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Arthur miller view on death of a salesman
Father son relationships in death of a salesman
Father son relationships in death of a salesman
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Death of a Salesmanas Criticism of America's Moral and Social Standards A controversy engulfs Arthur Millers play, Death of a Salesman. Was Willy a victim of modern American society, or did he simply lack the morals and ethics to achieve success and happiness? Willy Loman is a victim of the American capitalistic machine, as evidenced through his frequently ambivalent attitudes concerning the importance place on pride and being well liked, as well as the self delusion he displays in his affair and many other aspects of life. One of the many false, contrived attitudes contemporary America instills in its citizens is a very fierce pride, in which they cannot accept criticism and are blind to reality. Willy Loman took such a pride in his work, claiming himself to be vital in New England (Miller 14), and concurrently viewed himself as a failure. Although Willy was wonderful with his hands (Miller 138), he saw any profession in carpentry or construction as an inadequate measure of success, although he was aware that he took pleasure in putting up a ceiling or repairing a porch. As a traveling salesman, the ultimate symbol of an American occupation and one he so revered, Willy also saw himself as a failure. But I gotta be at it ten, twelve hours a day. Other men I dont know do it easier. I dont know why I cant stop myself I talk too much. A man oughta come in with a few words Im fat. Im very foolish to look at (Miller 37). Even after being fired by Howard Wagner, Willy was too proud to accept a job offer from his neighbor and good friend, Charley. Willy failed in selling because he couldnt succeed living life by a false standard of making money by lying and cheating, despite the pride he sporadically took in it. The business world places great emphasis on being well liked. Willy assumed these business values as his own, maintaining that a man can end with diamonds here on the basis of being liked (Miller 86) and coincidentally acknowledged that his colleagues had little respect for him and ridiculed him when he attempted to make a sale. He equated having success in life with earning money and keeping up appearances, rather than the greater value of love that he received from his family, which resulted in him teaching this to his sons, Happy and Biff, which consequently resulted in their unhappiness and failure. Denial, in more recent years, has been considered a justifiable means of avoiding an uncomfortable situation. This very thing played a large role in Willy Lomans lifestyle. Years after having an affair during his marriage to Linda, Willy denied to himself that he took part in this betrayal, in spite of the fact that it was one of the main things contributing to his delusions. He felt relentless guilt over the affair, but continually tried to ignore it and push it to the back of his mind. He realized the severity of what he had committed when Biff, as a young man, caught him in a hotel with his mistress. Willy suggested that when Biff grew up, he would understand what had transpired and rationalized that you mustnt overemphasize a thing like this (Miller 120). This, combined with Willys seeming disrespect for Linda, proved to leave an impression on his sons. Willy left the same legacy to Happy, who continued to treat women in the similar manner. Although Willy was extremely remorseful for his adultery and truly loved Linda, he was never able to admit this and make it blatantly clear. Parents in the nineteenth century have continuously been pressured to encourage their children to succeed in life. Willy Loman evidently felt confused as to whether it was necessary to push his sons, particularly Biff, into the business world to ensure their success in life, or to encourage them to do just what they felt impassioned to do. While discussing their son with Linda, Willy, within a few lines of the play, said both Biff is a lazy bum! (Miller 16) and Theres one thing about Biffhes not lazy (Miller 16). He knew that, while not succeeding in the business world, Biff still had potential to succeed in what he truly wanted to achieve. As Elia Kazan once said, Willy is one vast contradiction, and this contradiction is his downfall (1). His frequent ambivalent attitudes on pride, being well liked, success and his affair contribute to this contradiction, and portray Willy Loman as a victim of little more than a capitalistic paradigm. Death of a Salesman is a thoughtful criticism of the moral and social standards of contemporary America and the confusion it infuses in its citizens - Willy Loman is simply a victim of the deterioration thereof. Works Cited Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. New York: Penguin Books, 1976. Kazan, Elia. Notebook. New York, 1960. A Theater In Your Head. Ed. Liza McAllister. Williams. Oct. 2000. Pinkmonkey. 3 Oct 2000. *http://www.pinkmonkey.com/ MemberFrame.asp*.
Willy Loman becomes incredibly involved in work-related matters, instead of the happiness surrounding his family life. He discourages Biff to take his own path, and instead, nearly forces him to become a salesman, in hopes that Biff will be more successful than he turned out to be. Willy tells Biff that his dreams will “cut down (his) life…!” Willy cannot simply hope for Biff and Happy to attain satisfaction in life, which is the element that Willy misses. He is so consumed by the idea of success that he had not once stopped to reflect on being a good father or loving his wife. Having an affair was one of his main problems-he could not put enough love into his family, so he put it anywhere else he could. He visited his mistress on business ventures, which is the only aspect of his life he truly appreciated. Therefore, his home life became full of lies, Biff saying that they “never told the truth for ten minutes.” Miller is, again, critiquing American households, since their typical values revolve more around money and presentation than a loving, kind, and caring home. Willy had a family who loved him, but he neglected to notice this, which lead to his unhappiness. Never placing any type of value of love and kindness can cause a person to become cold and bitter, which is exactly what Willy became. He may have avoided suicide if he had realized the love and care he could have been surrounded
Biff loses respect for his father and soon realizes what lie he has been living. Willy is in denial about his involvement with Biff’s failure in life, and when he is confronted about it by Bernard asking, “What happened in Boston, Willy? (141), Willy quickly becomes defensive, saying, “What are you trying to do, blame it on me? Don’t talk to me that way!” (141). After finding out about Biff’s reaction of burning his favorite University of Virginia shoes that symbolize Biff’s hopes and dreams for the future, Willy realizes what impact the affair had on his son. Willy’s lack of acceptance of reality affects his relationship because he never owned up or admitted he had an affair. This weighs heavy on Willy because the hate from his son will always be there. Biff loses all respect for his father and sees not only a failed business man, but in general a failed man. Throughout it all, Willy’s wife still remains supportive of him and constantly reminds him of her love for him. Despite this, Willy still yearns to have what he does not and pursues “the other woman.” It is bright as day that Willy finds some sort of comfort and validation for his affair with a woman who makes him feel wanted, yet his wife does the same thing. This guilt is always carried around with Willy which is just another contributor to the death of Willy
Arthur Miller’s play “Death of a Salesman”, primarily focuses on the flaws and failures of Willy Loman, Millers’ main character in this story. Willy’s distorted and backward views of the American Dream, paired with his inability to let go of the past lead him down a road of regret and in the end his biggest failure which was his wasted life.
Willy is a multi-faceted character which Miller has portrayed a deep problem with sociological and psychological causes and done so with disturbing reality. In another time or another place Willy might have been successful and kept his Sanity, but as he grew up, society's values changed and he was left out in the cold. His foolish pride, bad judgment and his disloyalty are also at fault for his tragic end and the fact that he did not die the death of a salesman.
In brief, it is apparent that Willy’s own actions led to not only his own demise, but his children’s as well. The salesman tragically misinterpreted the American Dream for only the superficial qualities of beauty, likeability and prosperity. Perhaps if Willy had been more focused on the truth of a person’s character, rather than purely physical aspects, his family’s struggles and his own suicide could have been avoided. On the whole, Arthur Miller’s play is evidence that the search for any dream or goal is not as easy and the end result may seem. The only way to realize the objective without any despair is the opposite of Willy Loman’s methods: genuineness, perseverance and humility.
Like countless characters in a play, Willy struggles to find who he is. Willy’s expectations for his sons and The Woman become too high for him to handle. Under the pressure to succeed in business, the appearance of things is always more important than the reality, including Willy’s death. The internal and external conflicts aid in developing the character Willy Loman in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman.
In the play, The Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller,Willy Loman, an unsuccessful business man struggling to support his family is completely out of touch with reality throughout the plot line. Many characters throughout this play and their interactions with Willy have showed the audience his true colors and what he thinks is important in life. His constant lying and overwhelming ego certainly does not portray his life in factual terms, but rather in the false reality that he has convinced himself he lives in.
Willy Loman stands in, so to speak, for every American male who defined himself as a man, husband and father with respect to his success in the workplace and his capacity for grabbing a share of the material American dream. Willy Loman is a man who has deluded himself and has judged himself more harshly than his wife or his son. His tragedy is that he comes to an understanding of this delusion too late to make any changes in his life. Whether or not we as readers or as members of the audience agree with his judgment is irrelevant. It is Willy's own failure that is important in this play.
...s personal failure and betrayal of his soul and family through the meticulously constructed artifice of his life. He cannot grasp the true personal, emotional, spiritual understanding of himself as a literal “loman” or “low man.” Willy is too driven by his own “willy”-ness or perverse “willfulness” to recognize the slanted reality that his desperate mind has forged. Still, many critics, focusing on Willy’s entrenchment in a quagmire of lies, delusions, and self-deceptions, ignore the significant accomplishment of his partial self-realization. Willy’s failure to recognize the anguished love offered to him by his family is crucial to the climax of his torturous day, and the play presents this incapacity as the real tragedy. Despite this failure, Willy makes the extreme sacrifice in his attempt to leave an inheritance that will allow Biff to fulfill the American Dream.
Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” ends with the tragic suicide of Willy Loman, the lead character. It is the end of a life spent futilely chasing “the American dream”. Willy has been unsuccessful in achieving the success he so desperately craves because his perception of the formula for success is fatally flawed. Willy believes that the American dream is only attainable for the popular and attractive few, and he does not believe he belongs to this elite group. Yet, Willy still works his entire life pursuing his dream.
Willy Loman equates success as a human being with success in the business world. When Willy was a young man, he heard of a salesman who could "pick up his phone and call the buyers, and without ever leaving his room, at the age of eighty-four, make his living." (81) This salesman is Willy's inspiration; someday to be so respected and so well known that he can still provide for his family, even at an old age. Of course, Willy is no good at being a salesman because his heart isn't in it. The only time Willy puts his heart into anything is when he works with his hands, and his son, Biff, comes to realize this. "There's more of him in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made." (138) Willy never comes to the realization that it is not being a salesman that he cares about, but rather being well known and, perhaps more importan...
Throughout the play, Arthur Miller uses characters’ inner tension and also tension with each other in order to shed light on capitalism’s misleading promises and devastating consequences for believing its promises. For many of the characters, believing in an imperfect system leads to many undesirable consequences, like disillusionment and suicide. For those that don’t throw themselves willy-nilly into the promises of capitalism and the American Dream, there is the chance of living a successful and fulfilling life. In the play Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is a great example of someone trying desperately, yet unsuccessfully, to pursue the false hope of the American Dream, directly resulting from capitalism’s misleading nature.
Starbucks’ inception began in 1971 in Seattle, Washington, a city that is known for coffee roasting. Since opening its doors to customers in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, the company has managed to open several stores across the nation and internationally. As of June 2015, and because of Starbucks’ mounting success, they have a total of 22,519 stores (“Starbucks,” 2017). Jeremiah 29:11 states, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope (NKJV).” God has a plan for everyone; man was created in His image and His
Willy Loman’s tragic flow leads him to purse the idea that reputation in society has more relevancies in life than knowledge and education to survive in the business. His grand error of wanting recognition drove him crazy and insane and lead to his tragic death. Willy’s hubris makes him feel extremely proud of what he has, when in reality he has no satisfaction with anything in his life. Willy Loman’s sons did not reach his expectations, as a father but he still continued to brag about Biff and Happy in front of Bernard. Willy Loman caused the reader to empathize with him because before his tragic death he did everything he could for his family. Empathy, Hubris , and Willy Loman’s tragic flow all lead him to his death that distend for him the beginning.
Schultz, H. (2011). Onward: How Starbucks fought for its life without losing its soul. New York: Rodale.