Death of Salesman by Arthur Miller

In the play Death of a Salesman by the playwright Arthur Miller, the use of names is significant to the characters themselves. Many playwrights and authors use names in their works to make a connection between the reader and the main idea of their work. Arthur Miller uses names in this play extraordinarily. Not only does Miller use the names to get readers to correlate them with the main idea of the play, but he also uses names to provide some irony to the play. Miller uses the meanings of some of the names to tie in the characteristics of the characters.

Willy, the protagonist of Miller’s play, has a brother, Ben. Ben is much older and long dead when this play begins. Ben, or Benjamin, is a religious name that refers to the “Son of the right hand,” or the most beloved son. In Willy’s case, Ben is already implied as the favored son. Ben is more successful “I have many enterprises, William, and I have never kept books” (47; Act 1). Ben also has the luck that Willy has always wanted. Willy wants his boys to follow ben’s example as he attempts to with sales:

Ben: Why, boys when I was seventeen I walked into the jungle, and when I was twenty-one I walked out. And By God I was rich.

Willy, to the boys: You see what I have been talking about? The greatest things can happen! (48; Act 1)

Willy creates Ben in his mind because it gives him hope for not only himself, but also his sons. By creating Ben as a figure of his imagination, Willy has a false sense of security of thinking things can still change and life can be good.

Another name Miller uses uniquely in the play is Willy’s. Miller uses Willy’s name as a question like “Will he…” Will he ever stop contradicting himself? What “Will he” say next? All of these contradictions show that W...

... middle of paper ...

...causes Willy to attempt to take his own life. Linda tells about Willy’s attempt, “Last month… Oh boys, it’s so hard to say a thing like this! He’s just a big stupid man to you, but I tell you there’s more good in him than in many other people. I was looking for a fuse. The lights blew out, and I went down the cellar. And behind the fuse box-it happened to fall out-was a length of rubber pipe-just short” (59; Act 1).

Arthur Miller, like so many other authors and playwrights, uses names to signify and symbolize the inner characteristics of his characters. Miller uses names in a way that unveils the theme of the play itself. Every character’s name is its own metaphor. The way he describes his characters is both intelligent and ironic.

Works Cited

Miller, Arthur, and Gerald Weales. Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman: Text and Criticism. New York: Viking Press, 1971.