I read these three literary works the traditional way by reading them out of the anthology and also doing some research online. I read a few online summaries as well.
In Quicksand, there were many occasions that depicted materialism and spirituality. This fixation on materialism and belongings, also interesting spiritual views carried on throughout the work. Helga encountered many problems with her materialistic and spiritual values, and in the end, I believe that it finally got the best of her.
The very first moment I saw materialism depicted in Quicksand was on the first page, when I started reading, where it described Helga's room in Naxos. Because it was filled with things such as Chinese carpets, oriental silk, long bookshelves, many illustrious depictions and "furnished with rare and intensely personal taste," I when I read this I automatically assumed that she would come to expect a certain amount of "class" of her surroundings and the people around her. Subsequently I also found very similar themes in Death of a Salesman. In Arthur Miller’s work ‘Death of a Salesman’ is a m...
Foster, Thomas C. How to Read Literature like a Professor: a Lively and Entertaining Guide to
Within Death of a Salesman, there are many themes, motifs and symbolism shown to help readers and audiences alike understand the writing. Arthur Miller implemented these developmental characteristics through showing the theme of success and failure, features of a tragic hero and the germination within characters. Through Millers writing, it is shown that the American Dream does not always end in a happy
In D.H. Lawerence's short story, “The Rocking Horse Winner”, and Grahm Greene's “The Destructors, there are many truths to consider. Although these two stories are considerably different, the message is the same. Whether in a life-like story, such as “The Destructors”, or a fantacy, like “The Rocking Horse Winner”, the seeds of materialism are planted and nourished in lives of the characters. The aspects of materialism in these two stories develop desired conclusions by its characters. In order to understand the similar message of Greene short story “The Destructors” and Lawerence's “The Rocking Horse Winner”, one must scrutinize the various aspects of each story.
Americans take less vacation time. Americans work longer hours. Americans retire later. Americans revolve their lives around work. Americans overwork themselves. They dedicate their entire lives to their careers, to being promoted to a higher position, to attaining that higher payroll, to only get farther in the workplace. Americans are so caught up in their jobs and careers that they end up neglecting other things like their personal lives . Unlike people from other countries, Americans do not take enough lesiure time for themselves.
His style of writing supports the idea that modern writing should always strive to establish the meaning, soundness and unity which has been lost in modern ways of life. Klages defines modernity as a period (era) where societal norms and values determine the social order. Resultantly, anything that goes against these norms is deemed immoral, and within the social realm, the truth is the absolute element. Nevertheless, in page 4 of Tragedy and the Common Man, Miller holds a varied stand when he claims that “if society alone is responsible for cramping our lives, then the protagonist needs must be so pure and faultless”. Even though the concept of relativism is not properly developed within this story, Miller captures all the essential elements. He judges capitalism basing on what his culture holds right or what he personally considers right. He uses a clear and transparent language, and he shares his personal feeling towards capitalism to the audience in an accurate and clear way. Therefore, we can ascertain that Miller’s Death of a Salesman is in line with the elements of
Many times authors use symbolism to get their point across, and to further the readers understanding of the plot in many different lights so as to increase the intelligence of the reader. Symbolism is a major part of any story, however, whether or not this symbolism is a material object or actual phrase, dialogue, or anything else, does not matter, because every story has some sort of symbolism that increases the value of the play or story. Arthur Miller’s play “Death of a Salesman,” is one of Miller’s many works that holds much symbolism and power. Miller writes often to challenge the popular beliefs of a certain time. In “The Crucible,” Arthur Miller was referencing
Read 59.4 (2009): 22-25. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. The Web. The Web.
Death of a Salesman is a play about a man named Willy Loman who is an aging sales man that has difficulty remembering events, as well as distinguishing the present from his memories. Willy has always tried to live up to the “American Dream,” but unfortunately has failed miserably as a salesman and a father. Willy still having high hopes of the dream tries to live his life through his oldest son Biff, who has turned out to be just as big as a failure. Biff uncovers the truth behind his father’s lies and Willy being tormented by his failures starts to spiral downward. The thoughts of having failed as a salesman and father finally lead Willy to take his own life. In order to understand a play like this one you need to use a strategy in approaching it. One valid approach to any type of literature is to experience, interpret, and evaluate it.
"After all the highways, and the trains, and the years, you end up worth more dead than alive," (Miller, 98). This quote was spoken by the main character of the Arthur Miller play Death of a Salesman: Willy Loman. This tragedy takes place in Connecticut during the late 1940s. It is the story of a salesman, Willy Loman, and his family’s struggles with the American Dream, betrayal, and abandonment. Willy Loman is a failing salesman recently demoted to commission and unable to pay his bills. He is married to a woman by the name of Linda and has two sons, Biff and Happy. Throughout this play Willy is plagued incessantly with his and his son’s inability to succeed in life. Willy believes that any “well-liked” and “personally attractive man” should be able to rise to the top of the business world. However, despite his strong attempts at raising perfect sons and being the perfect salesman, his attempts were futile. Willy’s only consistent supporter has been his wife Linda. Although Willy continually treats her unfairly and does not pay attention to her, she displays an unceasing almost obsessive loyalty towards her husband: Even when that loyalty was not returned. This family’s discord is centered on the broken relationship between Biff and Willy. This rift began after Biff failed math class senior year and found his father cheating on Linda. This confrontation marks the start of Biff’s “failures” in Willy’s eyes and Biff’s estrangement of Willy’s lofty goals for him. This estrangement is just one of many abandonments Willy suffered throughout his tragic life. These abandonments only made Willy cling faster to his desire to mold his family into the American Dream. They began with the departure of his father leaving him and...
Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman, portrays the cost of selling oneself to the American Dream. Willy Loman, the central character, is madly determined to achieve affluence that he overlooks the value of his family and himself in the process. He instills in his sons, Biff and Happy Loman, that being charismatic will hand them a prosperous lifestyle. Happy trusts in his father’s ideology while Biff’s beliefs contradict them. Biff deems that success is a product of happiness and contentment, not a paycheck. Out of all the sociological theories, social conflict best emphasizes the author’s perspective of how conflict, through class and family, can deteriorate the American dream. By analyzing the play’s themes- social class and family- through the sociological perspectives: structural-functional, social conflict, and symbolic interactionist, we can predict what drives these characters to behave and perceive things the way they do.
It is human nature for a person to desire to better understand themselves and to acquire a distinct identity. People look to what is simple and familiar when trying to gain a sense of individuality. These identifiers can be found in the jobs people perform, the relationships they share, and any other type of activity that takes place in their daily life. It is also in this search for understanding that can cause the relationships a person shares, such as with close family and friends, to be strained. Willy Loman, the leading character in the play Death of a Salesman attempts to comprehend his place in society, but at the same time he loses the one thing that is his source for identification-his family.
Laura Seng Professor Kruger ENGL 271 May 12, 2014 The American Dream and Capitalism in Death of a Salesman One major theme in Death of a Salesman is the pursuit of the American dream. Playwright Arthur Miller details main character Willy Loman’s misguided quest for this dream. Death of a Salesman was written in postwar America, when the idea of the American Dream was a way of life. The United States was flourishing economically, and the idea of wealth was the basis of the American Dream.
An American dream is a dream that can only be achieved by passion and hard work towards your goals. People are chasing their dreams of better future for themselves and their children. The author Arthur Miller in Death of a Salesman has displayed a struggle of a common man to achieve the American dream. Willy Loman the protagonist of the play has spent his whole life in chasing the American dream. He was a successful salesman who has got old and unable to travel for his work, and no one at work gives him importance anymore. He is unhappy with his sons Happy and Biff because both of them are not successful in their lives. Moreover, Biff and Happy are also not happy with their father Willy because they don’t want to live a life that Willy wants them to live. The heated discussions of Willy and his older son Biff affect the family and the family starts to fall apart. However, Willy is unable to achieve the American dream and does not want to face the reality that his decisions for himself and his family have lead him to be a failure in the society. In the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, the protagonist Willy Loman spends his whole life to achieve the American Dream by his own perception and denies facing the reality, just like nowadays people are selling themselves and attempting to find success in life.
The Death of a Salesman highlights the struggle of everyday life and the outcome thereof. That is--over a substantial amount of time. Not only that, it also makes us reflect on the essence of a man. What makes a man a man or a woman a woman? Simply put, what makes a person an individual person with needs?
In the book Death of a Salesman by Arthur miller, there are lot morals and the play switches over from time to time because a lot the Loman’s are focusing too much on a lot of such different things and as the play goes on you start to see why Linda becomes a problem to the whole family. This book shows you how different one family can be and how much they have to work together to become the absolute best they can be. Linda does nothing wrong but to her husband Willy she does not do a thing right and you will soon find out why.