Dangerous Ground of Illusion Relations between fathers and the younger generation have been and continue to be an important theme for various literary genres (King Lear, Shakespeare; Fathers and Sons, Turgenev). For many famous writers the significance of fathers’ influence on their children forms a subject of particular interest. . In the play, Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller shows in a very striking manner that the father's influence can be either positive or fatal. The dispiriting story of the three generations of the Lomans family contrasts with the happy account of the life of their neighbors, Charley and his son Bernard. The author details father-and-son relations in the Lomans family over a long period of time. He effortlessly demonstrates that a younger generation both inherits the father's way of life and assimilates his best or worst features. He tells us almost nothing about Willy Loman’s, the main character's, father. All we know is that he played a flute. Also he was a handy man, because he invented a gadget to make flutes. He was making and selling flutes, traveling across the country in a wagon. He took his family with him wherever he went. When Willy was about four years old, his father went to Alaska seeking to earn a fortune and disappeared amidst Alaska's expanses. Though the period when his sons Ben and Willy were with him was short, it left an indelible impression on the boys’ memory. Later, each of them inherited a part of this way of life: the older son Ben got a passion for adventure and travel, and the younger son Willy got a profession of salesmen and an interest to work with wood. Though the father's influence was quite indirect; he mostly figured in their afterglow and rather idealistic fancies, both of them became decent and hard-working people. At the age of seventeen, Ben left his home for Alaska, but soon found himself in Africa and at twenty-one he was already rich. He spent the rest of his life in Africa where he died. He was a wealthy, influential and successful man and fathered seven children. He preferred to be brutal but effective, as befits the jungles of life. On one of his brief visits to Willy's home he admonished Biff, his nephew: "Never fight fair with a stranger, boy. You'll never get out of the jungle that way." Unlike his elder brother, Willy did not have enough strength to be aggressive and to take advantage of the opportunities offered by life.
Social pressures change as time passes, therefore it is interesting to see how these three texts whom differ by almost four hundred years perceive society and the effect this has on the protagonists; Shakespeare’s King Lear which was first performed in 1606 during the Jacobean era, presents a patriarchal society. Whilst, Arthur Miller uses the characters in ‘Death of a salesman’ to show the failure of the ‘American dream’ during the “golden era” of America in the late 40’s. The ‘American Dream’ was a set of ideals which suggested that anyone in the US could be successful through hard work, and had the potential to live a happy life. The sense of the deterioration in the equality of opportunities links to the fall in power and hierarchy in King Lear. Arudanthi Roy, however, uses her contemporary Indian novel to illustrate, using a proleptic and coalesce structure, the lives of the protagonists living in a post – colonial society. In each of these three texts there are characters who fit the stereotypes that society has instilled in them, but then there are those characters who noticeably differ from the norm; According to 19th century novelist Alfred de Musset “how glorious it is – and how painful – to be an exception.” Hence this statement can be seen as applicable to these characters, because in all three texts these characters do end up losing a lot.
The main character in the novel is Willy loman who is facing the difficulty situation in the play. Firstly I am going to describe Willy loman and Biff loman the oldest son of Willy. Willy is the father of two sons Biff and Happy, he has a lot of potential, and he thinks the goal of life is to be well liked and gain material success. He failed to achieve the American goal. And Biff the oldest son of Willy is the character in the novel that shows any real personal growth, he cannot hold down a job. In the story at (Act 2, 105) I am going to discuss the merits of Biff observation.
Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is quite a captivating piece of literature. I really thought this book was fantastic, even reading it for a second time. Since this is a play, the majority of the characterization had to be done through dialogue, but the astonishing depth of development that Miller achieved with his characters was astonishing. I truly felt that I intimately knew the characters by the end of the play despite how slim the volume was. Miller's play is an expose of the harsh reality of the American Dream, and while his play's message may not be hopeful, the honesty of his work will resonate with middle-class America even today. Miller's play showed me that not much has changed since post-WWII America. Average people are still struggling to capture the dream that we all feel this land offers us. Happy and Biff are the tragic characters that I hope never to become, but who can blame them for aspiring for something greater? Most disturbing of all, I truly hope that my parents' generation never fall victim to the same destructive hopes that possessed Willy Loman. Perhaps the scariest realization is that any one of us can get caught up in the delusion of what we believe we deserve.
In the play Death of a Salesman, appearance vs. reality is one of the major themes
In Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman Willy Loman has an obsession with material wealth and popularity. These obsessions get in the way of him achieving true happiness in his life with his family .Willy was inspired by Dave Singleman , his dreams of being like him were also ruined because of his obsessions. Willy said to his wife Linda describing Dave“His name was Dave Singleman… and he’d drummed merchandise in thirty-one states. And old Dave, he’d go up to his room… −I’ll never forget−and pick up his phone and call the buyers, and without ever leaving his room, at the age of eighty-four, he made his living” In most scenarios people think that the more items they own the happier they will be in life, Willy quickly learns that is not the case at all.
Willy is a man who does not know how to make the most of what he has. He sets himself up for...
In this short story, Willy Loman’s uncommon views affected those around him, most notably his son, Biff, who he prevents him from getting an education. Biff taking his advice did not make an effort in school, thus flunking his math class. Seeking a solution to his failure he decided to seek out his father, who was on a business trip, surprisingly caught his father having an affair.
Though humanity can never express itself fully, it is never deterred in its quest to do so. Literature brings such light and expression for humanity to communicate across time, space, generations and ever-evolving society. However, no modicum of talent suffices to satisfy people throughout the ages for literature and its ability to communicate directly and indirectly. Arthur Miller stands as a classic American author with his ability to explore the darker and deeper parts of humanity and individuals facing the adversity of a larger society. In Miller’s Death of a Salesman, he demonstrates the struggle of a family with an illusion of the American Dream against new ideas of success and striving for personal happiness rather than wealth or prestige.
The play Death of a Salesman, written by Arthur Miller, is about an average salesman living in Brooklyn, New York in the 1940’s named Willy Loman. Willy firmly believes in the American dream and is living his life aspiring to gain the wealth and materials associated with those of higher status in society. This American dream tears apart his family and the end result is his own demise. Glengarry Glen Ross, by David Mamet, has a plot similar to Death of a Salesman in that it is about salesmen and it shows the effects of capitalism on people and society. A difference between the two, however, is that Glengarry Glen Ross includes a group of salesmen working a firm who are trying to win a sales contest in which the first prize is a Cadillac, the second price is a set of steak knives, and the remaining salesmen will be fired. The main difference in the plays is that Death of a Salesman is decidedly a modern play and Glengarry Glen Ross is a postmodern response to Death of a Salesman.
character in the novel “Death Of A Salesman’ and Mr.Loman was the type of person that would always focus on the simple things. Instead of looking for new opportunities and for a better change everything went downhill for Mr.Loman. For that reason, Arthur Miller utilizes the title “Death Of A Salesman” not just to predict Willy Loman’s death and failure, but also how Mr.Loman’s dreams died alongside with him. Showing that one little mistake can make a big change in your life.
Family relationships are important in life and in novels, it shows you the interactions of the characters have to one another. It sets the situations of what is going on between the characters and actions toward each other. A huge relationship when growing up is the father and son. This relationship is a critical impact in ones life weather it is a normal healthy relationship or complete opposite. In the Novel “Death Of A Salesman” by “Arthur Miller,”shows that the character Willy Loman who is the father of two sons who names are “Happy” and “Bliff.” The interaction between Willy and his son Biff is disconnected and unstable.
The play centers on Willy Loman, an aging salesman who is beginning to lose his grip on reality. Willy places great emphasis on his supposed native charm and ability to make friends; stating that once he was known throughout New England, driving long hours but making unparalleled sales (something true only because of his philandering with secretaries), his sons Biff and Happy were the pride and joy of the neighborhood, and his wife Linda went smiling throughout the day. Unfortunately, time has passed, and now his life seems to be slipping out of control.
Plot, characterization, and dialogue are the elements of drama that I’ve chosen to analyze for Death of a Salesmen. Willy seems to be in conflict with himself and everyone else in his life. Conflict is what drives the plot and will be the main element of drama that’s analyzed in this essay. In Death of a Salesman Willy is the protagonist and his son Biff is the antagonist, he provokes Willy’s anger by not holding a steady job and measuring up to what his father feels he should be. The plot in Death of a Salesman is dialogue driven and the theme of the play is the death of Willy’s career and his inability to become successful in life. He also has hopes of Biff doing something more with his life other than working as a farmhand.
In most cases, it is considered normal for the father to be the head of the household. Providing and taking care of the family are some of his many duties. He could pass down his views on several things. In Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, this is not the case. The relationship between Willy Loman and his sons steadily changes throughout the play. As Willy Loman attempted to prepare his sons for life; he ultimately failed to enforce good qualities and skills because of his breakdowns to work, mental issues, and self-control.
The entire play stands on the link between Willy Loman, the head of the family, a man deprived of affection as a child, but a father who smothers his sons with love and oppresses them with the nakedness of his hopes for their success, and his two grown-up boys, Biff and Happy, who idolize and have nothing but love for their father when they are children, but who later realize how their father failed to prepare them for the real world.