The scene ends again on Amanda's return to the subject of Laura's gentlemen callers. She closes her mind to the reality that Laura has no gentlemen callers. The question here is whether Amanda wants the callers for Laura or whether she wants them so as to relive her own youth. It seems in this scene that Amanda is thinking only of herself, but later we will see that she is afraid of what will happen to a young girl of Laura's position who is not married. Thus, Amanda's emotions are mixed at present but will become clearer as the play progresses.
Even though this is a short scene, note that the author has carefully filled it with most of the essential meanings of the entire play. The nagging, the gentleman caller, Tom's restlessness, and Laura's shyness are all presented in this first scene. Even the fact that Amanda tells Laura to practice her shorthand or to study the typing chart prepares the reader for the beginning of the next scene where Amanda discovers Laura's deception about her failure in school.
