Death Of A Salesman Critical Essay

Death of a Salesman Essay
By: Raleigh Mullin
In the play, Death of a Salesman, the main character, Willy Loman's tragedy is due to both his own
flawed character and society's flaws. Advancements in science throughout this century have led to
tremendous advancements in industry. In this case however, advancements in industry have not
always led to advancements in living conditions. For some, society has created mass wealth. For
Willy Loman, however, mass society has created only tremendous grief and hardship, based on
endless promise. For these reasons, his tragedy is due both to societies flaws and to the flaws in his
own character. It was society who stripped him of his dignity, piece by piece. It was society who
stripped him of his lifestyle, and his own sons...show more content...
It would identify people who are a danger to themselves or to others and treat them. If such a net
had existed, Willy Loman might now have met his premature end. Instead, he could have received
psychiatric help and recovered from his condition. It was the direct result of the flaws on society,
which led to Will Loman's death. It was the greed that was so predominant around him that led to his
unhappiness. It was the lack of compassion from society, which allowed his unhappiness to flourish,
and which eventually consumed him. In the end, it was the lack of a social safety net, which failed to
save him from himself. Everyone has conflicts that they must face sooner or later. The way in
which people deal with these personal conflicts can differ as much as problem to get it out of the
way. Willy Lowman's technique in Arthur Miller's playDeath of a Salesman, leads to very severe
consequences. Willy never really does anything to help the situation, he just escapes into the past,
whether intentionally or not, to happier times were problems were scarce. The use of this escape
throughout the play can be compared to the use of a drug, because he uses his escapes as if they
were narcotics. As the play progressed, the reader learns that it can be a dangerous drug, because it
is addictive and deadly. The first time that Willy is seen lapsing off into the past is when he
encounters Biff after arriving home. The conversation between Willy and Linda reflects Willy's
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Death Of A Salesman Identity Essay
The 1940s is often referred to as the most influential decade of mankind. Countless advancements
were made in technology, medicine, and arts. Although this is true, if you were to look up "1940s"
on Google the automatic search results yields suggestions such as fashion, hair, clothes, and
dresses. These results stem from the shallow image oriented society of this decade, both through
materialism and visual appearances. Understanding of his surroundings, Arthur Miller wrote Death
of a Salesman in the final year of 1949. Ingrained within characters of the story are certain
personality traits which define their identities. The identity of the individuals found in the play are
not their own, rather the identity of the individuals found in the play are demonstrative of society
and the culture. The first example of apprehension is apparently appearance. The identities of the
Loman boys are defined by their physical image, as was instilled on them by their father. Directly
after comparing his sons to adonises, an allusion made in order to further display their values, Willy
says "I see great things for you kids "( ). By calling the boys adonises, Miller could also be trying to
demonstrate that the fabrication of attractiveness guaranteeing success, while extremely present in
the current culture, has been an inevitable part of society and culture's influence on the common
man. Willy associates physical appearance with success, creating their identities which mirror current
society. As a result of the this concept in the culture during World War II, this concept became the
standard the belief in...show more content...
Miller skillfully was able to make characters which alone give subtle context to the surrounding
society and culture. The overwhelming importance of image through physical appearance and
materialization can be seen through the actions of his

Death of a Salesman Analysis Essay
Many works of literature have the theme of a failed American Dream, which is the basic idea that
no matter what social class an individual may be, they still have an equal ability to achieve
prosperity and a good life for their family; however, there has been much debate over whether or not
the American dream is still obtainable in modern society. One piece of American literature that
substantiates the fact that the American Dream can not be gotten is Arthur Miller'sDeath of a
Salesman which describes the tragedy of the average person in America. A number of other writers
also draw the inability to capture the American Dream. John Steinbeck demonstrates in his highly
acclaimed novel The Grapes of Wrath how hard economic times can...show more content...
This idea is also clearly represented in modern times due to the fact that the nation is once more in
a recession and every one wants the shiny new car or the huge lavish house. Miller senses this and
uses Willy as an example of one of the many who fail to reach the American Dream and never will.
Miller also challenges society to reflect upon how it interprets success, as Abbotson points out:
"Miller sees many people's lives being poisoned by their desire to be successful. People like the
Lomans are doomed to try for success but fail, with all the resulting guilt that such failure brings.
Others like Ben and Howard display an ability to make money that deems them successful but at the
cost of their own moral integrity." (Abbotson, 317)
By providing the story with foils such as Ben and Howard being successful, Miller sheds a bit of
hope on America then proceeds to thwart that same hope with the fact that they lose their moral
integrity, which is a key component of the American Dream; therefore Miller clearly displays how
society will continue to deny Americans the coveted dream they aspire to attain. Literary critic
Thomas Porter states:
"Willy's status in society, his family background are typical; even more of a type is Willy's identity
as a salesman. He is a product of a

Critical Criticism Of Death Of A Salesman
Death of a Salesman is about a man that can't get passed his own ego. William, the salesman, is a
narcissistic untrustworthy man that has no values for his own wife. At the beginning of the play,
we can clearly see that Willy is this macho man that wouldn't accept his faults. His decaying state of
mind gives us even more evidence to argue his deficiencies. His wife, Linda, is always trying to
defend him against his own family, yet she unconsciously knows that her husband has some sort of
mental illness, such as dementia. Both his sons, Biff and Happy, are in today's society "normal"
citizens that are trying to change their world around and succeed. However, Willy sees this as a
waste of time, and insults their efforts of creating their own lives which is mostly...show more
content...
At the very first few lines, we experience how badly Willy treats his wife. He seems used to be
"bothered" by her questions, yet he dislikes her obtrusiveness. Linda's resistance is what makes
her the perfect wife. In fact, she will defend her husband to any extend and even excuse his
actions in order to protect and leave intact her love towards him. She somewhat knows that Willy
has cheated on her, but refuses to accept it because she doesn't want to be left alone. During the
1940s, a divorced woman was seen as disgraceful and being a widow was the better option of ending
a marriage. She says to Biff that "he's the dearest man in the world to me, and I wont have anyone
making him feel unwanted and low and blue (p.55)." Indeed, her love for her husband is very
appreciated even when he has cheated on her, yet this character lacks the self–love that one should
have if someone doesn't feel that he/she belongs. Throughout the play, we can see that the language
Willy uses towards Linda is often rude or even towards the limits of being offensive. He has no
respect towards Linda which is evident by him cheating on

Critique Of Death Of A Salesman
"Death of a Salesman" is a story of a man who wants to be a successful businessman and dreams of
the same thing for his sons. The story goes on to explain how Loman's hard work does not pay. In
other words, today's society is filled with people who do not get the credit they deserve for the
"little things" they do in life. Loman is an example of 20th century people who resort to illusion in
order to gain some dignity. The author, Arthur Miller, tells the story of a sales man who faces the
end of his life without fulfilling his idealistic ambitions.
For a hard work he puts in, he does not get appreciate it for. For instance, Loman would drive 700
miles to work and come home without even earing a cent. He had to borrow money from Charley,
his next–door neighbour, just to provide food on the table so that he could provide a future for his
sons. I think that Loman should have acknowledged that his two sons never even took the time out
to thank him for just going out every day...show more content...
Loman– Willy is low man. No great hero, he is already so low on the ladder that he has hardly
anywhere to fall. I believe, the meaning of names has a lot of impact on one's life. In this case,
Loman tried to be best in life but was never successful. Even his death could not bring satisfaction
for his family since his other suicide attempts would not let the insurance company pay the family
money.
While reading about death of a salesman I believe this is biographical criticism. Since at that time
the American society was evolving in to what is known as 1950's traditional family structure.
Another reason as it is biographical criticisms is because the author is alluding to his struggles
through a character called Willy Loman. The author is taking about the time when the family had to
go through great Depression when then family was facing financial hardship. The author, Arthur
Miller, is narrating his life and psychological problems during his teen

Death Of A Salesman Analysis Essay
Death of a salesman is tragdy play written by American modernist Arthur Miller. Miller won a
Pulitzer Prize in drama in 1949 for Death of a Salesman. In his play death of salesman he mixed
realism with inner thoughts of the characters. He is talking about wilily and his family Biff and
happy and his wife Linda. wily struggle with his thoughts and overthinking in the play. He came
home early his wife thoughts he crashed the car again, which I think is like foreshadow for what
will happen later on. Williy here is describing as a nervous and frustrated person. Lemon's family
suffers from doubts and his wife is helping him in count them. The play contains dreams and hope.
Williy wanted his sons to be successful and have job. Happy is the good son. And biff is the
opposite thing of what his father dreamed he would be.
Miller used many interesting technique in this paly. Also his style of writing is genius for me. It is
the reason of me choosing this play. The way he describe the Wily inner thoughts and things going
on in his mind makes it very exciting and enjoyable to read. He uses the theme of American dream
and past verses reality....show more content...
He show us how Willy is suffering from his mind by telling us what he goes through in his head
and that there is many trouble going there tell he started talking to himself out loud. And that he
start imaging people talking to him as his brother Ben .Also he always shows the typically
American family when he bring up about the chees in the play. Furthermore, even the name he
uses in his play indicates something. Happy is the good son and do what his father want unlike
Biff that he is a disappointed to his father. Also the Dave the single man, even if he was loved by
many people he still signal and alone. Even Willy's name which is Willy Loman as if it is a symbol
that Willy is not successful lack moral that he is a low

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Critical Analysis of "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller
CHARACTER ANALYSIS
Miller presents Willy Loman as an incredibly unstable, troubled and misguided salesman, with
imaginations from his past (51). He emphasizes his preoccupation with success and boggles
between diverse experiences of his life. Conversely, Miller makes it evident that Willy is not a
successful man and depends on others for assistance (52). There is a strong resentment in Willy's
personality and his deeds presume a more outstanding past than was the case. Willy imagines the
neighborhood just like years ago and is sentimental for his time working for Wagner (Miller 52).
The play is a mixture of confrontations, dreams, arguments and memories, all of which makeup the
turning point of Willy's life. The play ends with Willy's suicidal act and successive funeral (Miller
60).
Willy's moral low point comes with the realization that he is unfaithful to Linda and the fantasies
about lost chances for notoriety, wealth, and fame. He fails to value and appreciate his wife.
Moreover, he is unable to admit the fact that he is slightly successful. Therefore, Willy fantasizes
about lost opportunities for wealth, fame, and notoriety. Till the end, Willy...show more content...
Every time he loses himself in the past, he does so in line to refute the present, mainly if the present
is too problematic to accept. Willy spends more time in the past as a way of restoring order in his
life. The more disastrous and fragmented reality becomes the more it is necessary for Willy to
make an alternate reality, even if it needs him to live in the past. This is shown immediately after
Willy is sacked. Willy's confidence resurfaced when he thought he had made the right decision by
refusing Ben's offer. Therefore, Willy's memory has preoccupied him from the certainty of losing his

Theme Of Death Of A Salesman
Death of Salesman In Theatre Mitu's "hyper–theatrical" production of "Death of A Salesman" by
Arthur Miller, many aspects were added to heighten the messages and morals of the story about
the American Dream. The stage is a fluorescently lit square with no set pieces besides a black
chair that sits in the center. Once the characters enter many things are different from a typical
production of "Death of Salesman." The costumes resemble the traditional idea, but with a twist.
Willy wears a white collared shirt, but the upper sleeves are ripped off, so when he wears his blazer
during the flashbacks, you can not see the missing sleeves. Linda wears a dress resembling a maid
or a housewife. Both Linda and Willy wear masks with wrinkles when...show more content...
The other characters are used as pawns to convey this story of loss and regret. Therefore, we no
longer see these characters as people, but more as passing ideas. The director confronts the
materialistic values of the American Dream and how quality of life is measured by what you own,
how good of a job you have, and how well you are liked by others.
The objectification of the other characters is obvious in Happ being a literal punching bag. This
displays the abuse and rejection he receives from his family. In one of the first scenes of the play
Biff begins to punch Happ in a playful way, but as the show progresses Linda strikes the punching
bag when she is yelling at the boys about abandoning their father. By doing this the lens of the
story is narrowed to the Lomans, and even smaller, to the relationship between Biff and Willy. As a
teenager, Willy puts pressure on Biff to be everything he was never able to be. Biff is the star
football player and plans to attend a good college. He is supposed to bring honor to the Loman
name, but when he fails Biff's facade is dropped and Willy only sees him as a failure which he is
responsible for. This is visible in the flashbacks by Willy addressing Biff's football gear as Biff
himself, but in the present Biff only carries his football gear in his hand.
Willy carries around an open, empty briefcase

The Transformation of the Protagonist What is it that makes a character relatable? When a writer
develops a character they will often create tragedy or hardships for that character to endure. The
character will then go through a transformation and become the hero that the story calls for, at least
in most cases. Theatrical writing is no exception. In the play Death of a Salesman the protagonist is
not necessarily the main character. The protagonist in this play is the main character's son Biff.
However, in the play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof it is harder to determine if the protagonist is Brick or
Maggie, but I believe Brick is the main protagonist. In the play Dutchman it is quite the opposite
and the protagonist, Clay, is very clearly emphasized. These three plays and their respective
protagonists are all good examples of relatable characters that were transformed through the
events of the plays. The protagonist of Death of a Salesman is Willy's son Biff. Before his
hardship he is an overly confident football player who slides by in school because the neighbor
boys helps him with his homework, and even does it for him sometimes. Willy praises him and
lets him get away with stealing and being reckless. This leads Biff to develop some bad habits, but
Willy makes excuses on Biff's behalf because he believes his son will be successful in life if he is
"well liked." Later, Biff finds out that he won't be able to graduate because he is failing math, so he
seeks out his father's

Analysis Of ' Death Of A Salesman '
Critical Essay
In Arthur Millers "Death of a salesman" we encounter an on–going feud between salesman Willy
Loman and his son Biff Loman. In Willy's eyes the key to gaining success in life is to be well liked,
attractive and having a great personality, he is convinced if you have all these traits it guarantees you
success and that you could outrun those with qualifications in terms of being employed.
Willy bestows this theory of his onto his sons Biff and Happy during their teenage years. During
Biffs High School years he attains the captain position for the school's football team which gave
Willy another reason to believe that he and his son were on track to achieving the American Dream.
Willy is more than convinced at this point that they are both heading down the same path: to be
known, to achieve success and to be liked.
When Biff fails his maths exam during his senior year in high school he loses all hope, furthermore
he discovers Willys involvement with another woman after he decided to pay Willy a surprise visit.
This heavily influences their relationship they had as Biff realises the ugly truth and felt betrayed by
his father.
Willy has soaring expectations of Biff, however Biff fails to meet his father expectations, and
hides his failures from Willy in order to keep him happy. Even after Biff flunks maths, Willy still
believes Biff can "make it". He doesn't believe this because Biff is his son, but rather because Biff
is a handsome young man, with a great

Critical Analysis Of Death Of A Salesman
How can two people watch or read the same story and yet, interpret it completely differently?
Does it have to do with the author's intentions, or maybe it has to do with the viewers' own
backgrounds and ideologies? Whatever the case may be, viewing one piece of work can lead to a
wide array of opinions and critiques. It is through the diversity of such lenses that Death of a
Salesman, by Arthur Miller has become one of the most well–known plays in modern history. There
are many different ways in which a play can be criticized, however, criticisms from the approaches
of a Marxist and reader–response will be utilized to further dissect Death of a Salesman. Marxist
criticism sees pieces of works as a struggle between different socioeconomic classes; what better way
to see Miller's play than for what it is at face value, the struggle of a middle–class man trying to
achieve the American dream (1750). On the other hand, a reader–response criticism comes from
either an objective or subjective view; in this case Death of a Salesman will be viewed with a
subjective lens based on Willy's deteriorating mental health (1746). Through a Marxist's eyes, Death
of a Salesman represents the struggle of middle–class families in a capitalistic world. From an early
age, kids are taught to do well in school, be involved with sports and activities, and to go on to
college; all in hopes of achieving the American Dream. This dream of obtaining success through hard
work leads many into the

Death of a Salesman, a Film Review Essay
Death of a Salesman is probably one of Arthur Miller's greatest achievements. This play describes the
sixty–three–year–old protagonist Willy Loman, a rounded and psychologically motivated individual.
Willy is also a familiar American Philistine and even a universal type. He embodies the stupidity,
immorality, self–delusion, and failure of middle–class values Miller portrays as being sterile and
vicious. At the same time Willy's love of his delinquent sons, however harmful and wrongly
expressed has made him "a King Lear in mufti." The transparent skeletal settings may be altered
instantaneously; they modify naturalism into an expressionistic and dreamlike dramatization of
Willy's free association, shifting between and confusing the present,...show more content...
Willy Loman is a salesman of small achievement who worships business and small success. His two
sons, Biff and Happy, are as unsuccessful as he, but their failure derives mostly from Willy's
confused ideals and social blindness. In the end, Biff makes Willy's see their lives are empty
dreams, and Willy kills himself in the final illusion that his insurance money will enable Biff to
achieve success.
Willy is a salesman who has seen better days, or at least lets himself believe he was once more
appreciated by his employers. His life has been devoted to his work, his wife, and his sons, Happy
and Biff. His boys are the apple of his eye, so he cannot see that they will probably never amount to
much. And that Biff has never gotten over his disgust at finding his father in a hotel room with a
prostitute has continued to haunt Willy. At sixty–three Willy loses his job and has no where to turn.
Then he kills himself in an automobile crash, hoping his $20,000 insurance will pay off the
mortgage and give his boys another chance. At his funeral, attended only by Linda, the boys, and
Charley's son; who tried to tell Biff about his father. He said that a salesman had to dream, that
without dreams he was nothing. When the dreams were gone, a salesman was finished. Biff
characterizes his father as "a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And
when they start not smiling back––that's an

Death Of A Salesman Marxist Analysis
Hayden Powell
Professor Hutchison
English 2201
7 December 2017
"Capitalism and Marxism in Death of a Salesman"
Death of a Salesman is a classic American play about the tragic life and times of Willy Loman and
his family. The entire play revolves around Willy Loman's constant struggle to become something
he is not. The American dream is a major theme we see throughout the play and one that Willy
himself is obsessed with. However, he is never able to achieve this dream because his idea of how
to succeed is wrong. The play is driven by Arthur Miller's promotion or Marxist values and his
condemnation of Capitalism. "In many ways, Marxist criticism has adapted to the conditions of the
consumer rather than industrial capitalism and to global rather than national economies" (Critical
Approaches, 1987). In this paper, I will discuss the Marxist and Capitalist underlying themes in the
play.
This play is set at a time when America began to shift economically and a need for material goods
was at an all–time high. The Loman family finds itself caught up in a capitalistic society. Willy
cannot understand the world is starting to pass him by and remains obsessed with the idea of the
American dream. The definition of a Capitalist system is an economy where the producer of a
good keeps all profits to themselves. This economic system drives people to be higher achievers, as
their earnings depend solely on what they accomplish. This system also breeds a more competitive
workplace

Critical Analysis Of Death Of A Salesman
It is known that in literature, a tragedy is one of the most popular genres. It always combines some
story which discusses human sufferings with a certain sense of audience fulfillment. The roots of
the tragedy are related to ancient Greece. A Greek tragedy is a sad story, which represents a
character with a tragic flaw leading to his downfall. In addition, in traditional tragedy, the main
character falls from high authority and often it is predetermined by fate, while the audience
experiences catharsis (Bloom 2). Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman is considered to be a
tragedy because this literary work has some of the main characteristics of the tragedy genre. In this
play, the main character Willy Loman possesses such traits and behaviors that lead to his downfall,
and the audience experiences catharsis. Willy Loman as a real tragic hero comes to the decision to
commit suicide because of serious financial problems of his family (Phelps 79). This play has
already been criticized by a number of literary critics who represented different opinions on the plot
of the book. The major goal of this paper is to critically evaluate the play Death of a Salesman
written by the well–known American writer Arthur Miller, paying special attention to the play's
characteristics of a tragedy.
In the play Death of a Salesman, the author investigates human nature and represents his main
character as a person whose dissatisfaction with his own life leads to his tragic end. The plot of

Essay on Death of a Salesman
"Death of a Salesman" written by Arthur Miller in 1948 attempts to give the audience an unusual
glimpse into the mind of a Willy Loman, a mercurial 60–year–old salesman, who through his
endeavor to be "worth something", finds himself struggling to endure the competitive capitalist
world in which he is engulfed. Arthur Miller uses various theatrical techniques to gradually strip the
protagonist down one layer at a time, each layer revealing another truth about his distorted past. By
doing this, Miller succeeds in finally exposing a reasonable justification for Willy's current state of
mind. These techniques are essential to the play, as it is only through this development that Willy
can realistically be driven to motives of suicide.
The...show more content...
Already here, the audience is aware of Willy's strange ways, as well as the method with which Linda
deals with it. This hints towards Linda's truth–evasive nature at an early stage, and is emphasized by
her tendency to deny Willy's apparent problems: "Maybe it was the steering", "Maybe it's your
glasses." (Miller, 9).
Language plays an imperative role in the formation as well as the development of the characters.
Unlike the majority of plays in the past, Death of a Salesman rarely uses "memorable speech" which
was the most common form of dramatic language. Instead, for the most part, the characters speak in
colloquial English. This automatically labels the family as a typical, middle–class family, therefore
easily identifiable with for the audience. By doing so, Miller also discards of any artificial
idealistic language, thereby adding to the crucial theme of realism in the play. The language
presented by the characters however, is by no means invariant. Different characters use different
language to expose their personalities, as well as varying it themselves depending on their current
inner state of mind. The two most blatant examples of the way characters vary their language are
Willy and Linda.
Willy throughout the play, uses a very simplistic colloquial English. This causes the audience to see
him as the "every man" allowing them to further associate with him. One feature of his language that
often draws attention to itself is

Analysis Of Death Of A Salesman
In Theatre Mitu's "hyper–theatrical" production of "Death of A Salesman" by Arthur Miller many
aspects were added to heighten the messages and morals of the story about the American Dream.
One major choice was the use of objects to signify characters as well as add to characters. Willy
carried a empty, open briefcase. Linda carried a sun parasol. Biff carried football gear. All the
other characters are objects themselves. Happ is a punching bag. Charley is a refrigerator door,
and Bernard is a bug repellent light. The Women is a fan. Ben is a big light, and the waiter is a
champagne bucket. Almost all of the characters excluding Biff, Willy, and Linda are recording
voices which creates a degree of separation from the outside world. Happ is somewhere in
between by being an actor with a microphone. The costumes resembled a traditional idea of Death
of a Salesman costumes, but with a twist. Willy wore a white collared shirt but the upper sleeves
were ripped off, so when he was wearing his blazer during the flashbacks you could not see the
missing sleeves. Linda wore a outfits resembling a maid or a housewife. Both Linda and Willy wore
masks when they acted in present time to create a separation from the audience and the appearance
of old age. Biff is the only character who wears shoes, does not wear a mask, and is not completely
represented by an object.
Music, already a big presence in the original show, was extended to Willy singing some songs. This
was a way of

In Death of a Salesman Miller offers a critique of American society. What is this critique and how is
it conveyed to the audience?
In Death of a Salesman Miller explores and exposes modern American society in a brutal and
scathing manner. His analysis and critique is conveyed clearly to the audience concluding that
society is based on a corrupt and immoral capitalist dream. Miller implies this through the Loman
family and their struggle to survive and compete. Techniques Miller employs to illustrate this are
symbolism, characters and structure.
Capitalism had an effect on every aspect of the 1940s' American society. McCarthy witch hunts were
rife and creating a fear of communism, many American artists and authors felt disenchanted by
...show more content...
In addition to this Howard isn't concerned how long Willy has been with the company and feels
like he owes him nothing. Willy isn't an asset in Howard's eyes and this is represented clearly to
the audience through Howard ignoring and keeping distant from Willy. "Ain't they sweet?"
Howard says about the voices of his children on the recording machine which has all his attention.
Howard shows no compassion or empathy towards Willy instead is only concerned with a
personal display or fulfilment. Throughout this scene Willy's confidence reduces just like his
salary demands, finally concluding in him being fired. This represents American society as being
harsh and unforgiving showing that it lowers the protagonist to any level so that they can just
purchase the essentials. Even when Willy voices his reason why he was a salesman in the first
place and how he wants to have a funeral like David Singleman, who to the audience, is portrayed
as a 84 year old, single salesman that dedicated the majority of his life to selling products even
when he should be retired. Howard dismisses the "story" and disregards Willy to needing "medical
help" and when he's "better" he could come back.
Following his dismissal Willy ends up in his "successful" neighbour's office, Charley. Charley sees
Willy is distraught even though Willy has come for his 50 dollars that we, the audience, know has
been

Death of a Salesman
As the play's titular character in Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is viewed by many as the
definitive modern tragic hero of modern literature. He is a man struggling to gain upward
mobility in a society designed to keep him in the trenches. The classic idea of a tragic hero is an
important person who falls from a lofty seat in life. Willy, however, is just a common man trying to
get to a place he can fall from. According to Arthur Miller, atragic hero need not be a king or anyone
of high rank. What's important is the existence of the character's "tragic flaw", out of which creates
the need to resist anything the character would consider a force attacking their being. Miller outlined
the tragic flaw as a quality of a character that leaves them unable to accept anything that would affect
or alter his/her status or self–image. While this flaw can create the tragic nature of a character, it
does not necessarily create a tragic hero out a character. Willy Loman, though perhaps a tragic
character, is not a tragic hero because he does not display the characteristic traits or actions
associated with heroism. Starting with the basics of heroism, heroes can be very different from
each other. They have different jobs, grow up in different types of households, and learn different
sets of skills and each have a different purpose or motivation for their heroism. There are however a
few traits that run across the board no matter what type of hero you are dealing with.

Marxism Death Of A Salesman Essay
Marxism, classified by the struggles between classes in an inevitable fight for superiority, rings
through Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, which is set closely following the Great
Depression, a time of emotional and economic upheaval. Despite the era of its creation, the play's
ideas remain pertinent even today. Through a Marxist viewpoint, Miller's presentation of the
American Dream diverges at opposing points involving the sensation of travel and exploration,
relating to the old idea of Manifest Destiny, and the contrasting view that business is the most
important feature in society. The established institution of business as a means of economic gain is
the primary focus of Willy. It is the sole way to climb to top, and it must be done with hard tactics.
While there are many strategies used to thrive in business, the most proven form lacks emotion.
Willy depends highly on abstract concepts, such as likeability, but power is rarely associated.
Phasing in between two...show more content...
Especially as a man during this time period, Willy feels societal pressures to provide for his family.
When he feels he falls short of this expectation, he is enveloped by guilt and self–loathing, which
causes him to destruct through his affair and suicide. His tragic end portrays how "Willy Loman
was a victim of society" (Enami 356). Thus, Miller shows how it is impossible to break the mold.
Paralleling the American dream, he demonstrates how life cannot be lived in a perfect, happy
world while people are subjected to the crushing weight of capitalistic expectations. Willy trying to
live in this farce of a world with his beliefs and "he instills this belief in his sons" and this leads
them to chase the same dream that their father does and it will eventually lead them to realize that
everything their father told them was a bunch of grandiose exaggerations (Artan

Turning Point Of Death Of A Salesman Essay
A specific turning point in the play Death of a Salesman would be soon after Willy is fired and
loses his job with Howard Wagner. Howard tells Willy he doesn't want him representing the
company anymore and that he needs to rest and take care of his personal issues. Willy starts to
become physically worried and stressed about how he will make a living but Howard tells him
when he is better he can come back to work. This is a turning point because after Willy has left the
job, his mental state takes a big turn for the worse and he cannot recover from it so his life is going
downhill

Death Of A Salesman Critical Essay

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Death Of A Salesman Critical Essay