The Influences of Tragedy in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman “A salesman has got to dream” (Miller ). That sums up Willy Loman’s life in just one sentence. Willy is a sixty-three year old salesman with two son, Biff and Happy, and loving, supportive wife, Linda. In Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Willy tries to provide for his family while struggling with financial, emotional, psychological, and suicidal issues. Willy commits suicide at the end of the play, with the help of his dead brother
Wars raced through American life, writers kept up by creating important new works of fiction and drama, all of which reflected America's changing identity. Although these writers emerged from all parts of the country, each of them offered a unique view of what was then contemporary American life. Together they created a literary movement. Arthur Miller's contribution to American Literature is agreed upon by essayists such as Stephen A. Marino, Jeffrey Helterman, Neil Carson, and Anne Crow, all of
as seen in Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” and Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun”, perverted conceptions of the American Dream convince certain characters that they are entitled to the fruits of miracles. Despite their best intentions for supporting their families, Walter Younger and Willy Loman encounter unsurpassable obstacles and are unable to fulfill their dreams. When all hope has been lost, family is the only thing that these characters have left. “Death of a Salesman” and “A Raisin
Willy Loman, from the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, exhibited the traits of a tragic hero. His disastrous qualities came prior to his foreshadowed death when he realized his existence had not panned out the way he had hoped. Mr. Loman aroused sympathy from the readers as he dedicated his life to a single cause, all while having a weakness of pride that led to his catastrophic passing. Willy was destined to pass away from the very start of the story, just like a tragic hero characteristically
Plot Overview of Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller As a flute melody plays, Willy Loman returns to his home in Brooklyn one night, exhausted from a failed sales trip. His wife, Linda, tries to persuade him to ask his boss, Howard Wagner, to let him work in New York so that he won't have to travel. Willy says that he will talk to Howard the next day. Willy complains that Biff, his older son who has come back home to visit, has yet to make something of himself. Linda scolds Willy for being so