The Irony of Dying In Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is a salesman who has worked his entire life away and in looking back upon his life he feels that he has not made any overall achievements to be proud of. In his older age he struggles with internal and external conflicts in regards to his own personal choices and trying to make sure that his sons make good live’s to support themselves with. Willy’s wife is a woman who is overly understanding and loving when it comes to her husband; and even though he treats her disrespectfully in most instances she is undoubtedly devoted to him. She continues to believe in his work and abilities even when he no longer has the capability to see his own actions through. Miller shows in his play that as Willy fights to make successful live’s for his children and family he is only separating them farther and leading himself to suicide, because of their overall difference in views upon life and his own self doubt. …show more content…
He becomes overwhelmingly agitated with Biff’s actions, but somehow always seems to find his mind drifting back to the glory days when Biff was the one who he always idolized when it came to his two sons. Therefore this left Happy with the short end of the stick because no matter how hard he seemed to try and impress his father he never could win his attention away from Biff. Overall I think that is the main reason that later in life when the boys are out trying to make their own livings that Happy settles for a job that his father would expect of them. He is not necessarily happy like his name ironically implies, but more or less continues to try and build himself up within the company so that he can finally gain the attention that he has always wanted from his
The play, “Death of a Salesman” written by Arthur Miller, presents Willy Loman, as a salesman, who fails to earn a living and slowly loses his mind. Willy continuously seeks the past to find out where he went wrong. During his years in life, Willy wanted his two sons, Biff and Happy to become someone they’re not; Willy wanted them to become a salesman like him. However, because of his obsession in the American Dream of easy success and wealth, he created a life full of lies for himself and his sons. In the end because of “his misconception of himself as someone capable of greatness” leads to his downfall and the end of his life (Death of a Salesman).”
In the play Death Of A Salesman written by playwright Author Miller, his main character Willy Loman was illustrated as a sympathetic character. In the beginning of the play Willy Loman dedicated his time and money to assist both his sons and help them become successful in their lives for the reason to brag about their achievements. Willy Loman was admired and loved by his sons Biff and Happy, however there was an incident that made Biff loose all hope and admirations towards his father. As Willy starts recalling the past, his son Biff discovers that his father had an affair with another woman and that he gave that woman his wife’s stocking. Biff is devastated and disappointed in his father to the point where he no longer peruses football or
In Arthur Miller's play, Death of a Salesman, a major theme and source of conflict is the Loman family's lack of morality. This is particularly evident in the father, Willy Loman. Willy has created a world of questionable morality for himself and his family. In this world, he and his sons are men of greatness that "have what it takes" to make it in the competitive world of business. In reality, Willy’s son Biff is a drifter and a thief, his son Hap is continually seducing women with lies, while Willy does not treat his wife with respect and lies to everyone.
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.
Like countless characters in a play, Willy struggles to find who he is. Willy’s expectations for his sons and The Woman become too high for him to handle. Under the pressure to succeed in business, the appearance of things is always more important than the reality, including Willy’s death. The internal and external conflicts aid in developing the character Willy Loman in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman.
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.
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
Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman follows protagonist Willy Loman in his search to better his and his family’s lives. Throughout Willy Loman’s career, his mind starts to wear down, causing predicaments between his wife, two sons and close friends. Willy’s descent into insanity is slowly but surely is taking its toll on him, his job and his family. They cannot understand why the man they have trusted for support all these years is suddenly losing his mind. Along with his slope into insanity, Willy’s actions become more aggressive and odd as the play goes on. Despite Willy and Biff’s “family feud”, his two sons Happy and Biff truly worry about their father’s transformation, Happy saying: “He just wants you to make good, that’s all. I wanted to talk to you about dad for a long time, Biff. Something’s – happening to him. He – talks to himself” (Miller 21). Willy, as a father, cares about his children but he wishes they would do better. He believes Biff should have been an athlete. According to Harrington, “Even figuratively, Willy is haunted, and particularly in Biff’s failure to achieve success as a sports figure” (108). This haunting is part of what led to Willy’s slow plunge into madness. As Willy’s career in sales fails, he also fails, even failing his family. Heyen adds: “He didn’t have anything of real value to give to his family, or if he did, he didn’t know what it was” (48). His debilitating flashbacks and delusional hallucinations with Uncle Ben cement his horrifying realizations that he has let down his family. Willy Loman blames the economy for his downfall in his career. In one of his more extreme outbursts he exclaims, “There’s more people! That’s what’s ruining this country! Population is getting out of control. ...
In brief, it is apparent that Willy’s own actions led to not only his own demise, but his children’s as well. The salesman tragically misinterpreted the American Dream for only the superficial qualities of beauty, likeability and prosperity. Perhaps if Willy had been more focused on the truth of a person’s character, rather than purely physical aspects, his family’s struggles and his own suicide could have been avoided. On the whole, Arthur Miller’s play is evidence that the search for any dream or goal is not as easy and the end result may seem. The only way to realize the objective without any despair is the opposite of Willy Loman’s methods: genuineness, perseverance and humility.
In the play, The Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller,Willy Loman, an unsuccessful business man struggling to support his family is completely out of touch with reality throughout the plot line. Many characters throughout this play and their interactions with Willy have showed the audience his true colors and what he thinks is important in life. His constant lying and overwhelming ego certainly does not portray his life in factual terms, but rather in the false reality that he has convinced himself he lives in.
Throughout the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, family serves as a constant reminder of the responsibility felt by the main character, Willy Loman, to succeed. This theme is picked apart in the essay, “Family and History in Death of a Salesman,” by James Hurt, which states that the Loman family is held together through a system of emotional bonds and familial expectations. In turn, each character’s actions are motivated directly by a desire to protect that familial system even though the characters keep their concerns hidden from each other. Though Hurt argues soundly, his essay does not fully explore the more extensive truth that Willy’s fate is ironically sealed by his family in their efforts to save him from himself. Linda’s
Arthur Miller’s play “Death of a Salesman”, primarily focuses on the flaws and failures of Willy Loman, Millers’ main character in this story. Willy’s distorted and backward views of the American Dream, paired with his inability to let go of the past lead him down a road of regret and in the end his biggest failure which was his wasted life.
For following the wrong dream of becoming something that would make his dream come true instead of seeing what made him happy and enjoy what he's got. He rests his fate in his son biff to take the failure he brought upon himself to relive himself. Therefore, Biff follows so he does what he thinks is best and leaves with as much as he can with his family with money by killing himself. Thus, the tragic hero of the 'Death of the Salesman' the hero of this story ends tragically good the better for his family physically but intended good intentions for the family. When killed himself he was hoping the money from the incurrence was going to be used by biff for a business to follow or complete will's dream. But when he cheated on his wife and his son Biff found out he lost hope in his father and followed his own dream in the farming life. Then again, his two sons Biff and Happy are both deadbeats because of their
His Loving Spouse Linda Loman supports him in what he believes and supports him even when he's wrong and her life seems to be all about what willy’s desires. When Willy Realizes he cannot attain the feeling of accomplishment in his own job he becomes too absorbed with making sure his two sons are successful, mainly Biff, who he is convinced will be great in his sports and social life. Sorrowfully, willys attempts to only help biff add to his sense of inadequacy and his lack of Character. Loman comprehended toward the end of the play that doesn’t need to sell himself to his family that's loves him despite his failures. Along with Willy is not a tragic hero of The Story Death of the Salesman therefore on the way he confronted his fate with self pity and sobbing, rather than bravery and courage.