theme statement of death of a salesman

Death of a Salesman Themes

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• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 1, Scene 1
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 1, Scene 2
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 1, Scene 3
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 1, Scene 4
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 1, Scene 5
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 1, Scene 6
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 1
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 2
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 3
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 4
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 5
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 6
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 7
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 8
• Death of A Salesman: Novel Summary: Act 2, Scene 9
• Death of A Salesman: Character Profiles
• Death of A Salesman: Metaphor Analysis

Death of A Salesman: Themes Analysis

• Death of A Salesman: Top Ten Quotes
• Biography: Arthur Miller

Death of A Salesman has several themes that run throughout the play.  The most obvious theme is the idea of reality versus illusion.  Though Linda, Biff and Happy are all unable to separate reality from illusion to some degree, Willy is the main character who suffers from this ailment.  For years, Willy has believed that both he and his boys (particularly Biff) will one day be great successes.  Though he's a disrespected salesman, he calls himself the "New England man." Though Biff has done nothing with his life by the age of thirty-four, Willy tells others and tries to make himself believe that his son is doing big things" out west.  Willy's brother, Ben, continually appears in the troubled man's mind, offering hints on how to make it in the world of business.  Willy feels that he must live up to the standard that Ben has set, but this is found to be impossible by the end of the play.  Only Biff ever realizes who he is ("a dime a dozen") and what his potential really is.  He is the only member of the family to finally escape from the poisonous grasp of illusion.  One of Miller's secondary themes is the idea of the American Dream.  Throughout his play, Miller seems to criticize this ideal as little more than a capitalist's paradigm.  Though Willy spends all of his adult life working for a sales company, this company releases the salesman when he proves to be unprofitable.  Willy confronts Howard, his boss (and Miller indicts free market society), when he charges, "You can't eat the orange and throw the peel away-a man is not a piece of fruit." Here, Willy feels that Howard has gone back on his father's word by forgetting him in his golden years, throwing away the peel after eating the orange, so to speak.  Thus, Willy is unable to cope with the changing times and the unfeeling business machine that is New York.  In many ways, Death of A Salesman has a tragic theme consistent with great tragedies such as Oedipus the King and others.  Though Willy is a very modern man, and certainly not a member of the aristocracy, he lives a very tragic life.  Though he believes that he and his sons are great men, his flawed character perverts his idealistic vision of success and happiness.  The idea that "personality wins the day" is one such flaw in Willy's logic.  Indeed, substance, not personality or being well liked, is what wins the day.  Charley and Bernard, who have success but not personality, prove to Willy that his notion is incorrect.  But unfortunately, Willy never understands this, and so goes to his grave never truly realizing where he went wrong. 

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Death of a Salesman

By arthur miller, death of a salesman themes, the dangers of modernity.

Death of a Salesman premiered in 1949 on the brink of the 1950s, a decade of unprecedented consumerism and technical advances in America. Many innovations applied specifically to the home: it was in the 50s that the TV and the washing machine became common household objects. Miller expresses an ambivalence toward modern objects and the modern mindset. Although Willy Loman is a deeply flawed character, there is something compelling about his nostalgia. Modernity accounts for the obsolescence of Willy Loman's career - traveling salesmen are rapidly becoming out-of-date. Significantly, Willy reaches for modern objects, the car and the gas heater, to assist him in his suicide attempts.

Gender Relations

In Death of a Salesman, woman are sharply divided into two categories: Linda and other. The men display a distinct Madonna/whore complex, as they are only able to classify their nurturing and virtuous mother against the other, easier women available (the woman with whom Willy has an affair and Miss Forsythe being two examples). The men curse themselves for being attracted to the whore-like women but is still drawn to them - and, in an Oedipal moment, Happy laments that he cannot find a woman like his mother. Women themselves are two-dimensional characters in this play. They remain firmly outside the male sphere of business, and seem to have no thoughts or desires other than those pertaining to men. Even Linda, the strongest female character, is only fixated on a reconciliation between her husband and her sons, selflessly subordinating herself to serve to assist them in their problems.

Madness is a dangerous theme for many artists, whose creativity can put them on the edge of what is socially acceptable. Miller, however, treats the quite bourgeois subject of the nuclear family, so his interposition of the theme of madness is startling. Madness reflects the greatest technical innovation of Death of a Salesman--its seamless hops back and forth in time. The audience or reader quickly realizes, however, that this is based on Willy's confused perspective. Willy's madness and reliability as a narrator become more and more of an issue as his hallucinations gain strength. The reader must decide for themselves how concrete of a character Ben is, for example, or even how reliable the plot and narrative structure are, when told from the perspective of someone as on the edge as Willy Loman.

Cult of Personality

One of Miller's techniques throughout the play is to familiarize certain characters by having them repeat the same key line over and over. Willy's most common line is that businessmen must be well-liked, rather than merely liked, and his business strategy is based entirely on the idea of a cult of personality. He believes that it is not what a person is able to accomplish, but who he knows and how he treats them that will get a man ahead in the world. This viewpoint is tragically undermined not only by Willy's failure, but also by that of his sons, who assumed that they could make their way in life using only their charms and good looks, rather than any more solid talents.

Nostalgia / regret

The dominant emotion throughout this play is nostalgia, tinged with regret. All of the Lomans feel that they have made mistakes or wrong choices. The technical aspects of the play feed this emotion by making seamless transitions back and forth from happier, earlier times in the play. Youth is more suited to the American dream, and Willy's business ideas do not seem as sad or as bankrupt when he has an entire lifetime ahead of him to prove their merit. Biff looks back nostalgic for a time that he was a high school athletic hero, and, more importantly, for a time when he did not know that his father was a fake and a cheat, and still idolized him.

Opportunity

Tied up intimately with the idea of the American dream is the concept of opportunity. America claims to be the land of opportunity, of social mobility. Even the poorest man should be able to move upward in life through his own hard work. Miller complicates this idea of opportunity by linking it to time, and illustrating that new opportunity does not occur over and over again. Bernard has made the most of his opportunities; by studying hard in school, he has risen through the ranks of his profession and is now preparing to argue a case in front of the Supreme Court. Biff, on the other hand, while technically given the same opportunities as Bernard, has ruined his prospects by a decision that he made at the age of eighteen. There seems to be no going back for Biff, after he made the fatal decision not to finish high school.

In a play which rocks back and forth through different time periods, one would normally expect to witness some growth in the characters involved. Not so in Death of a Salesmen, where the various members of the Loman family are stuck with the same character flaws, in the same personal ruts throughout time. For his part, Willy does not recognize that his business principles do not work, and continues to emphasize the wrong qualities. Biff and Happy are not only stuck with their childhood names in their childhood bedrooms, but also are hobbled by their childhood problems: Biff's bitterness toward his father and Happy's dysfunctional relationship with women. In a poignant moment at the end of the play, Willy tries to plant some seeds when he realizes that his family has not grown at all over time.

Death of a Salesman Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Death of a Salesman is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Significant of the tittle in 600 words.

I think the title refers to both the death of Willy the salesmen and the death of his dreams. Willy's dreams of success turn to disillusionment when he cannot compete in the capitalist world. An extended metaphor might also involve Capitalism and...

death of a salesman

Charley visits because he is worried about Willy.He knows Willy is a proud man and he wants to help him, though Willy isn't really willing to take his help.

Please submit your questions one at a time.

How have biff and happy responded to their father’s condition

Biff denies responsibility for his father's condition, but he is forced to acknowledge that he is linked to his father's guilt and irrational actions. I think happy is just stressed about it.

Study Guide for Death of a Salesman

Death of a Salesman study guide contains a biography of Arthur Miller, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Death of a Salesman
• Death of a Salesman Summary
• Character List

Essays for Death of a Salesman

Death of a Salesman essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller.

• Shattered Dream - The Delusion of Willy Loman
• Perceptions of Self Worth and Prominence: Spaces and Settings in Death of a Salesman
• Sales and Dreams
• Musical Motifs
• Death of A Salesman: Shifting of the American Dream

Lesson Plan for Death of a Salesman

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Introduction to Death of a Salesman
• Relationship to Other Books
• Notes to the Teacher

Wikipedia Entries for Death of a Salesman

• Introduction
• Characters and cast

A Summary and Analysis of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

Death of a Salesman is that rare thing: a modern play that is both a classic, and a tragedy. Many of the great plays of the twentieth century are comedies, social problem plays, or a combination of the two. Few are tragedies centred on one character who, in a sense, recalls the theatrical tradition that gave us Oedipus, King Lear, and Hamlet.

But how did Miller come to write a modern tragedy? What is Death of a Salesman about, and how should we analyse it? Before we come to these questions, it might be worth briefly recapping the plot of what is, in fact, a fairly simple story.

Death of a Salesman : summary

The salesman of the title is Willy Loman, a travelling salesman who is in his early sixties. He works on commission, so if he doesn’t make a sale, he doesn’t get paid. His job involves driving thousands of miles around the United States every year, trying to sell enough to put food on his family’s table. He wants to get a desk job so he doesn’t have to travel around any more: at 62 years of age, he is tired and worn out.

He is married to Linda. Their son, Biff, is in his thirties and usually unemployed, drifting from one temporary job to another, much to Willy’s displeasure. Willy’s younger son, Happy, has a steady job along and his own home, and is therefore a success by Willy’s standards.

However, Happy, despite his name, isn’t happy with the life he has, and would quite like to give up his job and go and work on a ranch out West. Willy, meanwhile, is similarly dreaming, but in his case of the past, rather than the future: he thinks back to when Biff and Happy were small children and Willy was a success as a salesman.

The Lomans’ neighbour, Charley, offers Willy a job to help make ends meet, but Willy starts to reminisce about his recently deceased brother, Uncle Ben, who was an adventurer (and young Willy’s hero). Linda tells her sons to pay their father some respect, even though he isn’t himself a ‘great man’.

It emerges that Willy has been claiming to work as a salesman but has lately been borrowing money as he can’t actually find work. His plan is to take his own life so his family will receive life insurance money and he will be able, with his death, to do what he cannot do for them while alive: provide for them. Biff agrees reluctantly to go back to his former boss and ask for a job so he can contribute to the family housekeeping.

Meanwhile, Willy asks his boss, Howard, for his desk job and an advance on his next pay packet, but Howard sacks Willy. Willy then goes to Charley and asks for a loan. That night, at dinner, Willy and Biff argue (Biff failed to get his own former job back when his old boss didn’t even recognise him), and it turns out that Biff once walked in on his father with another woman.

Willy goes home, plants some seeds, and then – hearing his brother Ben calling for him to join him – he drives off and kills himself. At his funeral, only the family are present, despite Willy’s prediction that his funeral would be a big affair.

Death of a Salesman : analysis

Miller’s family had been relatively prosperous during the playwright’s childhood, but during the Great Depression of the 1930s, as with many other families, their economic situation became very precarious. This experience had a profound impact on Miller’s political standpoint, and this can be seen in much of his work for the theatre.

Death of a Salesman represented a decisive change of direction for the young playwright. His previous success as a playwright, All My Sons , was a social drama heavily influenced by Henrik Ibsen, but with his next play, Miller wished to attempt something new. The mixture of hard-hitting social realism and dreamlike sequences make Death of a Salesman an innovative and bold break with previous theatre, both by Miller and more widely.

In his essay ‘ Tragedy and the Common Man ’ (1949), which Miller wrote to justify his artistic decision to make an ordinary American man the subject of a theatrical tragedy, Miller argued that the modern world has grown increasingly sceptical, and is less inclined to believe in the idea of heroes.

As a result, they don’t see how tragedy, with its tragic hero, can be relevant to the modern world. Miller argues, on the contrary, that the world is full of heroes. A hero is anybody who is willing to lay down his life in order to secure his ‘sense of personal dignity’. It doesn’t matter what your social status or background is.

Death of a Salesman is an example of this ethos: Loman, who cheated on his wife and lied to his family about his lack of work and his reliance on friends who lent him money, makes his last gesture a tragic but selfless act, which will ensure his family have money to survive when he is gone.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that Miller is somehow endorsing the hero’s final and decisive act. The emphasis should always be on the word ‘tragedy’: Loman’s death is a tragedy brought about partly by his own actions, but also by the desperate straits that he is plunged into through the harsh and unforgiving world of sales, where once he is unable to earn money, he needs some other means of acquiring it so he can put food on the table for his family.

But contrary to what we might expect, there is something positive and even affirmative about tragedy, as Arthur Miller views the art form.

For Miller, in ‘Tragedy and the Common Man’, theatrical tragedy is driven by ‘Man’s total compunction to evaluate himself justly’. In the process of doing this, and attaining his dignity, the tragic hero often loses his life, but there is something affirmative about the events leading up to this final act, because the audience will be driven to evaluate what is wrong with society that it could destroy a man – a man willing to take a moral stand and evaluate himself justly – in the way that it has.

Does Willy Loman deserve to be pushed to take his own life just so his family can pay the bills? No, so there must be something within society that is at fault. Capitalism’s dog-eat-dog attitude is at least partly responsible, since it leads weary and worn-out men like Willy to dream of paying off their mortgage and having enough money, while simultaneously making the achievement of that task as difficult as possible. When a younger and better salesman comes along, men like Willy are almost always doomed.

But by placing this in front of the audience and dramatising it for them, Miller invites his audience to question the wrongs within modern American society. Thus people will gain a greater understanding of what is wrong with society, and will be able to improve it. The hero’s death is individually tragic but collectively offers society hope.

So it may be counter-intuitive to describe a tragedy like Death of a Salesman as ‘optimistic’, but in a sense, this is exactly what it is. Miller takes the classical idea of the tragic flaw, what Aristotle had called the hamartia , and updates this for a modern audience, too: the hero’s tragic flaw is redefined as the hero’s inherent unwillingness to remain passive in the face of what he conceives to be a challenge to his dignity and rightful status in society.

There is something noble in his flaw, even though it will lead to his own destruction. So really, the flaw is not within the individual or hero as much as in society itself.

A key context for Death of a Salesman , like many great works of American literature from the early to mid-twentieth century, is the American Dream: that notion that the United States is a land of opportunity where anyone can make a success of their life and wind up stinking rich. Miller’s weaving of dream sequences in amongst the sordid and unsatisfactory reality of the Lomans’ lives deftly contrasts the American dream with the American reality.

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2 thoughts on “A Summary and Analysis of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman”

This is a very insightful and convincing appreciation. What it misses is any idea that Miller’s being Jewish may have had a hand in helping him to see why the American dream and its popularity-cult needed to be criticized. The word “cult” in “populairty-cult” says it all, because “The Death of a Saleman” is at its core a play about idolatry, the Ol,d Testament theme against which its prophets railed the most.

Willy is portrayed as an idol-worshipper, whereas his friend, Charely, and Charley’s son, Bernard, are both seen as devotees of the “true” God, in whose religion the human being is always endowed with dignity and always seen as an end in himself, never as a means to some other end. The play, in fact, asks a very Jewish question. If the true God and the false god both require sacrifice, how can you ever know which is which? And its tragedy supplies us with Miller’s answer: those who worship idols discover in the end that THEY are the sacrifice!

Miller, like Philip Roth later on, was a Jewish-American inheritor of the Old Testament’s prophetic tradition, a tradition in which Amos, Isaiah, Jeremia en Ezekiel continually used their verbal art to expose Israel’s stinking moral corruption, foreseeing nothing but doom if it continued in irs idolatrous ways. Change ancient Israel to America, change the average Israelite of that time to Willy Loman now: both wind up destroying themsevles for the very same reason: with all the good will in they world, they have no self-knowledge and spend their whole lives worshipping a false god, deluded in the belief that they are worshipping the true one.

Their mistake in both cases only becomes apparent when it is time to offer the sacrifice, but by then, of course, it is always too late!

Perfect analysis, particularly when viewed in regards to recent events, involving American involvement with Israel dogma

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• Death of a Salesman

Read our detailed notes on the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller. Our notes cover Death of a Salesman summary and analysis.

Introduction

Death of a Salesman  by Arthur Miller, is written in 1949, is a modern tragedy and is considered both the masterpiece of the playwright and foundation of modern American drama. The play is awarded various honors and awards that also includes the Pulitzer Prize and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award.

Initially the play was titled as  The inside of His Head,  however, later he appears dissatisfied with the title and conferred the second title of the play i.e.,  Death of a Salesman.  We, from the 1 st  title, get a deep intuition into the psychosomatic temperament of the central character who is a salesman.

In  Death of a Salesman,  Arthur Miller reconnoiters subjects of money, death and the loss of individuality. Other than the American Dream, Willy Loman desires nothing. He craves his brother’s prosperity and endeavors for a flawless life, nonetheless, he frequently is unsuccessful to accomplish his dreams.

He, as a salesman, is subject to the impulses of the flea market and thinks that it is this job that can only rise him in the world of business. But, due to a miserable financial status, he couldn’t secure a loan for his son to start his own business. And in the end, Willy commits suicide, realizing his so little accomplishments in his life.

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller Summary

Willy Loman, after having set out on a sales trip to Portland, Maine that morning, returns to his Brooklyn home very late at night since he continually drove his car off the side of the road. Willy, who is now sixty-three years old, has been working as a traveling salesman for more than thirty years. Recently, his sales rate has declined as his old costumes are either dying or retiring.

Moreover, the company has taken away his salary so that he works on a straight commission. On his return to home, Linda, Willy wife, ease him and motivates him to ask the master of the company, Howard Wagner, for a place in in the New York office where he his salary will be guaranteed without traveling.

Biff and Happy, Willy’s two sons, upstairs in their bedroom recalls their past happier times of their adolescents and compares it with their disappointing lives of today. Biff, now thirty-four years of age, has held four different jobs since graduating from his high school. He senses that he’s not moving ahead toward anything at all.

At a high school, he was among the best football player but couldn’t get a college scholarship since he failed the mathematics test and declined to earn money for his summer school to graduate. After working on a farm in Texas, Biff has just returned home and Willy, that morning, begins criticizing for his failures to earn money and to find a prestigious profession.

Happy, the younger son of Willy, works as a low-level sales position in New York City, employing most of his time seducing women. Biff and Happy, as they talk, resolve that they can be effective, successful, and happier if they initiate a business of their own, together.

Meanwhile, Willy sits downstairs in the kitchen and talks to himself loudly, recalling happy moments from past: their family car cleaned by Biff and Happy, Biff’s preparation for his important football game, willy’s joyfully working on projects around his own home, his afternoon with a woman in a hotel room on trips to Boston.

Ultimately, Charley, Willy’s neighbor, enters from the next door. While playing play cards and talking to Charley, Willy imagines himself talking to his elder brother, Ben. Ben once invited Willy to Alaska and ask him to join him in order to make his fortune. Willy moves outside the kitchen, after Charley leaves home, and is still caught up in his imagined conversation with his elder brother.

Meanwhile, Linda comes downstairs and speaks to Biff and Happy that she dreads that Willy is planning to kill himself as she had found a piece of rubber hose that was connected to a gas pipe in the basement. The conversation turns to dreams when Willy returns home: of Biff becoming a successful entrepreneur and a salesman that Willy has of him. Willy advises Biff, upon which the whole family agrees, to see Bill Oliver, one of his former bosses, and request for a mortgage so that he can start his own sporting goods business.

The very next morning, Willy visits his boss, Wagner, to requests for a place in the New York office. However, despite getting a new place, Wagner fires him from the job. Leaving Wagner’s office, Willy directs his way to Charley’s office to request for a mortgage to pay off his bills where he meets Bernard, Charley’s son. Bernard was a boyhood friend or Biff and Happy, now a successful lawyer dealing with cases before Supreme Court. Willy, being amazed, inquiries that how he was able to succeed since Biff and Happy failed, however, Bernard asks Willy why Biff never went to school to graduate, after doing badly in a mathematics course for a scholarship.

Happy arranges a dinner in a local restaurant so as to celebrate the successful meeting of biff with Mr. Oliver, however, when Biff reaches he informs that his owner didn’t recognize him, and Biff, as a reaction, angrily stole Mr. Oliver’s fountain pen.

Biff lies to his parents about his meeting (that it was a successful one) when hears about his father’s news that he is fired so as to console them. At the restaurant, happy arranges two women to join them. When Willy excuses for the washroom, Biff and Happy abandon their father and leave the restaurant with their father. While in the washroom, Willy recalls the time when Biff failed his Mathematics test and comes to Boston on a surprise visit and discover him with another woman in a hotel room. It was because of this incident that Biff refused to join summer school and to graduate from high school.

Willy, after leaving the restaurant, resolves on the way to the home that the only way to provide the best livings is that he commits suicide. By doing so, the twenty thousand dollars for his life insurance settlement would come to his family.

When Biff and Happy return from their date with the women, they encounter Linda’s scolding for abandoning their father at the restaurant. In return, Biff angrily accused his father and brother of not taking life seriously and claims that he, now finally, knows himself and will work at the farm with his own hands, that gives him more satisfaction than any other job could. Biff confronts everything and cries at his father’s shoulders.

Willy, moved by Biff’s affectations, leaves home and drives the car to commit suicide and ultimately died. Linda, in the last scene, in the graveyard, talks ironically to Willy that he killed himself in the same way when they ended disbursing for their house.

Death of a Salesman Characters Analysis

Willy loman.

He is a sixty-three-year-old traveling salesman. Willy has started dwelling on past unknown of the present condition. His past life frequently flashes back before his eyes in the last two days of his life. He has two sons, Biff and happy, who he wants to have a cherished lifestyle and worldly success, though he is unable to help to achieve it. At last, he commits suicide, the last gesture for his family, so that they can have a lavish lifestyle by the insurance money.

He is the elder son of Willy Loman. Biff, thirty-three-year-old, is still in search of himself. The best football player at school, couldn’t get anywhere for further studies. When his owner refused to give a loan, frustrated, he steals his owner’s cheap fountain pen. Though he loves his father, however, because of his defeated state curses him as a fool and a dreamer.

Happy Loman

He is Willy Loman’s younger son, who is somehow successful in his life, he works as a clerk in a store. He is a womanizer, who chases a woman to seek pleasure.

He is a friend and a neighbor of Willy Loman. He provides money to Willy and also suggests him a job.

He, son of Charley, is a successful lawyer who argues cases before the Supreme Court. His success is an indictment for Biff and Happy.

Linda Loman

She is Willy’s wife. She is fearful, however, patient woman. Despite Willy’s failures, she loves him very much and consoles him in his hard times.

Howard Wagner

He is the son of Willy’s boss at the company. He fired him from the company and let him know that he is no more able to work as a salesman

He is a brother of Willy. He is a rich man whose success is an accusation to Willy. He once goes into the jungle and comes out, after a few years, from the diamond mines, a rich man.

The unnamed character in the play with whom Biff caught his father in a hotel room and due to this discovery he refuses to join the summer school for further studies.

Themes in Death of a Salesman

Failure of the american dream.

One of the most important themes of the play  Death of a Salesman  is the failure of the American dream. The American dream symbolizes a promise and commitment of opportunity and freedom for all. Those who follow the American dream believed that the only way to accomplish a dream is hard work and those who work hard are only qualified to be the follower of the American dream.

The followers of American dream believe in a happy and prosperous life; moreover, they also believe that those who are born Americans naturally acquires a happy and prosperous life. Moloch, money, and materialism have become the famous song of the followers of American dreams. They believed that, in a material world, one is always destined to have a prosperous and successful life. Failure is no option for the one born in America and if a failure occurs, suicide is much better than that failure.

Willy Loman is also facing this kind of creed behind the American dream in his life. Willy had a natural capability in the field of carpentry, but the craze of earning more money and a bright future made him choose the field of business with an occupation of a salesman. He spent the mature and productive period of his life doing hard work in hopes of having a comfortable and settled life in a later part of life.

Opposing this expectancy, he was downgraded and terminated. He, financially ruined, had to lend money from his friend to pay off his bills.

Furthermore, his son Biff, from whom Willy had great expectations, has ruined his life by not joining the school. Biff, another follower of American dreams, didn’t know how to start his career from the bottom and also wants to start from the top. Biff was not settled in his life, even in the age of Thirty-four, he was moving from one job to another. It was wearisome for Willy to see the unsettled life of both of his son. Failure of his son was equally burdened for him as his own failure.

Crumpled by absolute defeat and great desperateness Willy planned suicide. When his miserable itch overwhelmed him, he committed suicide.

Fake existence

Willy Loman turned out to be an obsessive believer of the deity of success. Success, to him, was life, and life is all about success. He was ambitious to make his dream for successive life a reality. He not only became ambitious is striving towards success but also made his son ambitious, too. There was no limit in his struggle to achieve his dreams as they were natural, however, the consequences of all the struggle that he made turned out to be humiliating.

Willy, throughout his life, encourages his son to realize the principles of the American dreams, but Biff turned out to be immature and reckless boy who couldn’t proper in getting a settled life and a salaried job and turned out to be a briber; Happy carried dishonor by seducing the women in his store whom he had no concern at all. Willy was penniless when fired from the job, and borrowed from his friend Charley, in order to give an impression to his wife, Linda, that he is earning money.

Willy was living a fanciful, fake life that was filled with illusions. He was full of arrogance, egocentric and unreasonably over-assertive. It was because of these flaws that he was unable to accept and face the reality. Sightless to his genuine dilemma he instigated to hide in the sanctuary of illusion. Despite his total failure, he wasn’t accepting his failure. It was more insulting and painful for him to accept his failure.

It was due to this reason, he stopped talking to his friends and avoided people around. He would use to lie to others and was just making himself a fool by a false vision of his popularity.

Nature versus City

The comparison between nature and city is shown through Willy’s love for music. He is a great admirer of natures. When Willy’s self goes close to his nature, the music plays in a loud tune. This melody is a representation of Willy’s sentimental yearning for instinctive rusticity that has exemplified in the affiliation between music and Willy.

It appears that Willy is certainly prone to adore and appreciate nature. When we traced the family background of Willy Loman, we see that Willy father was a wanderer, a musician, a maker of flute and a pioneer. Similarly, his brother Ben was also an adventurer. Willy’s son has strong athletic skills. Thus all of them were wonderful in outdoor skills. However, Willy’s monetary anxieties locked in on him, overwhelming him with the need to produce money.

Morality versus Immortality

The dramatist Arthur Miller has said that besides hunger and thrust, to leave a thumbprint after death is also another strong need of humans. Every human, consciously or unconsciously, has a strong desire to be remembered after his death. Physically man is mortal, however, through his deed, he can make himself immortal. In the play, Willy is a symbol of failure. He is accused, mocked, and humiliated by many. He is considered petty and useless. It was because of this, he planned suicide and the insurance money of twenty thousand dollars will be given to the family which will settle their lives. Willy, by committing suicide made himself immortal.

Death of a Salesman Literary Analysis

The play  Death of a Salesman  is also subtitled as “Certain Private Conversations in Two Acts and a Requiem”. According to the subtitle, the play is divided into two acts and each act is further divided into conversations- the present conversation and the conversation from the past- that are intermingled. The play covers an evening and the day following, however, the action is intermittent with past memories and flashbacks, mostly 17 years back.

The play  The Death of a Salesman  is a modern tragedy that depicts the last days of the life of Willy Loman, a traveling salesman. The play is both emotionally and psychologically realistic when the action occurs in the present; however, when the action occurs in past, the drama appears more dreamlike. For instance, only Willy can see the scenes when his sons Biff and Happy are in high school. Moreover, to inculcate Willy’s elder brother Ben, a rich man whom Willy consulted for advice when things were not functioning well in his life, a flashback system is also used.

The plot of the play is complex not only because it chains past and present events but also as it propagates out of a period of deceits, lies, and reputation. The tragic hero, Willy, is unable to uphold his energetic life on the path as a traveling salesman and is looking for a stable job in New York City. On request for this job, he is fired by his boss, Howard Wagner, the son of the man who hired him in the first place. Furthermore, he is burdened by his Thirty-four-year-old son Biff, who has recently returned from the farms in Texas in hopes of finding a salaried job in New York.

Biff and Happy have moved back to their parent’s house lamenting of their failures and their loss of innocence. Their boyhood friend’s Bernard, success has become accusation for both of them. Only Bernard has realized his dreams. Both brothers, consequently, blame Willy for not directing them well, though their resentment is yet oppressed with respect and affection.

Linda, during the quarrel, discloses before her sons that their father has been attempting to suicide by different means that is he has attempted suicide in a car with series of accidents and also with a hose that is fastened to a gas pipe. Upon hearing this, Biff decides to modify his life for his father. Act 1 of the play closes with the acquainted renunciation of long-standing abrasions and Biff’s promise to create a professional deal in New York.

The act two opens with Biff, Happy and Willy’s meeting at a restaurant. Willy, after being fired from the job, hopes to listen to good news regarding his meeting with his former boss, however, Biff reveals him the scene of the stolen fountain pen.

Shocked, Willy departures to the restroom, where he recalls the crucial and critical moment of his and Biff’s life, i.e., the time when Biff discovers his father with another woman in a hotel room, after coming back from failing math course. Biff, crumpled by his dad’s unfaithfulness with his mother, snubbed to go to summer school and to graduate from high school. This incident was the beginning of the series of trivial tragedies and insignificant robberies that have tumble-down his life.

The family, after meeting in the restaurant, reunite at home. In this gathering, they have the final short-tempered confrontation. Both Willy and Biff accuses each other: Biff accuses his father of not taking his life seriously and calls him the cause of his failures while Willy accuses Biff of spoiling his life without any reason.

Linda, a patient lady, and a peacemaker try to calm them down, however, is shouted down. Biff throws a hose before Willy and asks him whether committing suicide will make a hero out of him or something else. Willy starts weeping and both of them reconciled crying on each other’s shoulders. When the rest of the family goes to sleep. Willy accelerates his car for suicide in hope that the insurance money will provide Biff to initiate his own business and a new life that he greatly needs.

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Some may argue that the appeal of Arthur Miller 's play "Death of a Salesman" is the struggle each character encounters as they try to pursue and define their American Dream.

The "rags to riches" idea—where hard work and persistence, coupled with high hopes and inner and outer struggles that often accompany it, should lead to success—seems timelessly relatable and represents one of the central themes of the story.

Miller fabricated the character of a salesman without an identified product, and the audience connects with him that much more.

Creating a worker broken by a vague, unfeeling industry stems from the playwright’s socialist leanings, and it has often been said that " Death of a Salesman " is a harsh criticism of the American Dream. However, according to Miller, the play is not necessarily a critique of the American Dream as our forefathers thought of it.

Rather, what it condemns is the confusion that enters when people take the material success for the end-all-be-all and elevate it above spirituality, connection with nature, and, most importantly, relationships with others.

Willy Loman’s American Dream

To the protagonist of "Death of a Salesman," the American Dream is the ability to become prosperous by mere charisma.

Willy believes that charming personality, and not necessarily hard work and innovation, is the key to success. Time and again, he wants to make sure his boys are well-liked and popular. For example, when his son Biff confesses to making fun of his math teacher’s lisp, Willy is more concerned with how Biff’s classmates react than with the morality of Biff's action:

BIFF: I Crossed my eyes and talked with a lithp.​​

WILLY [laughing]: You did? The kids like it?

BIFF: They nearly died laughing!

Of course, Willy’s version of the American Dream never pans out:

• Despite his son’s popularity in high school, Biff grows up to be a drifter and a ranch-hand.
• Willy’s own career falters as his sales ability flat-lines.
• When he tries to use “personality” to ask his boss for a raise, he gets fired instead.

Willy is very much concerned with being somebody and paying off his mortgage, which in themselves aren't necessarily bad goals. His tragic flaw is that he fails to recognize the love and devotion that surround him and elevates the goals prescribed by society above all else.

Ben’s American Dream

One person Willy really admires and wishes he was more like is his older brother Ben. In a way, Ben embodies the original American Dream—the ability to start with nothing and somehow make a fortune:

BEN [ giving great weight to each word, and with a certain vicious audacity ]: William, when I walked into the jungle, I was seventeen. When I walked out I was twenty-one. And, by God, I was rich!

Willy is envious of his brother’s success and machismo. But Willy’s wife Linda , one of the characters who can actually distinguish from true and superficial values, is frightened and concerned when Ben stops by for a brief visit. To her, he represents wildness and danger.

This is displayed when Ben horses around with his nephew Biff. Just as Biff starts to win their sparring match, Ben trips the boy and stands over him with the “point of his umbrella poised at Biff’s eye.”

Ben’s character signifies that a few people can achieve the “rags to riches” version of the American Dream. Yet, Miller’s play also suggests that one must be ruthless (or at least a bit wild) in order to achieve it.

Happy's American Dream

When it comes to Willy's sons, they each appear to have inherited a different side of Willy. Happy, despite being a more static and one-sided character, is following in Willy's footsteps of self-delusion and pretenses. He is a shallow character who is content with going from job to job, as long as he has some income and can devote himself to his female interests.

Charley's and Bernard's American Dream

Willy's neighbor Charley and his son Bernard stand in opposition to Loman's family's ideals. The protagonist frequently puts both of them down, promising his sons that they will do better in life than their neighbors because they look better and are more liked.

Willy: That’s just what I mean, Bernard can get the best marks in school, y’understand, but when he gets out in the business world, y’understand, you are going to be five times ahead of him. That’s why I thank Almighty God you’re both built like Adonises. Because the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets ahead. Be liked and you will never want. You take me, for instance. I never have to wait in line to see a buyer.

Yet, it is Charley who has his own business and not Willy. And it is Bernard's seriousness about school that ensured his future success, which is in stark contrast with the paths of the Loman brothers. Instead, Charley and Bernard are both honest, caring, and hard-working without the unnecessary bravado. They demonstrate that with the right attitude, the American Dream is indeed achievable.

Biff’s American Dream

Biff is one of the most complex characters in this play . Although he has felt confused and angry since discovering his father’s infidelity, Biff Loman does have the potential to pursue the “right” dream—if only he could resolve his inner conflict.

Biff is pulled by two different dreams. One is that of his father’s world of business, sales, and capitalism. Biff is captured by his love and admiration for his father and struggles to decide what is the right way to live. On the other hand, he also inherited his father's sense of poetry and love for the natural life that Willy didn't allow to fully develop. And so Biff dreams of nature, the great outdoors, and working with his hands.

Biff explains this tension to his brother when he talks about both the appeal and the angst of working on a ranch:

BIFF: There’s nothing more inspiring or—beautiful than the sight of a mare and a new colt. And it’s cool there now, see? Texas is cool now, and it’s spring. And whenever spring comes to where I am, I suddenly get the feeling, my God, I’m not getting anywhere! What the hell am I doing, playing around with horses, twenty-eight dollars a week! I’m thirty-four years old. I oughta be makin’ my future. That’s when I come running home.

By the end of the play, Biff realizes that his father had the “wrong” dream. He knows that Willy was great with his hands (he built their garage and put up a new ceiling), and Biff believes that Willy should have been a carpenter or should have lived in another, more rustic part of the country.

But instead, Willy pursued an empty life. He sold nameless, unidentified products, and watched his American Dream fall apart.

During the funeral of his father, Biff decides that he will not allow the same thing to happen to himself. He turns away from Willy’s dream and, presumably, returns to the countryside, where good, old-fashioned manual labor will ultimately make his restless soul content.

• Matthew C. Roudane, Conversations with Arthur Miller. Jackson, Mississippi, 1987, p. 15.
• Bigsby, Christopher. Introduction. Death of a Salesman: Certain Private Conversations in Two Acts and a Requiem by Arthur Miller, Penguin Books, 1999, pp. vii-xxvii.
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Home › Drama Criticism › Analysis of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman

Analysis of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman

By NASRULLAH MAMBROL on July 30, 2020 • ( 0 )

Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is, perhaps, to this time, the most mature example of a myth of Contemporary life. The chief value of this drama is its attempt to reveal those ultimate meanings which are resident in modern experience. Perhaps the most significant comment on this play is not its literary achievement, as such, but is, rather, the impact which it has had on spectators, both in America and abroad. The influence of this drama, first performed in 1949, continues to grow in World Theatre. For it articulates, in language which can be appreciated by popular audiences, certain new dimensions of the human dilemma.

—Esther Merle Jackson, “ Death of a Salesman : Tragic Myth in the Modern Theatre”

It can be argued that the Great American Novel—that always elusive imaginative summation of the American experience—became the Great American Drama in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman . Along with Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey into Night , Miller’s masterpiece forms the defining myth of the American family and the American dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is the play’s only rival in American literature in expressing the tragic side of the American myth of success and the ill-fated American dreamers. A landmark and cornerstone 20th-century drama, Death of a Salesman is crucial in the history of American theater in presenting on stage an archetypal family drama that is simultaneously intimate and representative, social and psychological, realistic and expressionistic. Critic Lois Gordon has called it “the major American drama of the 1940s” that “remains unequalled in its brilliant and original fusion of realistic and poetic techniques, its richness of visual and verbal texture, and its wide range of emotional impact.” Miller’s play, perhaps more than any other, established American drama as the decisive arena for addressing the key questions of American identity and social and moral values, while pioneering methods of expression that liberated American theater. The drama about the life and death of salesman Willy Loman is both thoroughly local in capturing a particular time and place and universal, one of the most popular and adapted American plays worldwide. Willy Loman has become the contemporary Everyman, prompting widespread identification and sympathy. By centering his tragedy on a lower middle-class protagonist—insisting, as he argued in “Tragedy and the Common Man,” that “the common man is as apt a subject for tragedy in its highest sense as kings were”—Miller completed the democratization of drama that had begun in the 19th century while setting the terms for a key debate over dramatic genres that has persisted since Death of a Salesman opened in 1949.

Miller’s subjects, themes, and dramatic mission reflect his life experiences, informed by the Great Depression, which he regarded as a “moral catastrophe,” rivaled, in his view, only by the Civil War in its profound impact on American life. Miller was born in 1915, in New York City. His father, who had emigrated from Austria at the age of six, was a successful coat manufacturer, prosperous enough to afford a chauffeur and a large apartment over-looking Central Park. For Miller’s family, an embodiment of the American dream that hard work and drive are rewarded, the stock market crash of 1929 changed everything. The business was lost, and the family was forced to move to considerably reduced circumstances in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn in a small frame house that served as the model for the Lomans’ residence. Miller’s father never fully recovered from his business failure, and his mother was often depressed and embittered by the family’s poverty, though both continued to live in hope of an economic recovery to come. For Miller the depression exposed the hollowness and fragility of the American dream of material success and the social injustice inherent in an economic system that created so many blameless casualties. The paradoxes of American success—its stimulation of both dreams and guilt when lost or unrealized, as well as the conflict it created between self-interest and social responsibility—would become dominant themes in Miller’s work. As a high school student Miller was more interested in sports than studies. “Until the age of seventeen I can safely say that I never read a book weightier than Tom Swift , and Rover Boys, ” Miller recalled, “and only verged on literature with some of Dickens. . . . I passed through the public school system unscathed.” After graduating from high school in 1932 Miller went to work in an auto parts warehouse in Manhattan. It was during his subway commute to and from his job that Miller began reading, discovering both the power of serious literature to change the way one sees the world and his vocation: “A book that changed my life was The Brothers Karamazov which I picked up, I don’t know how or why, and all at once believed I was born to be a writer.”

In 1934 Miller was accepted as a journalism student at the University of Michigan. There he found a campus engaged by the social issues of the day: “The place was full of speeches, meetings and leaflets. It was jumping with Issues. . . . It was, in short, the testing ground for all my prejudices, my beliefs and my ignorance, and it helped to lay out the boundaries of my life.” At Michigan Miller wrote his first play, despite having seen only two plays years before, to compete for prize money he needed for tuition. Failing in his first attempt he would eventually twice win the Avery Hopwood Award. Winning “made me confident I could go ahead from there. It left me with the belief that the ability to write plays is born into one, and that it is a kind of sport of the mind.” Miller became convinced that “with the exception of a doctor saving a life, writing a worthy play was the most important thing a human could do.” He would embrace the role of the playwright as social conscience and reformer who could help change America, by, as he put it “grabbing people and shaking them by the back of the neck.” Two years after graduating in 1938, having moved back to Brooklyn and married his college sweetheart, Miller had completed six plays, all but one of them rejected by producers. The Man Who Had All the Luck, a play examining the ambiguities of success and the money ethic, managed a run of only four performances on Broadway in 1944. Miller went to work at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, tried his hand at radio scripts, and attempted one more play. “I laid myself a wager,” he wrote in his autobiography. “I would hold back this play until I was as sure as I could be that every page was integral to the whole and would work; then, if my judgment of it proved wrong, I would leave the theater behind and write in other forms.” The play was All My Sons, about a successful manufacturer who sells defective aircraft parts and is made to face the consequences of his crime and his responsibilities. It is Miller’s version of a Henrik Ibsen problem play, linking a family drama to wider social issues. Named one of the top-10 plays of 1947, All My Sons won the Tony Award and the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award over Eugene O’Neill’s The Iceman Cometh. The play’s success allowed Miller to buy property in rural Connecticut where he built a small studio and began work on Death of a Salesman .

This play, subtitled “Certain Private Conversations in Two Acts and a Requiem,” about the last 24 hours of an aging and failing traveling salesman misguided by the American dream, began, as the playwright recounts in his introduction to his Collected Plays , with an initial image

of an enormous face the height of the proscenium arch which would appear and then open up, and we would see the inside of a man’s head. In fact, The Inside of His Head was the first title. . . . The image was in direct opposition to the method of All My Sons —a method one might call linear or eventual in that one fact or incident creates the necessity for the next. The Salesman image was from the beginning absorbed with the concept that nothing in life comes “next” but that everything exists together and at the same time within us; that there is no past to be “brought forward” in a human being, but that he is his past at every moment. . . . I wished to create a form which, in itself as a form, would literally be the process of Willy Loman’s way of mind.

The play took shape by staging the past in the present, not through flashbacks of Willy’s life but by what the playwright called “mobile concurrency of past and present.” Miller recalled beginning

with only one firm piece of knowledge and this was that Loman was to destroy himself. How it would wander before it got to that point I did not know and resolved not to care. I was convinced only that if I could make him remember enough he would kill himself, and the structure of the play was determined by what was needed to draw up his memories like a mass of tangled roots without ends or beginning.

At once realistic in its documentation of American family life and expressionistic in its embodiment of consciousness on stage, Death of a Salesman opens with the 63-year-old Willy Loman’s return to his Brooklyn home, revealing to his worried wife, Linda, that he kept losing control of his car on a selling trip to Boston. Increasingly at the mercy of his memories Willy, in Miller’s analysis, “is literally at that terrible moment when the voice of the past is no longer distant but quite as loud as the voice of the present.” Reflecting its protagonist, “The way of telling the tale . . . is as mad as Willy and as abrupt and as suddenly lyrical.” The family’s present—Willy’s increasing mental instability, his failure to earn the commissions he needs to survive, and his disappointment that his sons, Biff and Happy, have failed to live up to expectations—intersects with scenes from the past in which both their dreams and the basis for their disillusionment are exposed. In the present Biff, the onetime star high school athlete with seeming unlimited prospects in his doting father’s estimation, is 34, having returned home from another failed job out west and harboring an unidentified resentment of his father. As Biff confesses, “everytime I come back here I know that all I’ve done is to waste my life.” His brother, Happy, is a deceitful womanizer trapped in a dead-end job who confesses that despite having his own apartment, “a car, and plenty of women . . . still, goddammit, I’m lonely.” The present frustrations of father and sons collide with Willy’s memory when all was youthful promise and family harmony. In a scene in which Biff with the prospect of a college scholarship seems on the brink of attaining all Willy has expected of him, both boys hang on their father’s every word as he exults in his triumphs as a successful salesman:

America is full of beautiful towns and fine, upstanding people. And they know me, boys, they know me up and down New England. The finest people. And when I bring you fellas up, there’ll be open sesame for all of us, ’cause one thing, boys: I have friends. I can park my car in any street in New England, and the cops protect it like their own.

Triumphantly, Willy passes on his secret of success: “Be liked and you will never want.” His advice exposes the fatal fl aw in his life view that defines success by exterior rather than interior values, by appearance and possessions rather than core morals. Even in his confident memory, however, evidence of the undermining of his self-confidence and aspirations occurs as Biff plays with a football he has stolen and father and son ignore the warning of the grind Bernard (who “is liked, but he’s not well liked”) that Biff risks graduating by not studying. Willy’s popularity and prowess as a salesman are undermined by Linda’s calculation of her husband’s declining commissions, prompting Willy to confess that “people don’t seem to take to me.” Invading Willy’s memory is the realization that he is far from the respected and resourceful salesman he has boasted being to his sons as he struggles to meet the payments on the modern appliances that equip the American dream of success. Moreover, to boost his sagging spirits on the road he has been unfaithful to his loving and supportive wife. To protect himself from these hurtful memories Willy is plunged back into the present for a card game with Bernard’s father, Charley. Again the past intrudes in the form of a memory of a rare visit by Willy’s older brother, Ben, who has become rich and whose secrets for success elude Willy. Back in the present Willy is hopeful at Biff’s plan to go see an old employer, Bill Oliver, for the money to start up a Loman Brothers sporting goods line. The act ends with Willy’s memory of Biff’s greatest moment—the high school football championship:

Like a young god. Hercules—something like that. And the sun, the sun all around him. Remember how he waved to me? Right up from the field, with the representatives of three colleges standing by? And the buyers I brought, and the cheers when he came out—Loman, Loman, Loman! God Almighty, he’ll be great yet. A star like that, magnificent, can never really fade away!

The second act shatters all prospects, revealing the full truth that Willy has long evaded about himself and his family in a series of crushing blows. Expecting to trade on his 34 years of loyal service to his employer for a nontraveling, salaried position in New York, Willy is forced to beg for a smaller and smaller salary before he is fired outright, prompting one of the great lines of the play: “You can’t eat the orange and throw the peel away—a man is not a piece of fruit.” Rejecting out of pride a job offer from Charley, Willy meets his son for dinner where Biff reveals that his get-rich scheme has collapsed. Bill Oliver did not remember who he was, kept him waiting for hours, and resentfully Biff has stolen his fountain pen from his desk. Biff now insists that Willy face the truth—that Biff was only a shipping clerk and that Oliver owes him nothing—but Willy refuses to listen, with his need to believe in his son and the future forcing Biff to manufacture a happier version of his meeting and its outcome. Biff’s anger and resentment over the old family lies about his prospects, however, cause Willy to relive the impetus of Biff’s loss of faith in him in one of the tour de force scenes in modern drama. Biff and Happy’s attempt to pick up two women at the restaurant interconnects with Willy’s memory of Biff’s arrival at Willy’s Boston hotel unannounced. There he discovers a partially dressed woman in his father’s room. Having failed his math class and jeopardized his scholarship, Biff has come to his father for help. Willy’s betrayal of Linda, however, exposes the hollowness of Willy’s moral authority and the disjunction between the dreams Willy sells and its reality:

Willy: She’s nothing to me, Biff. I was lonely, I was terribly lonely.

Biff: You—you gave her Mama’s stockings!

Willy: I gave you an order!

Biff: Don’t touch me, you—liar!

Willy: Apologize for that!

Biff: You fake! You phony little fake! You fake!

Willy’s guilt over the collapse of his son’s belief in him leads him to a final redemptive dream. Returning home, symbolically outside planting seeds, he discusses with Ben his scheme to kill himself for the insurance money as a legacy to his family and a final proof of his worth as a provider of his sons’ success. Before realizing this dream Willy must endure a final assault of truth from Biff who confesses to being nothing more than a thief and a bum, incapable of holding down a job—someone who is, like Willy, a “dime a dozen,” no better than any other hopeless striver: “I am not a leader of men, Willy, and neither are you. You were never anything but a hard-working drummer who landed in the ash can like all the rest of them!” Biff’s fury explodes into a tearful embrace of his father. After Biff departs upstairs the significance of his words and actions are both realized and lost by the chronic dreamer:

Willy, after a long pause, astonished, elevated Isn’t that—isn’t that remarkable? Biff—he likes me!

Linda: He loves you, Willy!

Happy ,deeply moved Always did, Pop.

Willy: Oh. Biff! Staring wildly: He cried! Cried to me. He is choking with his love, and now cries out his promise: That boy—that boy is going to be magnificent!

Analysis of Arthur Miller’s Plays

Doggedly holding onto the dream of his son’s prospects, sustained by his son’s love, Willy finally sets out in his car to carry out his plan, while the scene shifts to his funeral in which Linda tries to understand her husband’s death, and Charley provides the eulogy:

Nobody dast blame this man. You don’t understand: Willy was a salesman. And for a salesman, there is no rock bottom to the life. He don’t put a bolt to a nut, he don’t tell you the law or give you medicine. He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. And then you get a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory.

Linda delivers the final, heartbreaking lines over her husband’s grave: “Willy. I made the last payment on the house today. Today, dear. And there’ll be nobody home. We’re free and clear. We’re free. We’re free . . . We’re free. . . .”

The power and persistence of Death of a Salesman derives from its remarkably intimate view of the dynamic of a family driven by their collective dreams. Critical debate over whether Willy lacks the stature or self-knowledge to qualify as a tragic hero seems beside the point in performance. Few other modern dramas have so powerfully elicited pity and terror in their audiences. Whether Willy is a tragic hero or Death of a Salesman is a modern tragedy in any Aristotelian sense, he and his story have become core American myths. Few critics worry over whether Jay Gatsby is a tragic hero, but Gatsby shares with Willy Loman the essential American capacity to dream and to be destroyed by what he dreams. The concluding lines of The Great Gatsby equally serve as a requiem for both men:

Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eludes us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther . . . And one fine morning—

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.

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Discuss the theme of the American Dream in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman

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Arthur Miller’s play “Death of a Salesman” is a thought-provoking exploration of the American Dream and its disillusionment. Set in the late 1940s, the play portrays the life of Willy Loman, a struggling salesman who firmly believes in the promise of the American Dream. 

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- However, as the story unfolds, it becomes evident that the pursuit of success and material wealth can lead to despair and personal downfall. This essay aims to delve into the theme of the American Dream in “Death of a Salesman” and analyze how Miller challenges the idealized notion of success in post-war America.

1. Illusion vs. Reality: The central conflict in “Death of a Salesman” revolves around the dichotomy between illusion and reality. Willy Loman epitomizes the American Dream, driven by the belief that charisma and likeability are enough to achieve success. He idolizes the idea of being “well-liked,” equating it with prosperity and popularity. However, the play exposes the hollowness of these illusions. Willy’s relentless pursuit of the American Dream blinds him to the harsh realities of his life, leaving him trapped in a cycle of self-deception and disillusionment.

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2. The Pursuit of Success: Willy Loman embodies the relentless pursuit of success that characterizes the American Dream. He is convinced that financial success and popularity are the ultimate measures of a person’s worth. Willy’s fixation on the material trappings of success leads him to prioritize appearance over substance, valuing superficial charm over hard work. 

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- However, Miller challenges this notion, showing that the American Dream is an unattainable goal for most individuals and can ultimately lead to emotional and psychological ruin.

3. The Corrupting Influence of Capitalism: In “Death of a Salesman,” Miller critiques the capitalist system and its impact on individuals’ lives. The play highlights how the commodification of human relationships and the relentless pursuit of profit erode human values and personal integrity. Willy Loman’s constant need to sell and make money reduces his relationships to transactions, leaving him emotionally detached from his family and friends. 

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- Miller suggests that the American Dream, as promoted by capitalism, fosters a dehumanizing environment where individuals are reduced to mere commodities.

4. The Allure of the Past: One of the prominent themes in the play is the allure of the past and the failure to adapt to changing times. Willy clings to memories of past success, desperately trying to relive his glory days. He constantly reminisces about his earlier achievements, such as his encounters with the renowned salesman Dave Singleman. However, as the world changes and Willy’s career declines, his reliance on the past becomes a burden. Miller critiques the notion that past accomplishments alone can ensure a successful future, emphasizing the importance of adapting to the present.

5. The Demise of the Family Unit: Another significant aspect of the American Dream in “Death of a Salesman” is the disintegration of the family unit. The Loman family is portrayed as fractured and dysfunctional, with strained relationships and constant tension. Willy’s obsession with success drives a wedge between him and his sons, Biff and Happy, who struggle to meet their father’s expectations. The play suggests that the pursuit of the American Dream often comes at the cost of personal relationships and family bonds, leading to isolation and unhappiness.

Death of a Salesman “Summary”

“Death of a Salesman” is a renowned play written by Arthur Miller, first performed in 1949. It delves into the life of Willy Loman, a struggling salesman in post-war America, and explores themes of the American Dream, disillusionment, and the human condition. 

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- The play presents a critique of the capitalist society and examines the destructive effects of blind ambition, societal expectations, and the pursuit of material success. Through the tragic story of Willy Loman, Miller provides a thought-provoking portrayal of the complexities and shortcomings of the American Dream and the human desire for recognition and validation.

The American Dream is a central theme in “Death of a Salesman.” Willy Loman, a dedicated but unsuccessful salesman, believes in the myth that anyone can achieve success and prosperity through hard work and charisma. He spends his life chasing the illusion of the American Dream, convinced that wealth and popularity will lead to happiness and fulfillment. 

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- However, as the play unfolds, it becomes clear that the American Dream is unattainable for Willy and his family. The play challenges the notion of the American Dream as a one-size-fits-all concept, highlighting its flaws and the pitfalls of blindly pursuing material success.

Disillusionment is another prominent theme in the play. As Willy struggles with financial instability and a deteriorating mental state, he becomes increasingly disillusioned with his life. He realizes that his efforts have not led to the success he had envisioned and that his dreams are shattered. 

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- This disillusionment not only affects Willy but also permeates the lives of his sons, Happy and Biff. The play explores the consequences of shattered dreams, the emptiness that follows, and the struggle to find meaning in a society that places excessive value on material wealth.

The play also delves into the human condition and the complexities of the individual’s relationship with society. Willy Loman grapples with feelings of inadequacy and a desperate need for validation and recognition. He measures his self-worth based on societal expectations and the opinions of others. 

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- Miller critiques the pressure placed on individuals to conform to societal norms and ideals, highlighting the damaging effects it can have on mental health and personal well-being. Willy’s internal struggle represents the universal human desire for acceptance and the profound impact it can have on one’s identity and sense of self.

Additionally, “Death of a Salesman” examines the dynamics of family relationships and the strains caused by unfulfilled dreams and societal pressures. The strained relationship between Willy and his sons, Biff and Happy, reflects the complexities of generational expectations and the tension between the pursuit of personal dreams and the desire to live up to societal standards. The play explores themes of familial loyalty, forgiveness, and the consequences of unmet expectations within the family unit.

Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” delves into the theme of the American Dream and challenges the idealized notion of success in post-war America. Through the character of Willy Loman, Miller presents a critique of the relentless pursuit of material wealth, the illusory nature of success, and the detrimental effects of capitalism on personal relationships. Willy’s belief in the American Dream blinds him to the realities of his life, leading to a cycle of self-deception and disillusionment.

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- The play highlights the tension between illusion and reality, demonstrating that the pursuit of success does not guarantee happiness or fulfillment. Willy’s fixation on appearance and likeability undermines the value of hard work and authenticity. Miller suggests that the American Dream, as promoted by capitalist society, reduces individuals to commodities and erodes human values.

Moreover, “Death of a Salesman” explores the allure of the past and the failure to adapt to changing times. Willy’s inability to let go of past achievements impedes his ability to navigate the present, ultimately leading to his downfall. Miller critiques the notion that past accomplishments alone can ensure a successful future, emphasizing the importance of adaptation and growth.

The theme of American Dream in Death of a Salesman:- Additionally, the play portrays the disintegration of the family unit as a consequence of the pursuit of the American Dream. Willy’s obsession with success drives a wedge between him and his sons, highlighting the sacrifices made in the name of personal ambition. The play suggests that the pursuit of material wealth often comes at the cost of personal relationships and family bonds, leading to isolation and unhappiness.

In “Death of a Salesman,” Miller presents a thought-provoking examination of the American Dream, challenging its ideals and exposing its flaws. The play serves as a cautionary tale, reminding us of the importance of authenticity, human connection, and the need to redefine success beyond material wealth. Miller’s exploration of these themes continues to resonate, inviting audiences to question the true meaning and value of the American Dream in the pursuit of a meaningful and fulfilling life.

Q: Who is the author of “Death of a Salesman”? 

A: The author of “Death of a Salesman” is Arthur Miller.

Q: When was “Death of a Salesman” first performed? 

A: “Death of a Salesman” premiered on Broadway on February 10, 1949.

Q: Is “Death of a Salesman” based on a true story? 

A: “Death of a Salesman” is not based on a specific true story, but it reflects the struggles and disillusionment experienced by many individuals in post-war America.

Q: What is the American Dream?

 A: The American Dream is a concept that suggests that every individual in the United States has the opportunity to achieve success, prosperity, and upward social mobility through hard work, determination, and self-motivation.

Q: How does “Death of a Salesman” critique the American Dream? 

A: “Death of a Salesman” critiques the American Dream by highlighting the illusory nature of success, the corrupting influence of capitalism, the allure of the past, and the impact of the pursuit of success on personal relationships and family dynamics. The play challenges the idealized notion of the American Dream and suggests that it can lead to disillusionment and personal downfall.

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105 Death of a Salesman Essay Topics & Examples

Death of a Salesman is Arthur Miller’s multiple award-winning stage play that explores such ideas as American Dream and family. Our writers have prepared a list of topics and tips on writing the Death of a Salesman thesis statement, essay, or literary analysis.

Death of a Salesman

Arthur miller, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Willy Loman , a traveling salesman, returns home to Brooklyn early from a sales trip. At the age of 63, he has lost his salary and is working only on commission, and on this trip has failed to sell anything. His son Biff , who has been laboring on farms and ranches throughout the West for more than a decade, has recently arrived home to figure out a new direction for his life. Willy thinks Biff has not lived up to his potential. But as Biff reveals to his younger brother Happy —an assistant to the assistant buyer at a department store—he feels more fulfilled by outdoor work than by his earlier attempts to work in an office.

Alone in his kitchen, Willy remembers an earlier return from a business trip, when Biff and Happy were young boys and looked up to him as a hero. He contrasts himself and his sons with his next door neighbor Charley , a successful businessman, and Charley's son Bernard , a serious student. Charley and Bernard, in his view, lack the natural charisma that the Loman men possess, which Willy believes is the real determinant of success. But under the questioning of his wife Linda , Willy admits that his commission from the trip was so small that they will hardly be able to pay all their bills, and that he is full of self-doubt. Even as Linda reassures him, he hears the laughter of The Woman , his mistress in Boston.

Charley comes over to see if Willy is okay. While they are playing cards, Willy begins talking with the recently deceased figure of his brother Ben , who left home at the age of seventeen and made a diamond fortune in Africa and Alaska. Charley offers Willy a job but Willy refuses out of pride, even though he has been borrowing money from Charley every week to cover household expenses. Full of regrets, Willy compares himself to Ben and their equally adventurous, mysterious father, who abandoned them when they were young. He wanders into his back yard, trying to see the stars.

Linda discusses Willy's deteriorating mental state with the boys. She reveals that he has tried to commit suicide, both in a car crash and by inhaling gas through a rubber hose on the heater. Biff, chagrined, agrees to stay home and try to borrow money from his previous employer, Bill Oliver , in order to start a sporting goods business with Happy, which will please their father. Willy is thrilled about this idea, and gives Biff some conflicting, incoherent advice about how to ask for the loan.

The next morning, at Linda's urging, Willy goes to his boss Howard Wagner and asks for a job in the New York office, close to home. Though Willy has been with the company longer than Howard has been alive, Howard refuses Willy's request. Willy continues to beg Howard, with increasing urgency, until Howard suspends Willy from work. Willy, humiliated, goes to borrow money from Charley at his office. There he encounters Bernard, who is now a successful lawyer, while the greatest thing Willy's son Biff ever achieved was playing high school football.

Biff and Happy have made arrangements to meet Willy for dinner at Frank's Chop House. Before Willy arrives, Biff confesses to Happy that Oliver gave him the cold shoulder when he tried to ask for the loan, and he responded by stealing Oliver's pen. Happy advises him to lie to Willy in order to keep his hope alive. Willy sits down at the table and immediately confesses that he has been fired, so Biff had better give him some good news to bring home to Linda. Biff and Willy argue, as distressing memories from the past overwhelm Willy. Willy staggers to the washroom and recalls the end of Biff's high school career, when Biff failed a math course and went to Boston in order to tell his father. He found Willy in a hotel room with The Woman, and became so disillusioned about his former hero that he abandoned his dreams for college and following in Willy's footsteps. As Willy is lost in this reverie, Biff and Happy leave the restaurant with two call girls.

When Biff and Happy return home, Linda is furious at them for abandoning their father. Biff, ashamed of his behavior, finds Willy in the back yard. He is trying to plant seeds in the middle of the night, and conversing with the ghost of his brother Ben about a plan to leave his family with $20,000 in life insurance money. Biff announces that he is finally going to be true to himself, that neither he nor Willy will ever be great men, and that Willy should accept this and give up his distorted version of the American Dream. Biff is moved to tears at the end of this argument, which deepens Willy's resolve to kill himself out of love for his son and family. He drives away to his death.

Only his family, Charley, and Bernard attend Willy's funeral. Biff is adamant that Willy died for nothing, while Charley elegizes Willy as a salesman who, by necessity, had nothing to trade on but his dreams. Linda says goodbye to Willy, telling him that the house has been paid off—that they are finally free of their obligations—but now there will be nobody to live in it.