned & challenged books list.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- No seasonal or program-specific tags on this book.