A Modern Tragedy
A form of drama in which a person of superior intelligence and character is overcome by the very obstacles he/she is struggling to remove defines a tragedy as most people know it. However, tragedy can reflect another aspect of life: the tragedies of the common people. Heroic behavior in these instances may at times be impossible. We expect, from reading the first tragedies, that only kings or nobility can be tragic heroes. Arthur Miller himself said, “I believe that the common man is as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were…[The same characteristics] which were enacted by royal beings…apply to everyone in similar emotional situations.”
Death of a Salesman can be defined as a tragedy, with Willy Loman as the tragic hero. Willy Loman has a tragic flaw characteristic of all tragic heroes, however, it is not “necessarily a weakness.” Willy has a lot of dignity, and he is unwilling “to remain passive in the face of what he conceives to be a challenge to his dignity, his image of his rightful status.” His tragic flaw leads to his demise.
A tragic hero begins with a purpose, falls on hard times, but, in the end, gains a better perception. This perfectly describes Willy. Willy’s initial purpose is to maintain his dignity by pretending in front of his family and not accepting a job that he believes would lower his position. He obviously falls on hard times: he loses his job, his sons are lazy bums, Biff is a thief, he constantly relives his mistakes, and Biff resents his dad because of something that happened years ago. All of these are evidence of the hard times he is having in his life. After a confrontation with Biff, which occurred because of Linda’s insistence, Willy gains a better perception of his life. Or, at least, he thinks he does. Willy believes that, by committing suicide, he can gain dignity in the eyes of his family. By doing this, they can live off the insurance money, and he will finally have been able to provide for them.
In ‘Death of a salesman,’ Miller uses Willy to depict the common man who “is as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were.” Willy is a character whom is referred to as a “tragic hero” because he has been suppressed by society from succeeding as a salesman, and has been forced to “put thirty-four years into this firm … and now I can’t pay my insurance!” This idea ...
In Arthur Miller’s essay about “Tragedy and the Common Man,” he argues that the common man is as appropriate a subject for tragedy as the very highly placed kings and noble men. Mankind keeps tragedy above all forms because they are given the same mental abilities as the nobles. In “Death of a Salesman”, Willy Loman is a common man and a middle class worker, enough saving to provide food for his family. So if the tragic hero can be a common man, does Willy fit in that category? Even though he is a common man he fails to live up to the standards of being a tragic hero because he never accepts nor admits to his own errors. He, therefore, loses his dignity. One of his biggest errors is his failure of be a good father.
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.
In "Death of a Salesman," Willy Loman is the opposite of the classic tragic hero. Unlike Oedipus, Willy is a ordinary man. His name implies he is a "lowman" whose dreams and expectations have been shattered by the false values of thesociety he has put his faith into. This simple characteristic makes him a tragic hero like "Oedipus Rex."
Many dilemmas throughout the recent decades are repercussions of an individual's foibles. Arthur Miller represents this problem in society within the actions of Willy Loman in his modern play Death of a Salesman. In this controversial play, Willy is a despicable hero who imposes his false value system upon his family and himself because of his own rueful nature, which is akin to an everyman. This personality was described by Arthur Miller himself who "Believe[s] that the common man is as apt a subject for a tragedy in its highest sense as kings were" (Tragedy 1).
In the book Death of A Salesman, author Arthur Miller shows how cruel life can be through the life of Willy Loman, the main character. His feelings of guilt, failure, and sadness result in his demise.
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller concerns itself with the fall of a simple man perpetually in a steadfast state regarding his own failure in a success-driven society. The protagonist of the play, Willy Loman, will follow a tragic trajectory that will eventually lead to his suicide. Arthur Miller's tragic play is an accurate portrayal of the typical American myth that sustains an extreme craving for success and a belief in the illusion of the American dream, a dream attainable only by a handful of people. Having chosen a career in sales Willy Loman constantly aspires to become 'great'. Nevertheless, Willy is a poor aging salesman that considers himself to be a failure when comparing himself to his successful father and brother, but he is incapable of consciously admitting it. Consequently, Willy will measure his level of success with the level of success attained by his offspring, particularly his eldest son Biff. Their difficult relationship contribute to the play's main plot. Willy unfolds his deluded perception and recollection of the events as the audience gradually witnesses the tragic downfall of a man shadowed by a mental illness that has already began to take it's toll on his mind and personality.
As time grows, a spouse becomes a soul mate, best friend, and lover all in one. No one will ever show their dedication and love for you like your significant other and that’s what Arthur Miller addresses in the play Death of a Salesman. Linda Loman is the wife of Willy Loman, a man that treats her wrong but she still stands by his side. Linda is a vital character because she never has a low personality, she chooses her husband over her children she’s strong when her husband passes away and she the voice of the playwright.
Willy Loman, one of the few tragic heroes in the modern era, is not very different from other tragic heroes which precede him. Willy, similarly to other protagonists in Aristotle’s tragedies, has a tragic flaw which leads to his eventual downfall. However, Willy’s demise in the 1940s play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, cannot be contributed purely to Willy’s own faults, but also to the actions of surrounding characters. These characters will go on to push Willy into a corner, making it even harder for him to overcome his circumstances, eventually playing a part in the tragic end of Willy Loman. By the end of the play, it is Ben, Biff, and Charley who contributes the greatest to the ultimate demise of Willy Loman.
The play “Death of the Salesman” by Arthur Miller, introduced the dramatic story of Willy Loman, a salesman who has reached the end of the road. Willy Loman is a washed-up salesman who is facing hard times. In “Death of a Salesmen,” Willy Loman has been deluding himself over the years to the point he cannot understand what is wrong with him. This leads to the problems with is sons, wife, and career; it ultimately is what ends his life. I believed that the character of Willy 's delusion caused him to fall. While there were many contributing factors to Willy 's demise, his failure to cope with such circumstances and to become trapped in his own delusion is what tears Willy apart from himself and his family. Rather than facing the reality, Willy
Alistair Deacon from As Time Goes By once said that, “The people in the book need to be people.” The main character in a story or in a play always has to be somewhat likeable or relatable. Who doesn’t like to feel like they can relate to their favorite character in a story? In many cases the authors of stories or books always try to make the reader feel like they are not the only ones with problems or going through a crazy situation. Wanting the reader to become engaged in the characters' conflicts is what they aim for. In Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman, many people were gripped by Willy Loman’s, the main character, problems because they too struggle with many of the conflicts that Willy faces. Willy could not keep his life together, failing to see reality and pursuing the wrong dream, with a wrong viewpoint, ended up causing others around him and himself to hurt.
The objectives of this written task were to show how Willy’s family (Linda, Biff and Happy) viewed his death and his achievements. I also attempted to illustrate their individual relationships with Willy. I chose to use the format of a formal police report as it allows all three characters to express their views of Willy freely. Emotions were adjusted to the minimum since this is a police report, except for the case of Linda whom I consider would be too weak at that point to control herself. Their stories do not correspond exactly because some are trying to hide the facts. One difficulty I encountered was imitation of tones of all three characters. After reading the original play again, I managed to capture Linda’s admiration and Happy’s indifference. Various factual details were added carefully to increase the authenticity of the police report, such as the dates, the autopsy result, the photographs and the model of Willy’s car (a red Chevy).
Willy Loman’s character in Death of a Salesman portrays him as a tragic hero. Willy Loman continued to want recognition and his reputation, but never forgets about his family. These characteristics describe him as a tragic hero in Death of a Salesman. Willy Loman’s tragic flow leads him to pursue the idea that reputation in society has more relevance in life than knowledge and education to survive in the business. His grand error of wanting recognition drove him crazy and insane and led to his tragic death.
Willy still struggles to find out why his son, Biff, has not made anything of himself yet. Instead of a stable job, Biff has been a farmhand across the country earning only $35 a week (Act I. Scene I). Willy does not know where he has gone wrong with raising his kids, with his job, and overall with his life (Krutch, 308-309). To find the solutions to the problems driving him insane, Willy looks to his past. While he is day-dreaming he actually talks to himself and makes his family worried about his health and sanity. He daydreams and feels as if he is actually encountering the past once again in his journey. Willy is desperately trying to find out what has gone wrong in his life, why no one responds to him in the positive way that he used to, and why Biff does not have a stable job or a family. Through his trek to finding his mistakes in life, Willy finds r...
Willy Loman, the main character in Death of a Salesman is a complex tragic character. He is a man struggling to hold onto the little dignity he has left in a changing society. While society may have caused some of his misfortune, Willy must be held responsible for his poor judgment, disloyalty and foolish pride.