Optimism Death Of A Salesman

In Arthur Miller’s, Death of a Salesman, both tragic and optimistic elements appear throughout the play. Even though the main character, Willy Loman, ultimately commits suicide, his spirit from flashbacks as well as hopes for his son’s futures provides the audience with an optimism. Willy’s sons, Biff, and Happy also display optimism after their father dies by learning from their father’s flaws as well as his dreams. While Willy spends his last few days before his suicide the audience gets the chance to witness him in his old age as well as him in his younger years as Willy is experiencing flashbacks from a combination of his age and depression. Willy is optimistic in his youth, a quality that he holds onto the best that he can in his old and

Unfortunately, in the final argument between Biff and Willy, Biff reveals how much truth stretching or lying that the Loman family had done in the past. Biff calls his family out when he says, “[w]e never told the truth for ten minutes in this house” (p. 447). Biff then gives examples of their deceitfulness by telling how his brother had been glorifying his job title, similar to how their father had done with his promotion, as well as how unsuccessful he had been in the job force while away from home. Biff reveals that Happy was working under the assistant buyer, after having told his family he was the assistant buyer. Biff reveals that Happy is, “one of two assistants to the assistant” (446) buyer. This revelation in one of the final scenes contributes to Willy’s declining emotional state as he is reminded once again of how far his sons are from where he had hoped they would be. After Biff admits he had found a way to mess up every job he had after high school, he blames his father for his failures. Biff tells Willy that he had never taught him to listen to anybody or take orders. Willy fails to come to terms with this concept, instead he argues that Biff’s actions and failures have all been out of spite for his father. The two never see eye to eye, and instead, the argument ends in a draw and Willy slips out of reality and into a

In his final scene, Willy decides to end his life with the idea that Biff will then be wealthy enough from his death insurance money to finally be as successful as Willy had always hoped him to be. Although many interpret the ending of the play to be a tragedy, there is still optimism after Willy dies. Biff and Happy’s reactions to their father’s death is where the last bit of optimism lies in the play. Although Biff and Happy have two different outlooks on their father’s life, they each take what they need in order to find happiness and success in their futures. Biff knows that he does not want to chase the dream that his father did, he takes his father’s suicide as a lesson that a job like his and the pressures that come along with such a demanding occupation are too much for him to handle. Happy, on the other hand, takes his father’s suicide as a reason to pursue the same dream and find the success in it that Willy could not. It is with these final optimistic points of view on the dream that Willy Loman was pursuing that Death of a Salesman is an example of how optimism can come from tragedy, and likewise, tragedy can stem from