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¶ … Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman"
Perhaps no other play in American history has captured the essence of the nation's collective consciousness during a particular era than Arthur Miller's 1949 drama Death of a Salesman. Presented predominately from the perspective of aging salesman Willy Loman, this contribution to dramatic literature is at once absurd and tragic, with Miller employing several distinct authorial styles to tell the story of an increasingly senile Loman, who wavers between states of lucidity and fantasy throughout the narrative. Several members of Loman's family play central roles in Death of a Salesman, including Willy's loyal wife Linda, his failed sons Biff and Happy, and each character is an extension of the protagonist himself, representing the overall ordinary nature of his life despite delusions to the contrary (Koon 31). The reason that this play has come to encapsulate the prevailing American identity during the era in which it was published stems from Miller's uncanny ability to imbue Loman with a disturbing feeling of familiarity, because when one reads the play in textual form, or views an enactment on stage, it becomes immediately clear that Willy Loman represents the failed ambitions...
Loman's occupation as a travelling salesman -- wandering from place to place hoping to sell strangers products that he didn't have a hand in creating -- is also positioned by Miller as a symbolic extension of American capitalism, and one of the primary rhetorical functions of Death of a Salesman is to cast an uncompressing light on the consequences of unrepentant avarice and aimless ambition. The fact that the audience never learns exactly what commodity Loman has spent his life selling is another exquisite touch by Miller, as the audience slowly comes to discover the tragic truth that Loman has been selling himself all the while. As a modern observer of Miller's work concluded within a dramatic review published by The New York Times in 1999 asks "the salesman's goods, whether his valise holds hardware or underwear, turns out to be cheap…
Works Cited
Goodman, Walter. "Death of a Salesman: Review." New York Times 28 Apr 1999, E1. Print.
Koon, Helene, ed. Twentieth century interpretations of Death of a salesman: a collection of critical essays. Simon & Schuster, 1983.
Miller, Arthur. "Death of a Salesman. 1949." The Portable Arthur Miller (1976): 3-133.
Death of a Salesman: Tragedy in Prose Tragedy, can easily lure us into talking nonsense." Eric Bentley In Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, we are introduced to Willy Loman, who believes wholeheartedly in what he considers the promise of the American Dream -- that a "well liked" and "personally attractive" man in business will unquestionably acquire the material comforts offered by modern American life. Willy's obsession with the superficial qualities of attractiveness
" Though critics such as Sheila Huftel characterize Willy Loman's "fall" as only a fall from "an imagined height," it is nevertheless still a fall, which makes Willy Loman, like Oedipus, a tragic figure. Willy has created very powerful ideas about what he wants his life to be and what he wants his sons lives to be. But these ideas are part of what make Willy who he is. He cannot
Death of a Salesman Culture and Gender in Death of a Salesman American culture is clearly changing. Yet, many within it are refusing to adapt, and are continuing to hold on to outdated middle class values that don't work within today's social context. This is Willy Loman. Arthur Miller presents a sad but realistic look at the destruction of the American Dream and middle class values within his work Death of a
Willy's "psychopathy," he explained, is a manifestation of his being "other-directed" -- or possessing a value system entirely determined by external norms…evidence that goes beyond normal human inconsistency into the realm of severe internal division" (3). The author's analysis illustrates that Willy's "psychopathy" is an inevitable and consistent result of his constant dreaming about success and wealth using the wrong approach. Knowing that he has failed himself and his
In conclusion, Death of a Salesman tells the tragic tale of Willy Loman's life. We do feel pity for this man as we watch him fail and we do understand that he makes tragic mistakes throughout his life that have brought him to this point. Many critics want to make allowances for the play because it represents the world in which we live. In doing so, they seem to forget
Death of a Salesman: Ethics in Business Arthur Miller's play titled Death of a Salesman is classic example of the transition experienced by those involved in the business world during the middle part of the 20th Century. Business ethics and the economy are interwoven and tied to the theme of achieving the American dream in the play. Willy, the main character in the play is caught in between two popular but