Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman - Google Books Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman Harold Bloom 0 Reviews An inquiry into the meaning of the American Dream, Death of a Salesman is Arthur Miller's most famous play and won him a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award. "Attention must be paid" to its lead character, Willy Loman (played over time by Lee J. Cobb, George C. Scott, Dustin Hoffman, and Brian Dennehy, among others), who has come to represent the middle-class struggle. Readers seeking in-depth analyses of this affecting drama will appreciate this fully updated Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations study. Offering at least 50 percent new material from the previous edition, it includes the best critical interpretations available on Miller's classic, collected from literary sources prized by librarians. From inside the book What people are saying - Write a review We haven't found any reviews in the usual places.

Contents Death of a Salesman at Fifty 67 Limited preview - 2009 Common terms and phrases achieve action actors Arthur Miller audience become Ben's Bernard betrayal Biff Biff and Happy Biff's Boston brother characters Charley Charley's Christopher Bigsby commitment context Conversations critical culture Dave Singleman desire Ebbets Field ego ideal Elia Kazan episodic structure feels figure finally Greek guilt hamartia Holga human Ibsen ideal identity illusion imperative Inge Morath jungle kind KULLMAN language Linda live meaning memory metaphor Millers Death Modern American Drama Modern Drama modern tragedy moral narrative never Nietzsche Oedipus Oliver past play's playwright poetic present production Quentin question realism reality relationship Requiem rhythm Ride Down Mt role Roudane Salesman says Schlueter sense shame social sons stage story Streetcar Streetcar Named Desire struggle success suicide tells Tennessee Williams Theater Essays thematic Timebends tragic vision truth understand University Press values Williams Willy Loman Willy's Willy's father Willy's mind Woman words writing York About the author (2007) Harold Bloom was born on July 11, 1930 in New York City.

He earned his Bachelor of Arts from Cornell in 1951 and his Doctorate from Yale in 1955. After graduating from Yale, Bloom remained there as a teacher, and was made Sterling Professor of Humanities in 1983. Bloom's theories have changed the way that critics think of literary tradition and has also focused his attentions on history and the Bible. He has written over twenty books and edited countless others. He is one of the most famous critics in the world and considered an expert in many fields. In 2010 he became a founding patron of Ralston College, a new institution in Savannah, Georgia, that focuses on primary texts. His works include Fallen Angels, Till I End My Song: A Gathering of Last Poems, Anatomy of Influence: Literature as a Way of Life and The Shadow of a Great Rock: A Literary Appreciation of The King James Bible. 'Salesman' Willy Loman: A Towering Little Man : NPR 'Death of A Salesman' Marks 50th Anniversary Feb. 10, 1999 I think I see Willy Loman several times a week — in lobbies, coffee bars, airports.

He has a heavy case on his lap. He's wearing heavy-soled shoes, scuffed, creaking, but well-shined. He tugs at his tie, but won't loosen it. He looks down into a small book, or a screen, and taps out a number: "Hey, Julia! How are you? Ted Jinks for Rod Holloway. Rod! Hi! Ted Jinks. The family? Good, good." And he laughs, for no apparent reason. "Listen, Rod, I won't take much of your time. But we've made some improvements in the A-9 series. So if maybe I could stop by, and — Oh, you don't. I understand. Well, catch you next time. My love to Liz! Go Giants! Take care." He might sit back, and stare at his shoes, or into a light. Then he sits up to tap out a new number, and snap open a new smile. "Walk in with a big laugh, don't look worried" — that's Willy's strategy. "Start with a couple of your good stories to lighten things up. It's not what you say, it's how you say it.

Because personality always wins the day." Article continues after sponsorship Willy Loman isn't a guy in an airport, of course. He's the title character of Arthur Miller's 1949 play Death of a Salesman, and he's our In Character profile today, the next in our series exploring famous American fictional characters. We never really learn what Willy sells; mostly, he tries to sell himself. He is 63 and loves his sons, Biff and Happy. They find him foolish, a small-timer trapped in big dreams. Willy loves his wife, Linda, though he has sought companionship on the road. Willy is ashamed: He's not selling things like he used to. He hears people laughing behind his back. He's disgraced that he can't pay an insurance bill because his wife had to repair their refrigerator. He tries to hide his anxieties — and his hurts — with jokes and bluster, but his wife, Linda, has noticed that he's had a lot of driving accidents. One day, she goes into the basement, and finds a little rubber hose leading from a gas pipe. "Willy Loman never made a lot of money," Linda tells her sons amid all this.

"His name was never in the papers. He's not the finest character that ever lived. But he's a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. So attention must be paid!" Critics who saw the first performance in 1949, with Lee J. Cobb as Willy, said that when the curtain closed, they only heard silence. Then, sobbing. "It's the only play I know that sends men weeping into the men's room," says director Robert Falls. Falls staged a 1998 Death of a Salesman revival at Chicago's Goodman Theater. The production went on New York and London, and won awards in both cities. The actor Brian Dennehy played Willy Loman for more than 600 performances. "I can tell you anecdote after anecdote after anecdote of men — men, 50-year-old pinstripe-suited men dissolved in tears and shaking," Dennehy says. "And telling me story after story about themselves, about their relationship with their sons, and so forth." An Ordinary Man in an Extraordinary Tragedy Willy Loman seems an odd little character to call out such searing emotions.

He isn't struggling to survive war, bigotry, or poverty — just the ordinariness of middle-class life. He doesn't want to defeat evil or save the world, just pay off his house and provide for his family. He wants his sons to love him, and he wants to deserve the love of his wife, whom he feels he has failed. "There's so much pain and love," says Robert Falls. "And I should always stress that it's ultimately a play about fathers and sons, and a woman who loves her husband and a husband who loves her and his boys and his country and his business and his car and his valise — and [who] has sort of believed in a system that he's always felt is going to support him. And you know, there's just something very primal about that for us as Americans." The first time Falls saw his own father cry was when he was 12, and they watched a TV version of the play together. Later, Falls played Willy in high school. "When I was a very young person, even when I was playing Willy Loman, my empathies were always with the son," Falls says.

"Battling against his father, looking at sort of the B.S.-meister that Willy was, all of the crap coming out of his mouth. "And I think by the time I directed it, I was a young father with a young son, but my empathy had very much changed, and I identified with Willy," says Falls. "I see him as a courageous person. I see him as having a certain amount of bravery, a certain amount of grit. A certain amount of American can-do that I find admirable." A Salesman on 'Salesman' We asked a working salesperson to watch a DVD of the 1985 TV version of Death of a Salesman, starring Dustin Hoffman. Gregory Hamilton is 40; he lives in Southern California. He's sold women's clothing, lingerie, beauty products, wireless and pager service, and he says he actually likes "cold calls" — walking into an office without an appointment and trying to make a sale: "It's exciting to me," Hamilton says. "I never know who I'm going to meet, I never know what the situation is; it's spontaneous. ...

And when you fall into an office, you need to scout — you need to look, you need to see what's going on, you need to feel the person that you're initially talking to, whether it's the receptionist or the office manager, and you really have to win them. ... My smile, my demeanor. My whole ambience — I have to come across to them and win them for me." And he finds Willy Loman ...? "You know, he was eccentric," Hamilton says. "So I can identify with that. ... I was looking at his tie ... and I was like, See, yeah, he's a salesman. Because you want something ... that's gonna grab who it is you're trying to affect, to utilize and purchase what it is you're selling." At one point in the play, Willy comes in to see the head of his company. It's the son of the man who hired him more than 30 years before, the man who promised that the company would take care of him. Willie says he knows his sales numbers are down. But "there were promises made across this desk," he says, and "you mustn't tell me you've got people to see.

I put 34 years into this firm, Howard, and now I can't pay my insurance." "That's the epitome of sales once again," Hamilton says. "Your numbers are up, and when they're down — man, you're out. ... You strap it up and you go out there and get in the day, and the next day, and the next day, and you make your work to bring your numbers up so you can continue to take care of your family. ... That whole segment, it just grabbed me." Another reason Willy Loman keeps reappearing is that great American actors want to play him, the way Shakespearean stars work their way up to Hamlet. "It's kind of easy to don his clothes, to don his character," says Brian Dennehy — because for actors, "so much is luck. So much of it is a sales job." Director Robert Falls agrees. "I've always felt that — that actors have very little to do but sell themselves," Falls says. "You hear these amazing stories about actors who are 65 years old ...

and they've, you know, gotta walk into an audition with a 22-year-old director who says 'Tell me what you've done.' " Death of a Salesman is a tragedy, not a mystery: We know it will end with Willy's death. He cracks up in his car. All the sales he made, the jokes he told — and only his sons, his wife and a neighbor come to his funeral. But that neighbor delivers one of the great speeches in all of theater at Willy's graveside: "Willy was a salesman. And for a salesman, there is no rock bottom to the life. He don't put a bolt to a nut, he don't tell you the law or give you medicine. He's 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 earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you're finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Arthur Miller spoke to NPR about his most famous character in 1983, when he directed his play in Beijing.

"Willy, as misled as he is, to the very end of the play is struggling," Miller said. "It's the opposite of a passive person. He's struggling for some meaning in his life. He seizes upon what we would mostly consider the wrong meaning. But the struggle is exemplary." Gregory Hamilton says that in one important respect, Willy — and by extension Miller — got it right. "A salesman does have to dream," Hamilton says. "Because you have to see something that isn't there, and you have to make it happen — you have to manifest it. And that's just you, you're out there, you're like an island .... You have to have the ability to believe in yourself enough to go out there and make it happen." So maybe the next time we think we see Willy Loman, trudging through a lobby or terminal, we won't see only his frustration or failure, but his dreams and struggle. Attention must be paid.

Free Willy Death Of A Salesman Sacrifice Essays The Classic Tragedy: Death Of A Salesman "Death Of A Salesman"Arthur Miller's classic tragedy "Death Of A Salesman" represents the result of an accumulation of social wrongs and injustices brought on because of Willy Loman's external quest for success. It concludes with the death of a very miserable man. However, all through his tortured ... "Death Of A Salesman"Arthur Miller's classic tragedy "Death Of A Salesman" represents the result of an accumulation of social wrongs and injustices brought on because of Willy Loman's external quest for success. It concludes with the death of a very miserable man. However, all through his tortured life, Willy was aware of both his family, and social obligations, never losing sight of what society expected of him.Willy Loman had two mentors: a former fellow salesman, in addition to his brother Ben. ... One could quickly argue that Willy's primary focus was upon providing for h...

Wordcount: 363 Analysis of Death of a Salesman Analysis of "Death of a Salesman"The tragedy of a familyThe play "Death of a Salesman" was written by Arthur Miller in 1949. He was born on October 17, 1915 in New York City. Most of Miller's works emphasizes the common man struggling through the misconceptions and false illusions that modern soci ... Analysis of "Death of a Salesman"The tragedy of a familyThe play "Death of a Salesman" was written by Arthur Miller in 1949. ... In the case of "Death of a Salesman", Miller uses social realism, which is the attempt to describe human behavior and surroundings or to represent figures and objects exactly as they act or appear in life (Encarta 1). ... Death of a Salesman" is the story of the Loman family, especially Willy, trying to accomplish the American dream, but with no success. ... In this article Miller clearly conveys that a person will sacrifice anything, even his or her own life, to ...

Wordcount: 878 Willy Loman's dreams and memories in Death of A Salesman The deep probing of Willy Loman's dreams and memories in Death of A Salesman where quite important in illustrating Miller's point. Willy is a man stuck in the past. His favorite pastime is reminiscing about times when things where good. Who even knows if those times really were as good as he imag ... The deep probing of Willy Loman's dreams and memories in Death of A Salesman where quite important in illustrating Miller's point. Willy is a man stuck in the past. ... To Willy, that was Biff in his prime. ... Not only did he sacrifice his dignity by lessening his demand several times, but he ended up losing his job. This is the end of Willy's world. ... Wordcount: 1008 Ideals in Death of a Salesman When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed with the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream. This is especially true for two characters in Arthur Miller's plays Death of a Salesman and The Price. ...

This is especially true for two characters in Arthur Miller's plays Death of a Salesman and The Price. ... Willie Loman, in Death of a Salesman,, has lived his life in pursuit of the American dream. ... Willy is fascinated by accumulating things. ... With all that sacrifice one would assume that Victor's family would bepleased however his sacrifices hurt them greatly. ... Willy's obsession with acquiring wealth and being a salesman made it impossible for him to do so. ... Wordcount: 986 Loman the Modern Tragic Hero A tragic hero is known to be the protagonist who causes his own downfall, is seen asgreater than the average man, and is aware of his misfortune. In Arthur Miller's Death ofa Salesman Willy Loman is the protagonist. Willy Loman illustrates significantcharacteristics of a tragic hero.Willy Loman ac ... In Arthur Miller's Death ofa Salesman Willy Loman is the protagonist. ... Willy is ignorant ofhis significance. ... He then sacrifices himself for them.Although he is a common man, Willy has the requisite stature to be heroic. ... Manydecisions made by Willy cause his downfall.

Through his actions and the course ofevents it becomes clear that Willy Loman is a modern tragic hero.Bibliography Death of a Salesman by Arthor Miller... Wordcount: 297 Tragic Life of a Salesman The Tragic Life of a Salesman In Author Miller's relentless drama, Death of a Salesman, one is able to examine a common man and the downward spiral to his ultimate demise. This timeless drama addresses the raw, painful conflicts within one family and tackles the myth of the "American Dream." " ... The Tragic Life of a Salesman In Author Miller's relentless drama, Death of a Salesman, one is able to examine a common man and the downward spiral to his ultimate demise. ... He is an insecure traveling salesman who has lied to himself and to his family for many, many years.There are several conflicts that stem from Willy's flawed character. ... (Magill, 1367) It is somewhat ironic that Willy sacrificed much of what makes up the "American dream," in the pursuit of what he believed to be the "American dream."... (Act II, speech 375) Willy then begins to fantasize about his o...

Wordcount: 656 An Analysis of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman An Analysis of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Price When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed wi the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream.. This is especially true for two characters ... An Analysis of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Price When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed wi the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream.. This is especially true for two characters in Arthur Miller's plays Death of a Salesman and The Price. ... Willie Loman, in Death of a Salesman,, has lived his life in pursuit of the American dream. ... With all that sacrifice one would assume that Victor's family would be pleased however his sacrifices hurt them greatly. ... ...

Wordcount: 982 Analyzing Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman" An Analysis of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Price When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed wi the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream.. This is especially true for two characters ... An Analysis of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Price When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed wi the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream.. This is especially true for two characters in Arthur Miller's plays Death of a Salesman and The Price. ... Willie Loman, in Death of a Salesman,, has lived his life in pursuit of the American dream. ... With all that sacrifice one would assume that Victor's family would be pleased however his sacrifices hurt them greatly. ... ...

Wordcount: 983 Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman" and "The Price" Death of a Salesman and The Price- When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed with the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream. This is especially true for two characters in Arthur Miller's plays ... Death of a Salesman and The Price- When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed with the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream. This is especially true for two characters in Arthur Miller's plays Death of a Salesman and The Price. ... Willie Loman, in Death of a Salesman,, has lived his life in pursuit of the American dream. ... With all that sacrifice one would assume that Victor's family would bepleased however his sacrifices hurt them greatly. ... Willy's obsession with acq... Wordcount: 992 I Have Friendsand They Know Me Up and Down New England A common idea presented in literature is the issue of the freedom of the individual in opposition to the controlling pressures of society.

Willy Loman, the main character in Death of A Salesman by Arthur Miller, epitomizes this type of person; one who looks to his peers and co-salesman as lesser ind ... Willy Loman, the main character in Death of A Salesman by Arthur Miller, epitomizes this type of person; one who looks to his peers and co-salesman as lesser individuals. Not only was he competitive and overbearing, but Willy Loman sought after an ideal that he could never become: the greatest salesman ever. ... As a salesman, Willy developed many hindrances that caused his mind to deteriorate. ... At an early age, Willy heard of a salesman, Dave Singleman, who could make his living out of a hotel room. ... And his life was definitely not worth the sacrifice that he made for them his entire li... Wordcount: 1154 A Literary Analysis on Arthur Miller's "Death of A Salesman" An Analysis of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Price When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed wi the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream..

This is especially true for two characters ... An Analysis of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Price When people accept an ideal to live by it can be a glorious and noble thing unless they become so obsessed wi the the ideal that it becomes a yolk and they are unable to realize their dream.. This is especially true for two characters in Arthur Miller's plays Death of a Salesman and The Price. ... Willie Loman, in Death of a Salesman,, has lived his life in pursuit of the American dream. ... With all that sacrifice one would assume that Victor's family would be pleased however his sacrifices hurt them greatly. ... ... Wordcount: 983 Death of a Salesman: Classical Model of Tragedy Death to a Salesman In the first B.C dramatist known as Aristotle started to write a series of plays called the tragedies. They were as follows: the play revolved around a great man, such as a king or war hero, who had a tragic flaw. This flaw would eventually become his downfall and he would fall f ... Death to a Salesman In the first B.C dramatist known as Aristotle started to write a series of plays called the tragedies. ...

He attempts to illustrate the misfortune in the common man; he shows this in "Death to a Salesman." ... It the play "Death to a Salesman"there is elements to a tragic man by his way of commonness. ... (Page 16 Death to a Salesman) He also shows qualities of a tragic hero. ... So according to both these men Aristotle and Arthur Miller the play "Death to a Salesman" was a tragedy. ... Wordcount: 971 The Death Of A Salesman Essay Death Of A Salesman EssayThroughout history, love has been known as a powerful instrument that can easily be affected in each part of a relationship. Relationships in many cases have several conditions that may be put upon them affecting it in a negative way. When material possessions become the onl ... Death Of A Salesman EssayThroughout history, love has been known as a powerful instrument that can easily be affected in each part of a relationship. ... In the play Death of A Salesman, Linda Loman love's her husband Willy no matter which way financial matters are headed at home. ... In the play "Death of A Salesman", Linda Loman does not concern herself with her husbands outer appearance but simply cares he feels good about himself.

... In the play Death of A Salesman, Linda Loman love's her husbands inner qualities and admires his identity. ... Linda Loman does not ask her husban... Wordcount: 1016 Death of a Salesman and American Dream Death of a Salesman and The American Dream On close examination of "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller, the idea of the American Dream and its' presence and significance throughout the play is huge. The American Dream offers those who start with nothing, the opportunity to gain riches. It da ... Death of a Salesman and The American Dream On close examination of "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller, the idea of the American Dream and its' presence and significance throughout the play is huge. ... Ben demonstrates this to Willy saying, "William, when I walked into the jungle I was 17. ... Despite this failure, Willy makes the most extreme sacrifice in his attempt to leave an inheritance that will allow Biff to fulfil the American Dream. ... Materialism is ultimately the reason for Willy's death. ... Willy's success is measured largely by himself in terms of mone...

Wordcount: 921 Tragedy of Death Of A Salesman The Tragedy of Death Of A Salesman In the first B.C dramatist known as Aristotle started to write a series of plays called the tragedies. They were as follows: the play revolved around a great man, such as a king or war hero, who had a tragic flaw. This flaw would eventually become his downfall and ... The Tragedy of Death Of A Salesman In the first B.C dramatist known as Aristotle started to write a series of plays called the tragedies. ... These types of plays are still written today, an example is Author Miller's Death of a Salesman. ... In "Death to a Salesman", Arthur Miller successfully shows that you do not have to be a king or someone important to be tragic. ... (Page 16 Death to a Salesman) He also shows qualities of a tragic hero. ... So according to both these men Aristotle and Arthur Miller the play "Death to a Salesman" was a tragedy. ... Wordcount: 919 The Novels of Arthur Miller Arthur Miller is a talented and well-known playwright.

Over the years, he has produced many plays; each addressing different issues, time periods, and historical events. Two of his most well known works are Death of a Salesman and The Crucible. Miller states in his essay "Tragedy and the Common Man" ... Two of his most well known works are Death of a Salesman and The Crucible. ... Both Will Loman, in The Death of a Salesman and John Proctor of The Crucible are willing to sacrifice their lives for the sole reason of dignity, and self-righteousness. ... He has too much pride in himself and his name, and is eventually killed. 2Equally important, the plot of Death of a Salesman allows us to understand more about Willy Loman as heroic. ... Willy is so caught up in materialism, and self worth, that when he realizes how unsuccessful he is as a salesman, as a husband, and as a father figure, and how ... Wordcount: 1284 Arthur Miller on Ideals and Obsessions People prefer to have an ideal to guide their lives, but sometimes an obsession with their ideal may take place. Soon the ideal and the dream will begin to fade.

This is especially true for a character in Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman. In this play Miller portrays a lower-middle class man ... This is especially true for a character in Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman. ... Even with all his hard work and sacrifices, however, he still can not earn everything he wants or all the things he thinks he deserves. Willy judges each person by their wealth and their properties. ... He struggles to achieve something that he can not like being the best salesman. Ironically, being a salesman is a profession that is associated with trickery and illusion. ... Wordcount: 493 Man versus Himself Self-fulfillment is what people live for, without it how can a person live? A failed search for self-fulfillment often leads to death. Demonstrated in A Tale of Two Cites, Hamlet, and A Death of a Salesman, each novel includes one character that struggles to fulfill his life, which results in death ... Demonstrated in A Tale of Two Cites, Hamlet, and A Death of a Salesman, each novel includes one character that struggles to fulfill his life, which results in death. ...

The first example of failed self-fulfillment resulting in death is Willy Loman's from the novel A Death of a Salesman. ... (Miller, II.iv) Now Willy starts to see death as the only way to provide for his family, but he also believes that with his death, he'll be able to prove to others that he was "well liked" because his funeral will be massive. ... This concludes that Carton saw this sacrifice as a way to make up... Wordcount: 1988 Parents Love Play a Special Role in their Children's Personality Parents LoveThe sacrifices, beliefs, and values parents implant in their children will help determine the person they grow up to be. A child is like a sponge that absorbs their parent's thoughts and viewpoints that will stay with them for the rest of their lives. Parents make great sacrifices for th ... Parents make great sacrifices for the care of their children. ... In "The Death of a Salesman", the father sets a foundation of beliefs for his son Biff. ... 'Willy Loman is here!' ...

In the play "Death of a Salesman", Willy tries to encourage his son by telling him "you got a greatness in you, Biff, remember that"(1277). Willy is establishing positive encouragement in his son by telling him he is great. ... Wordcount: 546 Problems of the Spirit "The Loman Family and Their 'Problems of the Spirit.'In his 1950 Nobel Prize acceptance speech, William Faulkner lamented the dearth of "problems of the spirit" in modern literature and pointed out the importance of "the old universal truths...love and honor and pity and pride and compassion and sac ... Part of the reason Arthur Miller's play "Death of a Salesman" remains relevant more than fifty years after its first publication is that the story embodies all of Faulkner's "universal truths." ... Sacrifice is at the heart of "Death of a Salesman." ... Linda sacrificed her happiness; she was too occupied with worry over Willy and his state of mind. ... Willy, however, is not completely without sacrifice.

At the end of the play, when Biff muses that "there's more of him [Willy] in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made," one realizes that Willy sacrificed his ha... Wordcount: 1845 Literary Contributions of Arthur Miller Arthur Miller is one of the most renowned and important American playwrights to ever live. His works include, among others, The Crucible and A View from the Bridge. The plays he has written have been criticized for many things, but have been praised for much more, including his magical development ... His play Death of a Salesman, a modern tragedy, follows along these lines. ... He is willing to sacrifice everything he has, specifically his life, for his convictions, which makes him, with using Miller's definition, the epitome of a perfect tragic hero. ... He has also been criticized for using untraditional techniques like the Act One "Overture" in The Crucible and the "Requiem" in Death of a Salesman. ... Death of a Salesman won the Pulitzer Prize, the Drama Critic's Circle Award and many others when it opened in 1949. ... All of these literary techniques have added a tremendo...

Wordcount: 5393 The Pride of Life This excerpt taken from the play Antigone written by Sophocles has many different implications. If this idea were to be true, this quote suggests that every crime is caused by pride and that if man did not have pride there would be no crimes and all mistakes would be fixed. One is also able to reali ... In Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller, Willy makes a great many mistakes in his life. ... It is also reasonable expectations of the respect that the company should have for him due to the sacrifices he makes for them. By the time Willy realizes this mistake though, it is too late for him to repair it in anyway. ... Willy's mistake was having trust and faith and others but this is not something that makes one evil. ... In addition, Willy sacrifices many things in order to provide for his family, and as he does this he makes mistakes. ...

Wordcount: 747 "The Fall of Willie Loman" "A hundred years from now, it will not matter what type of car I drove, or what kind of house I lived in, or the amount of money I made, yet the world might be changed because I made a positive difference in the life of a child." This increasingly popular statement raises a question for those who mi ... In Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is a textbook example of a failure as a good father in every way mentioned previously. ... He will not admit that he has made mistakes, for he will not sacrifice his pride. ... Any reader would desire to be, rather than all that Willy Loman was, all that Willy Loman was not. ... He will not allow himself to do what he truly loves to do, carpentry, because he believes that it is more illustrious to be an unsuccessful salesman than be a satisfied carpenter. ... As a result, his death is the final confirmation of his failed life, and reiter... Wordcount: 967 Arthur Miller: Playwrite of the People Over the past few decades, Arthur Miller has become a well known Americanplaywright.

He has won numerous awards and is credited for doing amazingwork. Miller was born in lower Manhattan in 1915. His family moved toBrooklyn during The Great Depression where his father worked as a ladies-wearmanufa ... His biggest hit, however,came in 1949 when he opened Death of a Salesman at the Morosco. ... Three of Miller's most famous works are Death of a Salesman, The Crucibleand The Price. ... In the play Death of a Salesman, the lead character, Willy Loman,portrays a father and husband who is mentally depressed and has a serious caseof anxiety. ... However, Victor was the one who sacrificed his time and career to helphis father. ... In Death of a Salesman, Willy is one example of aself-delusional character because he believed he disappointed himself which led tohis belief that he was also a... Wordcount: 2194 Notorious Witch Trials Of Salem Arthur Miller, winner of many literary and dramatic awards, is an incredibly influential force in American drama. His plays deal with issues common to every society. He makes the audience face fault, weakness, and ignorance; subjects we would typical hide from.

At the same time he emphasizes stre ... The phenomenon of Death of a Salesman has been the same all over the world. ... Miller's personal history is demonstrated in his sensitive and passionate writing in Death of a Salesman (Griffin 41). ... Wordcount: 11437 Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman (Click the character infographic to download.) You were probably aching throughout this play to shove a mirror in front of Willy Loman's face and make him take a good, honest look at himself. But even if you tried, it probably wouldn't have worked. He has a lot of potential, but he also has a whopping case of self-deception paired with misguided life goals. A salesman for all of his career, Willy thinks the goal of life is to be well-liked and gain material success. So what happens when he doesn't reach these goals? Total disaster. Willy is a rather insecure guy. He tries to make himself feel better by lying to himself and his family. In his world of delusion, Willy is a hugely successful salesman. He disguises his profound anxiety and self-doubt with extreme arrogance.

Periodically unable to maintain this image of strength, Willy despairs and pleads with successful people around him for guidance and support. Despite his efforts, it becomes clear that Willy Loman is not popular, well-liked, or even good at his job. In fact, he never was. In all likelihood, he never will be. Now an older man, Willy can no longer drive competently, pay his bills, or sell anything. Despite Willy's evident failure to meet his (poorly chosen) life goals, he clings to a fierce belief in the American Dream and the promise that anyone attractive and well-liked can make it big. He has deceived himself his entire life and tries to live vicariously through his unwilling son, Biff. But Biff uncovers Willy's lies when he finds out that Willy has been cheating on Linda. Choosing to alienate his son rather than face reality, and tormented by his failures, Willy spirals downward. Willy's Desire to Escape So let's talk about all these flashbacks. Part of this "downward spiral" we keep talking about has to do with Willy losing a grip on reality and on time.

Because his life, by his standards, sucks, Willy escapes into the past and also conveniently gives us, the reader or audience, the background information we need. "Escape" becomes Willy's middle name—not unlike his own father, who abandoned him and his brother when they were young. All this escape business brings us to Willy's mistress. "The woman" gives Willy everything he needs: an alternate world and an ego-boost. Miller makes sure we are able to understand these reasons for why Willy has the affair. If we, the reader/audience, hated Willy for being a cheating jerk, we wouldn't be so upset at his death. But we don't hate Willy. We don't even call him a cheater. Why? Because we understand the psychology behind his affair. He is simply trying to escape. Willy's Death Which brings us, right on schedule, to the end of the play. As we all know, Willy kills himself. But why? Well, he was clearly still harboring misguided hopes about success for Biff. It seems Willy would rather kill himself than accept the fact that really, honestly, all his son wants is some shirtless sweaty time in Midwestern haystacks.

The point is, Willy is still deluded when he kills himself. We all know the money isn't going to be used to start a business. What's sad is that Willy doesn't. That final delusion is almost worse than his death itself. Speaking of this death, let's talk about the title of the play. Willy was always in pursuit of being the perfect salesman, and before he kills himself he expresses a wish to die "the death of a salesman." So here's the big money question: does he? To answer that, we have to ask ourselves just what does it mean to be a salesman in this play? We know what it means in Willy's mind (if we say "well-liked" one more time…), but Charley brings up an interesting point at the funeral: part of being a salesman is having a dream. Part of being a salesman is about selling yourself. We'll let you take it from there. Willy as Tragic Hero Hamartia If you saw Willy Loman sitting across from you on a bus, you probably wouldn't peg him for a hero. If you got to know him, it would probably seem even less likely.

Still, Willy Loman is often thought of as a hero. Of course, he's a particular kind of hero: a tragic hero. The ancient Greeks were the first to write about these doomed souls. Sophocles' Oedipus is the most perfect example—at least according to Aristotle. But how is slouchy old Willy Loman in any way similar to the heroes of Greek tragedy? Well, dear Shmoopsters, they share a little thing the Greeks liked to call hamartia. This word is often translated as "tragic flaw," but it's more accurately translated as "a missing of the mark" or a "mistake made in ignorance." Just like Oedipus, Willy Loman goes through his life blindly, never realizing the full truth of himself. Willy refuses to admit that he's a failure. You could say that the idea of hamartia is seen in Willy through his delusional personality. Also, like Oedipus and almost all tragic heroes, Willy's hamartia causes his own downfall. In the end, Willy's delusions lead him to take his own life.

Anagnorisis According to Aristotle, tragic heroes also have a moment of recognition, or anagnorisis. This is supposed to be a moment where the hero realizes the terrible mistake he's made and usually moans about it a lot. This happens to Oedipus when he realizes that he's inadvertently killed his father and slept with his mother. (Whoops!) You could argue that Willy has a small realization near the end of the play. He never says it directly, but at some point—probably after Howard fires him—he must realize that he's just never going to succeed in business. If he didn't come to this realization, then he wouldn't decide to kill himself so Biff could use his life insurance money. However, though Willy must make some small realization toward the end of the play, we hesitate to label it as full blown anagnorisis. Willy definitely goes to his death amid a cloud of delusion. Even after Biff totally lays it out for his dad that all he wants to do is be a cowboy or whatever, Willy refuses to understand. The pitiful salesman kills himself, thinking that Biff will use the life insurance money to start a business.

It becomes painfully obvious at the funeral that this is totally not going to happen, showing that Willy went to his death without coming to grips with reality. Yes, it seems that, unlike many classical Greek tragic heroes, Willy doesn't have a major anagnorisis. The Common Man Willy is also different from his tragic predecessors because he isn't royalty of any kind. Yep, Willy is just a salesman. He has no real power in the world, and not too many people really care when he dies. Unlike the legendary and powerful Oedipus, Willy is a nobody. But why would Arthur Miller try to write a tragedy about a total schmuck? Did he not read Aristotle's book or something? Hardly—we're guessing that Miller knew Aristotle's ideas better than we do. It turns out that the fact that Willy is an everyday guy is part of the whole point Miller is trying to make.

In Arthur Miller's famous essay, "Tragedy of the Common Man," he states, "I believe that the common man is as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were." Miller goes on to say that it's not the fact that past tragic heroes have been royal that makes them resonate with modern audiences. It's that fact that they share the same problems as we do today, the same flaws, fears, and hopes. Some critics have said that true tragedy is impossible when your hero is a common man. They say that when an everyday guy goes down, not as many people suffer as they would if it were a king. OK, sure, but we have a question: is the size of a tragedy really limited to the world of the play? Can't we look into the life of a common man and recognize our own flaws? Can't we see those flaws in society around us? Why can't a common man's life have size and meaning?

Miller ends his essay by saying, "It is time, I think, that we who are without kings took up this bright thread of our history and followed it to the only place it can possibly lead in our time—the heart and spirit of the average man." Preach it, Arthur, preach it. SparkNotes: Death of a Salesman: Character List Death of a Salesman Plot Overview Analysis of Major Characters Willy Loman - An insecure, self-deluded traveling salesman. Willy believes wholeheartedly in the American Dream of easy success and wealth, but he never achieves it. Nor do his sons fulfill his hope that they will succeed where he has failed. When Willy’s illusions begin to fail under the pressing realities of his life, his mental health begins to unravel. The overwhelming tensions caused by this disparity, as well as those caused by the societal imperatives that drive Willy, form the essential conflict of Death of a Salesman. Read an in-depth analysis of Willy Loman. Biff Loman - Willy’s thirty-four-year-old elder son. Biff led a charmed life in high school as a football star with scholarship prospects, good male friends, and fawning female admirers.

He failed math, however, and did not have enough credits to graduate. Since then, his kleptomania has gotten him fired from every job that he has held. Biff represents Willy’s vulnerable, poetic, tragic side. He cannot ignore his instincts, which tell him to abandon Willy’s paralyzing dreams and move out West to work with his hands. He ultimately fails to reconcile his life with Willy’s expectations of him. Read an in-depth analysis of Biff Loman. Linda Loman - Willy’s loyal, loving wife. Linda suffers through Willy’s grandiose dreams and self-delusions. Occasionally, she seems to be taken in by Willy’s self-deluded hopes for future glory and success, but at other times, she seems far more realistic and less fragile than her husband. She has nurtured the family through all of Willy’s misguided attempts at success, and her emotional strength and perseverance support Willy until his collapse. Read an in-depth analysis of Linda Loman. Happy Loman - Willy’s thirty-two-year-old younger son. Happy has lived in Biff’s shadow all of his life, but he compensates by nurturing his relentless sex drive and professional ambition.

Happy represents Willy’s sense of self-importance, ambition, and blind servitude to societal expectations. Although he works as an assistant to an assistant buyer in a department store, Happy presents himself as supremely important. Additionally, he practices bad business ethics and sleeps with the girlfriends of his superiors. Read an in-depth analysis of Happy Loman. Charley - Willy’s next-door neighbor. Charley owns a successful business and his son, Bernard, is a wealthy, important lawyer. Willy is jealous of Charley’s success. Charley gives Willy money to pay his bills, and Willy reveals at one point, choking back tears, that Charley is his only friend. Read an in-depth analysis of Charley. Bernard - Bernard is Charley’s son and an important, successful lawyer. Although Willy used to mock Bernard for studying hard, Bernard always loved Willy’s sons dearly and regarded Biff as a hero. Bernard’s success is difficult for Willy to accept because his own sons’ lives do not measure up. Ben - Willy’s wealthy older brother.

Ben has recently died and appears only in Willy’s “daydreams.” Willy regards Ben as a symbol of the success that he so desperately craves for himself and his sons. The Woman - Willy’s mistress when Happy and Biff were in high school. The Woman’s attention and admiration boost Willy’s fragile ego. When Biff catches Willy in his hotel room with The Woman, he loses faith in his father, and his dream of passing math and going to college dies. Howard Wagner - Willy’s boss. Howard inherited the company from his father, whom Willy regarded as “a masterful man” and “a prince.” Though much younger than Willy, Howard treats Willy with condescension and eventually fires him, despite Willy’s wounded assertions that he named Howard at his birth. Stanley - A waiter at Frank’s Chop House. Stanley and Happy seem to be friends, or at least acquaintances, and they banter about and ogle Miss Forsythe together before Biff and Willy arrive at the restaurant. Miss Forsythe and Letta - Two young women whom Happy and Biff meet at Frank’s Chop House.

It seems likely that Miss Forsythe and Letta are prostitutes, judging from Happy’s repeated comments about their moral character and the fact that they are “on call.” Jenny - Charley’s secretary. ARTSEDGE: Master+Work: Arthur Miller and Death of a Salesman Arthur Miller and Death of a Salesman Meet the master artist through one of his most important works Art Imitates Life House Un-American Activities Committee in session, 1947 Miller’s most famous plays are based on events from his life or on current events of the time: A family’s economic struggles, the life of Miller’s salesman uncle, and the Brooklyn house where Miller grew up inspired the story and setting of Death of a Salesman. All My Sons is based on the true story of a businessman who sold faulty machine parts to the U.S. military during World War II. The Crucible, set during the Salem witch trials in the 1600s, is really about Joseph McCarthy’s congressional hearings, which were designed to find communist sympathizers in the United States. Miller’s troubled marriage to movie star Marilyn Monroe is portrayed in After the Fall. A View From the Bridge is based on a story that Miller heard from a Brooklyn longshoreman.

Changing the World Arthur Miller said that other than a doctor saving someone’s life, “writing a worthy play was the most important thing a human being could do.” Why? Because he believed that plays could ask difficult questions about morality and responsibility and then challenge people to change their lives and the world. “The mission of the theater,” he said, “is… to raise the consciousness of people to their human possibilities." And that’s exactly how Miller changed American theater in the twentieth century. Arthur Miller was born in New York City in 1915. By the time he was a teenager, his family—like many others—was struggling through the Great Depression. His father lost his clothing business during the Wall Street Crash and the family had to move to a smaller house in Brooklyn. After working his way through high school and college, a young Miller learned first-hand how hard it could be to make a living in tough times. It’s clear that the Depression and the after-effects of World War II influenced Miller to write plays about vulnerable, everyday people—working and struggling to get ahead.

Miller revealed, "I think the tragic feeling is evoked in us when we are in the presence of a character who is ready to lay down his life, if need be, to secure one thing—his sense of personal dignity." Miller wrote his most successful plays early in his career. Between 1947 and 1964, Broadway played host to All My Sons, Death of a Salesman, The Crucible, A View From the Bridge, and After the Fall. While their stories may be different, there are common threads among them, including morality, responsibility, compassion, and the fragility of human relationships—especially between fathers and sons. And there is one more thread—all are based on real-life events that were either personal or political or both. You see, by the mid-1950s, Miller was famous not only for his plays, but also for when he was called to appear before Senator Joseph McCarthy’s House Un-American Activities Committee. Just as other Americans had been subpoenaed, Miller, too, was asked to identify writers who he believed were communists. Miller stood his ground, held to his principles, and pretty much risked his career by refusing to name names. The result?

He was convicted of contempt of Congress. (The conviction was overturned in 1958.) A theater critic at the time said that Miller’s refusal to cooperate showed “the measure of the man who has written these high-minded plays.” Miller continued to write plays, articles, film scripts, books, and speeches throughout his life, exploring the great political, social, and moral questions of our time. Arthur Miller died in 2005 at age 89. He remains one of the most frequently produced playwrights—and a giant of American theater. Questioning “The American Dream” What exactly is “The American Dream”? It’s the promise that life can be better for every person if he or she has the opportunity and willingness to work hard— regardless of their background or social class. During his life, Miller saw that some people would never be able to realize that dream, no matter how hard they worked. He knew that not everyone had equal opportunities to succeed. What does it mean to live in a society that promises a lot but guarantees nothing? Miller wrote Death of a Salesman with that question in mind. It’s a play about the struggle for success and disappointment of the American Dream.

Willy’s Broken Dreams Arthur Miller once said that Death of a Salesman was a “tragedy of the common man.” Think about it: The main character, Willy Loman, is a regular, everyday guy—an aging, travelling salesman weighed down by his sample case. With each trip, he’s finding it increasingly difficult to cover his territory in search of the next big order. His mind is starting to slip away but he still believes that his charm and optimism will make him rich. But the realities of life haunt him. He’s ashamed that he can’t pay the bills. He’s been unfaithful to his wife. And as Willy turns to his memories and delusions to combat any feelings of failure, he begins to lose touch with reality. Willy is flawed and is brought to ruin by his own weaknesses. In Willy Loman, Miller created a tragic hero—twentieth-century style. Why the Play Endures: Story When you see or read the play, you might think that it’s the story of one man and his family. And that’s partially true. But Death of a Salesman also tells a larger story about American society. Willy Loman is a metaphor (or symbol) for something else.

The play isn’t as much about the death of a salesman as it is about the death of something bigger. It’s about the death of the promise of the American Dream. Here’s another sign that Willy is a metaphor: We never learn exactly what kind of product Willy is selling. That’s because the only thing he really seems to be selling is himself. Miller said that “we are all salesman,” meaning that we are all trying to impress others so that we can be popular (or “well-liked,” as Willy says). Without giving too much away, here’s what happens: Willy Loman lives in Brooklyn with his wife Linda and two grown sons, Biff and Happy. He’s a salesman who’s spent his whole life following the rules. He’s raised his sons to believe that if they also follow the rules, they can make something of themselves. But Willy has come to realize that his life might have been a failure. His dreams for himself and sons are crumbling. Biff can’t keep a job. Happy isn’t exactly, well, happy. Willy and Linda struggle to make payments on their old house that’s surrounded by newer apartment buildings.

In order to deal with the failures of his life, Willy escapes by remembering the past and fantasizing about how things could have been. In doing so, he loses touch with reality and makes plans to commit suicide. His family tries to prevent it by enabling Willy’s fantasies and lying to him. One day—and after working his whole life for the same company—Willy loses his job and gets desperate. He’s been arguing with Biff and can’t accept that Biff doesn’t want to be a businessman. Even worse, Willy can’t face the fact that his own life has been a disappointment. As the play reaches its conclusion, the audience is left to consider an important question: What does a man do when he considers his life to be a failure? Why the Play Endures: Production Death of a Salesman is considered to be Miller’s masterpiece not only for its compelling story and characters but also because of its inventive, theatrical elements including: The play’s form and structure. The play tells Willy’s entire life story over the course of 24 hours. Miller structured the play so that it follows Willy’s thoughts, dreams, and memories, which are shown in flashbacks and fantasy scenes. Set design.

Miller’s description of the set is precise. The walls of the Lomans’ house are transparent; the house almost looks like the skeleton of a house. Characters either walk around or through the walls, depending on whether the scene they’re in happens in the present or the past. And the space around the Lomans’ house gets smaller as the play progresses. By the end of the play, the apartment buildings that surround the house are lit so that—as Miller specifies—they “rise into sharp focus.” Lighting. Miller’s lighting descriptions are also exact. Scenes happening in the past are lit as if leaves (not apartment buildings) surround the Loman house. The lighting for scenes in the past is softer and warmer than scenes set in the present. By paying attention to the lighting effects, audiences know when time passes from present to past and back again. Music. Willy hears the sounds of the flutes that his father (also a salesman) made and sold. The flute is a sound of the past—and represents the betrayal of that past as the reality of Willy’s failures closes in on him. < previous: The Master Learn More Even though Death of a Salesman was written in 1949, it still speaks powerfully to audiences today.

So there’s a lot of information out there about the play. Here are some places to learn more about the play, about Miller, and about some historical events that inspired his work. Read about Death of a Salesman’s 2011 revival on Broadway . You can also read about how graphic designers interpreted the play to create posters for different productions; how modern audiences respond to the play; and why director Mike Nichols decided to use the play’s original set design for the revival. The Arthur Miller Society. Website. Berger, Marilyn. «Arthur Miller, Moral Voice of the American Stage, Dies at 89.» The New York Times, February 11, 2005. Block, Haskell M. and Shedd, Robert G., eds. Masters of Modern Drama. New York: Random House, 1962. 1018-19. Brater, Enoch. Arthur Miller: A Playwright’s Life and Works. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd., 2005. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Website.

Miller, Arthur, «The 'Salesman' Has a Birthday.» The New York Times, February 5, 1950. National Endowment for the Humanities. Website. PBS Newshour. Website. Transcript: «Arthur Miller: An American Classic.» Shmoop Editorial Team. "Death of a Salesman Themes." Shmoop University, Inc., 11 November 2008. University of Michigan. Website. «Miller at Michigan.» Voice of America. Website. Transcript: «Arthur Miller: 1915-2005: One of the Greatest American Playwrights of the 20th Century” Weber, Bruce. «Early Miller: Birth of a Playwright.» The New York Times, May 2, 2002.

Question: Willy Loman is the lead character in Arthur Miller's famous 1949 play 'Death of a (What?)'?
Answer: Salesman