Willy Loman

452 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Critical Analysis of death of a salesman

The play “Death of a Salesman”, written by Arthur Miller in 1949, is mainly about a salesman named Willy Loman who tries to create an image of a business man and persuading himself and the people around him that he has achieved an American dream. However, the presence of female role is often unnoticed and somehow they have a submissive role in the play. Arthur illustrates different female characters in the play which have an impact on Willy, the main character’s evolution.
Linda, wife of Willy Loman, is represented as the caring wife that has been supporting her husband and her sons all her life. She is a woman who has been taken for granted in the Loman family ,thus, making her seem like she is powerless woman. Women did not know any other life but to stay at home and care for the family, this mainly happened during the time period when the …show more content…

She is represented as a weak human being, mainly by how her husband speaks to her in disgrace and looses his temper at Linda and says, “Shut up!…shut up!…there’s nothing wrong with him!” which leaves Linda in shedding tears. However, the aggressiveness and the stress that Willy puts on Linda is not symbolising how females are viewed by him.In contrast, Miller shows in his description of Linda ,when he reminds actresses in rehearsal, that she is a strong independent woman “ Linda is taught. she is a fighter. Willy is prone to bully her,… but this is a woman who has sustained the family when Willy has allowed fantasy to replace truth”. This exemplifies that Linda will do anything for her family to not fall apart and keep a stable relationship between each family member. As the Arthur illustrates Linda as a determined woman in the play, the movie shows completely the opposite and it shows us that Willy is not only emotionally but rather physically abusive to Linda as

Show More
Related

  • Linda's Enabling In Death Of A Salesman

    1295 Words  | 3 Pages

    Linda’s enabling is obvious when she helps Willy with suicidal thoughts. Willy tries to suck carbon monoxide through a tube, and instead of telling him to stop, Linda just lets him do it. She enables him because although she is not outright letting him do it, she is allowing him to continue to hurt himself and his family. For example, Linda states, “’Every day I go down and take away that little rubber pipe. But when he comes home, I put it back where it was. How can I insult him that way?’” (Miller 60). Linda is scared of insulting Willy rather than protecting him, which clearly shows that she enables him to be this terrible, sad person. Critic Gavin Cologne-Brooks adds to the proof of Linda’s enabling by saying, “Family and

    Read More

  • Linda as an Anabler in Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

    1051 Words  | 3 Pages

    To start with, in the play Linda makes many excuses for Willy. For example, Willy says, “I suddenly couldn’t drive anymore. The car kept going off onto the shoulder ya know?” Linda replied, “Maybe it’s your glasses” (Miller 22). By making these kinds of excuses, it’s almost like Linda is ignoring the problems Willy has with his head. Also, Willy says, “I suddenly couldn’t drive anymore.” Linda replied, “Oh, maybe it was the steering again” (Miller 27). Willy doesn’t make excuses for himself, its Linda who acts like nothing is wrong. Willy is living half in the past and half in the present. In the play, Willy says, “It took me nearly four hours from Yonkers.” Linda replied, “Well, you’ll just have to take a rest” (Miller 27). By making all of these excuses, it shows that Linda refuses to believe that Willy has problems, and she tries brushing it off like it’s no big deal. She knows there are problems, but she is unwilling to face them.

    Read More

  • Attention Depicted In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

    726 Words  | 2 Pages

    This also show that Linda loved her husband more than anything, she would do anything to protect his pride including not telling Willy that she knows he had been trying to commit suicide. Everything Linda di is to protect Willy pride and face, and not letting any of her son

    Read More

  • Comparing Women In The Great Gatsby And Death Of A Salesman

    815 Words  | 2 Pages

    Similarly though, Linda was also cheated on, however she remained faithful to Willy, even in hardship. That is why she is so significant to Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. She is the adhesive that keeps the crumbling-family together. Throughout the play, Willy struggles to feel appreciated in his failing career as a salesman and is disappointed that his children, Biff and Happy, did not do something productive with their lives all while being the victim of dementia. Linda sacrifices her own dignity to deal with Willy’s deteriorating mental health and his constant disrespect towards her, like him telling her to shut up. Still, with all that she has to deal with she still loves him, protects him, and does all that she can in order to make him happy. That is more than many partner’s would be able to deal with, especially Daisy. If Daisy were in that situation she’d most likely find somebody else to carry on her life with and to care for

    Read More

  • Comparing Women In Fences And Death Of A Salesman

    1446 Words  | 3 Pages

    Linda blames everyone but Willy for his insanity, including their son Biff. Linda is so loyal to Willy at the beginning of the play that she is willing to throw her own son under the bus if it means defending Willy. Linda states that Willy only becomes distraught when Biff is around because Happy has disappointed his father so much. Biff views his mother as very fragile but still respects her as the lady of the house. He comments on how grey her hair has gotten, adding to her frail image. Linda is a pacifist who is unable to defend herself. Linda is never seen anywhere other than the house in the play, adding to the “homemaker” idea of this time period. She is always waiting for Willy when he gets home and dutifully keeps the house in order. She is constantly folding laundry or cooking, stereotypical woman ideals. When she buys a new type of cheese, Willy gets honestly angry with her because he does not like change and this

    Read More

  • Willy Masculinity

    905 Words  | 2 Pages

    He seems to believe that the best way to be the “man” in the relationship is to be the dominant one and to put her down all the time. “I won’t have you mending stockings in the house! Now throw them out!” Willy feels guilty about Linda mending stockings when he bought the woman he’s having an affair with a new pair. He transfers this guilt into being horrible to her, which isn’t very fair. He seems to believe that this is a way to assert his masculinity, and it could possibly resonate from the way that his father treated women before he left. This is similar to Othello; when Othello believes that Desdemona is having an affair he slaps her in front of everyone, thinking that it is a way to assert his masculinity to the public. Willy also refers to Linda as “kid” a lot, which could be a playful nickname but it also could be a way of him putting her down and making her seem immature. It is an excuse to dismiss her. It also suggests that he thinks he is more mature than Linda, whereas the audience know this not to be the case as Willy is losing it a little and can act incredibly childishly. In treating Linda like this, it also drives Willy and Biff further apart than ever. He doesn’t approve of the way Linda is treated, especially since he knows how much she puts up with from her husband. In being so uncertain of his masculinity Willy can be horrible, which makes him unlikeable and drives him apart from

    Read More

  • death of a salesman

    784 Words  | 2 Pages

    Disrespectfulness is the cause of personal tension in this play. There are many occurrences where a character is being disrespectful, which triggers emotional and physical conflicts. Throughout the movie, Willy is extremely disrespectful to his wife Linda. He loses his patience every time she talks during a conversation that he is having. When he talks to Biff at the table about his new job opportunities, Linda adds some remarks like, “I’ll make breakfast,” (1853) and Willy loses his control. He turns to her quickly and tells her to shut up. Sometimes he even puts his finger angrily to her face, screaming at her to shut her mouth, even though she is just adding relative comments.

    Read More

  • Comparison Between Polonius And Willy Loman

    1080 Words  | 3 Pages

    He is not being true to himself like the advice he gave to Laertes. Willy treats Linda with no respect. He cheats on Linda with another woman. Kenneth Elliot argues “Willy has had a long-standing extramarital affair with a woman he met on the road in Boston, which is the source of much of his guilt-ridden behavior toward his wife.” One of the reasons Willy is unhappy is because he feels guilty for cheating on his wife.

    Read More

  • Unravelling Lies: The True Life of Willy Loman

    728 Words  | 2 Pages

    “…He died the death of a salesman, in his green velvet slippers in the smoker of the new York, New haven, and Hartford going into Boston-when he died, hundreds of salesmen and buyers were at his funeral.” (Miller, 1949). In the “Death of a Salesman”, by Arthur Miller, the tale of a hardworking father named Willy Loman who faces cruel challenges is told. He covers up the ugliest parts of his life up with lies even though he means well, but this makes his mind sick. The theme of this novel is to be true to whom you are and lead an honest life. The author develops his theme through the characterization of Willy Loman with his mind, his relationship to his family, and the way his family used to live.

    Read More

  • Differences Between Haomeon And Kreon In Antigone

    455 Words  | 1 Pages

    In the film Antigone, directors make the deliberate decision to costume Haimon and Kreon similarly, but with key differences, to convey the moral values of each character. Kreon wears a silver suit made of a thick and dense material, like wool. The buttons are shiny silver and the lapel is folded over smoothly. His jacket has no belt at the waist, and Kreon’s shoes are plain and short. Haimon wears a similar style suit, with shiny buttons and dense material, but the shape is different. His jacket has a black belt or sash around the waist and across the body of the suit. His shoes are tall black boots, and the color of his suit is a slightly more natural shade of pale tan, different from Kreon’s metallic silver suit. The difference in shape of suits, suggests Kreon and

    Read More

  • What Is The Role Of Women In Willy Loman

    1001 Words  | 3 Pages

    Arthur Miller tells the tragedy of Willy Loman, a salesman who spends his days driving on the roads and lives in the illusion of an American Dream that he couldn’t reach. In fact, he lost his job and has a lot of debts to payback. The one who perfectly fitted in the capitalist society, which values are based on competitiveness and success, founds him self disappointed, hopeless and overtaken by events. His wife, Linda is described as the common American housewife, very faithful and shows a full support to her husband. Thanks to her devotion to him, Willy unveils his weaknesses but she is also his scapegoat whenever he releases his accumulated anger and frustration. And contrarily to what we might think their relation is the same as a master and his slave, they are complementary but not equal. This play exposes consequently the inferior role that women have in the American culture. In this play, two women play a significant role. How are women portrayed? According to Willy, Linda can’t handle big responsibilities and thinks that her capabilities are limited to taking care of the house, their

    Read More

  • Death of The American Dream

    761 Words  | 2 Pages

    Linda, Willy’s wife, seems to have a fairly small role in the play. She believes that the American dream is achievable by anybody, and supposedly is even the reason that Willy is un...

    Read More

  • Death Of A Salesman vs Death of a Hired Man

    949 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the play Death of a Salesman, Willy who is the father figure in this play to his son Biff , and a husband to his wife linda. Willy is the type of man who needs to be constantly reminded that he is a good person, an attractive person, a person that people like. "I'm fat. I'm very foolish to look at, linda."says Willy (Miller 24). Willy's wife Linda is Willy's rock. He depend on her for support and she is happy to enable him in his choices whether they be good or bad."How can i mention it to him? Everyday i go down and take the little rubber pipe. But, when he comes home i put it back where it was." says Linda (Miller 43). Biff, who is Linda and Willy's first born has so much pressure on him. His father wishes that he would fallow in his footsteps as a salesman, but Biff sees the struggle of his dad and doesn't want to have to go through that. Willy and his son have a very bad relationship because of an affair that willy had with a college. "You picked me?"says willy "I did i've been sitting at the desk watching all the salesman go by, day in day out. But you've got such a sense of humor, and we we do have such a good time together." says willys mistress (Miller 25).

    Read More

  • Self Deception In Willy Loman

    1601 Words  | 4 Pages

    Linda Loman is the enabler of the Loman family, and also uses self- deception to escape her life mentally. Linda never spoke up to Willy, and did nothing but feed his unrealistic dreams. Linda lived a life of “what ifs” with Willy. They both did the bare minimum in every aspect of their life, which is why

    Read More

  • Death of a Salesman

    2921 Words  | 6 Pages

    The very first section of the first scene, already defines the basis of Willy’s character for the rest of the play. The stage directions on page 8 identify him as being an exhausted aging man, whose work seems to be wearing him down. “…lets his burden down…” (Miller, 8). Although this makes Willy appear uninteresting, he soon contrasts this characteristic when he shows an optimistic determination towards his own failures. “I’ll start out in the morning. Maybe I’ll feel better in the morning.” (Miller, 9) Another aspect of Willy that makes him more interesting to the audience is his already visible complexity of layers: “I have such thoughts, I have such strange thoughts.” (Miller, 9) This of course leads the audience on to wondering what exactly is taking place in a man’s head to make him say such a thing, evoking a mild fascination in Willy’s character. Another character that is developed almost immediately within the first two pages of the play is Linda. Again the stage directions on page 8 introdu...

    Read More

More about Willy Loman

Open Document