The theme of escape is tied in with the other themes, disillusionment and disappointment. Tom is the master at escaping, going to the movies every night to free himself from both the confines of the apartment and his Mother's constant correcting and instructing. He longs to shed the responsibility of taking care of his mother and sister, dreaming of adventure. He hates his job at the warehouse, he resents having to work in a shoe factory, he wants to be a writer.
Tom is the character who is on the edge or closest to escaping. Even when he is at home in the apartment, he is allowed a temporary escape, he goes outside on the fire escape to smoke or distance himself from his mother.
Amanda needs to escape from the gloom and hopelessness of her everyday life. She has no future to look forward to, she has nothing going on in her life except her absolute need to improve the future for her children. She wants Tom to avoid becoming like his father. She is desperate to see Laura settled, now focusing on marriage rather than a job.
So to ease her discomfort with her present situation, she escapes into her memories of her youth. She talks about her life in Blue Mountain when she was a popular girl who had 17 gentleman callers one Sunday. Whether Amanda's memories are true or not we don't know for certain, they probably are, maybe just exaggerated.
Laura has the simplest life and the simplest escape. Content in the apartment, Laura escapes from her mother's criticism and constant planning of her life by playing the old records on the phonograph and by polishing her glass menagerie. She finds great comfort in her pieces of glass. Laura is actually the least unhappy person in the play.
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