The Destruction of Willy Loman in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
In the book Death of A Salesman, author Arthur Miller shows how cruel life can be through the life of Willy Loman, the main character. His feelings of guilt, failure, and sadness result in his demise.
Willy's sense of pride is a very big issue in his life; he doesn't like people to give him handouts, although he may need them. But the feeling of failure overrides him when he learns about the loss of his job.
Willy Loman is considered an American Everyman because of his desire for success, his part of conformity to his perception of the American Dream, and his teachings on what he finds the keys of success.
Willy Loman's Depression in Death of a Salesman
Arthur Miller's, "Death of a Salesman," shows the development and structure that leads up to the suicide of a tragic hero, Willy Loman. The author describes how an American dreamer can lose his self-worth by many negative situations that occur throughout his life. The structure and complications are essential because it describes how a man can lose his way when depression takes over.
The first comlication which occurs in Act I, is when the reader acknowledges that Willy put his whole life into his sons, Biff and Happy, and they turned their backs on him. Willy always believed that biff would be this great, successful businessman and it turned out that Biff is still searching to find himself, which disappoints Willy in the worst way.
Death of a Salesman, a play written in 1949, by Arthur Miller, has been Miller’s most famous work thanks to how relatable the play can be to almost every citizen in America. The play is told from the point of view of the principal character, Willy Loman. The play examines Willy’s perception of success, and the conflicts that his perception creates in his household. Having a wrong perception of likeness, lying, and cheating can lead to an individual to make decisions that can be irreversible and have many consequences. The family of Willy Loman is an example of how the life of each one of the members of the family can be defined by the mindsets of only one person.
The American dream today is based on the fact that anyone living in America can achieve a perfect life if they work hard. Willy Loman, the father in the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, tries his hardest to reach the American dream as he grows up. The Loman’s life from beginning to end is a troubling story based on trying to become successful, or at least happy. Throughout their lives they encounter many problems causing Willy to have a tragic death due to the desire of succession. Willy wants to provide his wife Linda, and two sons Biff and Happy, the perfect life. Willy strives for the American dream throughout the entire play, yet never achieves what he hopes because there are too many problems standing in his way.
In Death of A Salesman by Arthur Miller, the character Willy Loman is an average modern American man with a superficial American Dream: to be liked, to succeed over everyone
As Abraham Lincoln said, “Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” Character is made up of principles and values that give one’s life direction, meaning and depth. Famous figures such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson have believed that one can only experience true success and happiness by making character the foundation of our lives. However, in the play, Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller depicts the last days of a tired old salesman who throughout his life, believed that personality will make one successful. However, this salesman, who goes by the name of Willy Loman, was not granted happiness and fulfillment. These come from developing character. Thus, Willy’s failures as a businessman, husband, and father stem from his failure of character.
America is a country built on the idea of The American dream; an idea that any person, white, black, brown, or even purple can achieve economic freedom and upward social mobility through hard work and determination. There are few men who hold this idea more dear than Willy Loman. Mistakenly, Willy focuses more on the ideals of wealth than the laborious journey it takes to become a successful business man. The American capitalistic society is competitive and people like Willy, who do not understand the environment they are in, will habitually have problems climbing the economic totem pole. Death of Salesman admits to a flaw in the American system, not everybody will be successful, but through characters, flashbacks, and the resolution it is clear that Willy’s lack of success is result of his own choices, and not society.
Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is a tragedy that recounts the journey of Willy Loman, a salesman in his sixties, who attempts, but fails to achieve success through his own approach by being popular and well-liked. Miller uses several motifs to develop his theme, which is that people who are suffering, but continue not to be mindful of their actions and ideals, and not adapt to the current situation, will continue to suffer. Willy’s idea of success and his stubbornness to this idea is revealed using the motif of popularity. Furthermore, the flaws in Willy’s idea of success are revealed through the motif of contradictions. Lastly, through the motif of Willy and his appliances being worn-out, Miller elucidates the fact that Willy’s pursuit of his idea of success is detrimental to himself.
In “Death of a Salesman”, by Arthur Miller, the play portrays the literary conflict of man versus himself. It is depicted by the question of why Willy Loman committed suicide. Each of us as we grow up has dreams and goals of being successful and wealthy. We “know” when we grow up all is going to fall into place and then reality happens. This is what happened to Loman. His American Dream was not working and shifted to the point where his success was not identified with his happiness. In the play, Loman experiences many factors that lead to his sudden decision to commit suicide, which ends up having a significant purpose.