The Glass Menagerie: Situational Irony

     Upon finishing The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, I am surprised by the usage of situational irony.  At the beginning, Tom is both appalled and insulted when Amanda deems him selfish.  I was surprised by her words because Tom "makes a slaves of himself to..." support his family (Williams).  Tom has put his dreams on hold to take care of his family.  Moreover, Tom is placed with the family's financial stress when his mother does nothing but nag on him.  I would not characterize Tom as selfish for wanting to escape Amanda's pressures after work.  However, Tom ends up leaving his mother and sister to fend for themselves.  Although, I do not blame Tom, he did leave Amanda and Laura in a pretty terrible situation.  Tom saying he is not selfish, and then selfishly leaving his family is an example of situational irony.  The audience's expectations of what is appropriate to happen is the complete opposite of what actually  does happen.