Is Willy Loman a Tragic Hero in "Death of Salesman

His brother was the man he admired the most but throughout the play Ben is revealed as being a mean, nasty man who believe that being rich is the only sign of success even thought he stumbled upon his wealth thought pure luck. We began to see his open wounds from being abandoned that leads to this obsession with needing to be liked by everyone, why he and Biffs’ relationship is so tense and irreversibly broken but also why he’s so disrespectful to Linda. For the duration of the entire play the reader is constantly being reminded by Willy th... ... middle of paper ... ...ited Bradford, Wade. "Character Analysis: Willy Loman from "Death of a Salesman""About.com Plays / Drama. About.com, n.d.

Web. 1 Feb. 2014. Ribkoff, Fred. "CRITICAL READINGS: Shame, Guilt, Empathy, And The Search For Identity In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman." Critical Insights: Death Of A Salesman (2010): 183-192.

Willy is a very insecure, delusional, and misguided individual who whole-heartily believes the various lies and stunted interpretation he has based his life on; he believes that in order to be successful, one must be popular and attractive. Willy and his family are put at a disadvantage because throughout their lives “they continue to believe that the greater world will embrace them, will proclaim them, simply because they are superficially charming, are occasionally witty, and can bluster and brag with the best of them” (Thompson). Willy continues to look up to individuals that are very successful. Dave Singleman, and Willy’s brother are two characters in the play that Willy looks up to because of their hard-earned success. However, Willy helps the audience have an insight to the corrupted view of the American dream that is based on materialism, popularity, likability, and attractiveness.

29 Apr. 2014. Thompson, Terry W. "Miller's DEATH OF A SALESMAN." Explicator 63.4 (2005): 244-247. Academic Search Complete.

Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell. The Brief Wadsworth Handbook. United States: Thompson, 2008. Miller, Arthur. Miller’s Death of a Salesman.

He chose to follow the American dream and he chose to lead the life it gave him (Death of a Salesman: The Culture Of Willy Loman). Willy dies an unsuccessful person, with the realization that everything he had worked for was not achieved. There are many angles that Willy Loman can be examined from to sort out what type of man he really was. He was a man who lacked vision, drive, and ambition, which lead to his failure. Willy believed that he would one day retire with all the riches that a successful businessman deserved.

Along with his slope into insanity, Willy’s actions become more aggressive and odd as the play goes on. Despite Willy and Biff’s “family feud”, his two sons Happy and Biff truly worry about their father’s transformation, Happy saying: “He just wants you to make good, that’s all. I wanted to talk to you about dad for a long time, Biff. Something’s – happening to him. He – talks to himself” (Miller 21).

Literature Resource Center. Web. 7 Dec. 2010. Martin, Robert A. "The Nature of Tragedy in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman."

The result is the anti-hero, Willy Loman. He is a simple salesman who constantly aspires to become 'great'. Nevertheless, Willy has a waning career as a salesman and is an aging man who considers himself to be a failure but is incapable of consciously admitting it. As a result, the drama of the play lies not so much in its events, but in Willy's deluded perception and recollection of them as the audience gradually witness the tragic demise of a helpless man. In creating Willy Loman, Miller presents the audience with a tragic figure of human proportions.

"Historical Context for Death of a Salesman - Elise." Historical Context for Death of a Salesman - Elise. SPH International, n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2014.