1. INTRODUCTION TO
ARTHUR MILLER’S
DEATH OF A SALESMAN
FOR 12TH GRADE ENGLISH
STUDENTS AGED 16-18
By Elizabeth Cron

2. Historical Background
• The play is set in the late 1940’s, New York
• The effects of the Great Depression have
subsided
• World War II is over
• Materialism is reemerging in America
New York in the 1940’s

3. About the Author
Arthur Miller
 1915- 2005
 Born in Harlem, New
York

4. About the Author cont.
 Father owned a successful clothing company
 That company went down with the stock
market in the Great Depression
 Attended University of Michigan
 Began to be recognized for his writing in
college

5. Techniques Used
 Realism- stressing the depiction of
contemporary life and society as it exists or
existed
 Right: a realistic scene in Death
Of a Salesman
-this scene takes place in
real time with a concrete
setting

6. Techniques Used cont.
 Expressionism- emphasizes subjective
expression of the artist's inner experiences;
focus on emotion
 Right: an expressionistic scene
-notice the unclear
background
-also, this is a
flashback scene

7. Important Characters
Willie
 The play’s main protagonist
 Willy is a man past his prime who is presently
unhappy with his life.

8. Important Characters cont.
Linda
 Willy’s wife
 Dismissed by some as an enabler of her
husband
 Sometimes pitied for being such a devoted
wife (we’ll find out why later)

9. Important Characters cont.
Biff
 Willy and Linda’s oldest son
 Biff is fairly free-spirited, wants to make his
own path in life

10. Important Characters cont.
Happy
 Willy and Linda’s younger son
 Happy has bought into his father’s values and
dreams

11. Important Characters cont.
Ben
 Willy’s older brother who “went into the jungle
and came out rich”
 Critics have debated whether or not Ben ever
really existed.

12. Important Characters cont.
Charlie and Bernard
 Charlie, Bernard’s father, is a friend of Willy’s
who helps him in times of need
 Bernard, Biff’s former classmate, is at the time
of the play a successful lawyer
 These two characters represent the value of
hard work

13. Themes to Watch For
Money/ Value
 The emphasis on diamonds by Ben
 The quality of Willy’s car, refrigerator, etc.
 What the Loman boys consider to be valuable
(differences
between Biff and Hap’s
values)
Willy’s car: early 1940’s
Studebaker

14. Themes to Watch For cont.
Treatment of Women
 Willy’s interaction’s with The Woman
 Happy’s interactions with
women, the way he talks
about them to Biff
 Willy’s treatment of Linda
(his reaction to her darning
her stockings)
1940’s ad for stockings, a symbol of Linda’s
plight

15. Themes to Watch For cont.
Truth vs. Lies
 Was Willy ever really a good salesman?
 What is Happy’s job?
 What was Biff’s job when he worked for
Oliver?
 Why do the Loman’s have these false views of
the world?

16. Themes to Watch For cont.
Being “well-liked”
 Willy’s ideas about what makes a man
successful
 Hap and Biff’s opinions of those ideas
 Bernard’s success in spite of Willy’s idea that a
man must be “well-liked”

17. Symbols to Watch For
Howard’s tape recorder
 Consider:
 Willy does not know how to
work it
 “Only 150 dollars”
 “The maid kicked the plug out”
1940’s tape recorder

18. Symbols to Watch For cont.
Willy’s seeds
 Consider:
 Nothing grows in the Lomans’ yard anymore
 Linda tries to explain why they will not grow
 Willy’s emotions
while in his garden

19. Symbols to Watch For cont.
The flute music
 Consider:
 Willy’s father sold flutes
 Willy’s feelings about his father
 Would the elder Mr. Loman have been proud of
Willy’s and/or Ben’s life paths?

20. While Reading…
 Consider all of the information we have
discussed
 Look for more symbols
 Form your own opinions of
who has the right dreams
and who does not
 Enjoy!