Arthur Miller tried to argue about Willy Loman’s tragic hero or is he pathetic human being? Well, for me reading this whole play. It became clear to me that Willy could be a modern day tragic hero with tragic flaws in his life. Since Aristotle had explained the true definition of Tragedy in the about the Greek mythology of a tragic hero; How a man could be fortune, then became horrible at the end with some mistakes but will always be remembered by the audience. Aristotle’s quote; “A man cannot become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall.” The tragic hero is that a great man who is neither a paragon of virtue and justice, nor undergoes the change to misfortune through any real badness or wickedness but because of some mistake. The hero is neither a villain nor a model of perfection, but is basically good and decent. (Aristotle’s & The Elements of Tragedy)
Willy Loman from "Death of a Salesman" immediately has his life changed in the story. Willy had worked so hard as a travelling salesman; he really wanted to become very successful. He believed in himself that he is capable to succeeding the business. He kept on having such a huge high hope for his first son Biff to follow his footstep, but that didn’t occur at the end. Biff didn’t become the person Willy thought his son would be. Even though, he devotedly remembers Biff as a teenager, he is unable to feel the connection with Biff for the time being. At other times, Willy would recall his memories of Biff's last football game because it was more delightful to refresh the memories of the past in which Biff adored him and wanted to score a touchdown for his him, rather than face the existent where he is at quarrels with his own son. Then later at the end, he would co...
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...thout Kings, took up this bright thread of our history and followed it to the only place it can possibly lead in our time, the heart and spirit of the average man.” (Miller 1692).
Willy Loman is a generous and a tragic character. Also he was able to combine most of the Aristotle’s philosophy about tragedy such as hamartia, the tragic flaw that will eventually lead to his downfall, secondly, peripeteia ; a reversal of prosperity brought about by the hero’s tragic flaw. The audience must feel the fear of this and the pity for this character.
Despite all of Willy's secrets, lies, deception, and lack of self-realization; In Willy’s own thought, he honestly believes that his committing suicide will help his wife lead a better life in spite of her suffering; as it makes sense that Willy is a tragic hero, whether or not you agree with his feelings, thoughts, or habits.
... hero while Willy is a common man and resembles a modern tragic hero, both protagonists demonstrate excessive amount of pride and arrogance. The hubris of the two characters is evident throughout the play as seen through Oedipus, who attempts to alter his fate and Willy, who rejects Charley’s offer for work. The flaws that these characters possess cause them to inflict harm towards themselves, as Oedipus stabs his own eyes and Willy commits suicide. Also, these protagonists are blinded by their own realities. Oedipus tries to change his fate and shows disrespect towards those who speak the truth that he does not want to hear. Willy Loman believes he is a successful businessman and continuously lies to himself so he can prove that he is very well liked. Both Oedipus and Willy have goals to try and prove something, but as tragic heroes, fail to prove themselves.
...ller’s character causes emotion on a personal level through realistic situations, responses, and reactions. Linda Lowman explains quite clearly that although Willy is not as august as someone like Oedipus, in the end, they are still both people that deserve the same amount of decency. She reveals to Biff, “I don't say he's a great man. Willy Loman never made a lot of money. His name was never in the paper. He's not the finest character that ever lived. But he's a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. So attention must be paid. He's not to be allowed to fall in his grave like an old dog. Attention, attention must finally be paid to such a person.” (Miller 44) Whereas the audience knew that Oedipus would crash right from the start, the bumpy ride that Willy takes them upon shows hope and ambition, but even that isn’t enough to stop him from crashing.
Willy Loman is a man that has lived his life trying to achieve the easily attainable American Dream of success and wealth. Yet, Willy himself never achieves such success. Now, he is hopeful that his sons can achieve success that he himself never did. Willy becomes obsessed with his sons becoming successful and wealthy and becomes upset when they do not. Willy begins to have illusions about an affair that he had over 15 years ago. Miller uses the affair to show how one event can determine and define the rest of your life. Willy’s obsession with his inability to achieve his definition of success and the American dream is ultimately his downfall and what leads to his death. However, the reader learns that Willy does not fully give up his dream of wealth and success because he leaves his on Biff a twenty thousand dollar insurance policy. Willy’s refusal to accept his and his son’s reality of not achieving success and instead leave him money to start a business what makes Death of a Salesman tragic. The same can be said with all tragedies; many times a story is defined as tragic because the person or persons involved never got to achieve their dream yet they never lost
Aristotle once said that “A man doesn't become a hero until he can see the root of his own downfall.” Contrary to Aristotle’s definition, Willy Loman is a man of self-deception paired with misguided life goals. Being a salesman his entire career, Willy believes the goal of life is to be well liked and gain material success. Opposing the values and position of Willy, Oedipus is born a noble, and inherited wealth that Willy could only dream of. Even as a royal, Oedipus is as a man of noble cause. Although he is misguided unto his exile, Oedipus is not stubbornly deceived by himself, rather is misguided by his tragic flaw, his pride. While comparing Oedipus and Willy Loman using anagnorisis, it is revealed that Oedipus is a true tragic hero while Willy is not.
A tragic hero is commonly known as a character of nobility that undergoes a fatal change which ultimately results in a tragedy. Arthur Miller, however, has a slightly different view in regards to what a tragic hero is. He asserts that a tragic hero does not necessarily have to be a character of nobility, instead can be an average person in possession of a tragic flaw. In Death of a Salesman, a play written by Arthur Miller, the criteria of a modern tragic hero are best expressed and demonstrated through the main character, Willy Loman. Willy Loman’s tragic flaw would be his excessive and unwarranted pride. This is because his pride causes him to live his life in a world of delusion, ultimately resulting in his very death. Willy’s pride first leads him into misunderstanding and mistreating his family, consequently resulting in family feuds and resentment. It then leads him into building his life out of false hopes, consequently resulting in his absolute failure in the business world. Finally, it results in him living an incredibly narcissistic and delusional life; to a point where he believes that he can attain fame and success through suicide. As it has been thoroughly demonstrated by Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman, having excessive pride in one’s self can ultimately derail an individual’s life into a mass pit of delusion and failure.
According to Frye's definition, tragic heroes bring suffering upon themselves. Willy Loman is delusional and has a skewed view on the world he lives in. Willy asserts that he is young, popular, and respected among his family and workmates. Flashbacks of past memories, which interrupt the present day flow of time, prove that Willy is not everything he used to be in his younger years. This constant misconception of time is Willy Loman's main flaw, and he is the main victim in this suffering. Willy's misunderstanding of the world around him is shown in key scenes, such as his conversation with his brother Ben in the garden near the end of the play (Miller 99). The death of Willy Loman is also a consequence of his flaw: Willy's disorganized state of mind causes him to jump into a car and crash.
Willy Loman’s character is capable of making errors. He believes he is a very successful salesman and well liked. He also thinks that the company likes what he is doing. He once said, “I’m the New England man. I am vital in New England” (Miller pg. 32) Because of his false belief about his success Howard fired him. After he got fired charley offered him a job, but he refuses to accept, because he is too proud and jealous to work for Charley. His actions were wrong because at no time was a successful salesman. He is not a powerful character. Willy lives in his fantasies where he is the man. Who goes out to another place and comes out rich, he is love by everyone and admired by his family. In real life, he is lazy and does not live up to his own ideals. “As Aristotle explains, a tragic hero must be one of noble character and must fall from power and happiness.”(Www.ccd.rightchoice.org/lit115/poetics.html) but Willy neither has a noble characteristic nor does he fall from power because he does not have a position of power.
In "Death of a Salesman," Willy Loman is the opposite of the classic tragic hero. Unlike Oedipus, Willy is a ordinary man. His name implies he is a "lowman" whose dreams and expectations have been shattered by the false values of thesociety he has put his faith into. This simple characteristic makes him a tragic hero like "Oedipus Rex."
Willy’s death was ironic due to all the of consequences that he faced each point of his life; however, he wanted to leave money behind by his $20,000 insurance policy for his family to prove he finally made success in life. After Willy death, Biff realized his true beliefs and changes his life’s path to the right direction. Happy on other hand, followed his father’s footsteps and aimed to become successful as a businessman. I believed that Willy’s character lead himself to his failures and miseries with his wife, his two sons, and his career. What Willy pictured in his mind of himself was not completed by his wrong ambition of being successful. “We’re free and clear. We’re free…. We’re free” (Death of the Salesman, Requiem. lines 66-67). Willy’s wife and sons were not a bit disappointed or saddened by the news of their father. Willy’s death defined a symbol of a new beginning for his family. Throughout my research I discovered all Willy wanted to be was a devoted husband, a father that his sons can be proud of, and a successful salesman; however Willy was unsuccessful in not completely to fulfill his dreams so his death brought him and his family a break from the
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.
A tragic hero is defined as a person of high social rank, who has a tragic flaw or flaws that lead to their downfall. These heroes’ downfalls are usually either complete ruin or death. Tragic heroes face their downfall with courage and dignity. While many characters in Julius Caesar could fit these conditions, the person who fits the role of a tragic hero the best is Marcus Brutus. Brutus develops into a tragic hero throughout the play, and this is shown though his qualifications of a tragic hero, his high status, his tragic flaws, and his courage in the face of his death.
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.
Willy Loman is one of the most tragic heroes in American drama today. He has a problem differentiating reality from fantasy. No one has a perfect life. Everyone has conflicts that they must face sooner or later. The ways in which people deal with these personal conflicts can differ as much as the people themselves. Some insist on ignoring the problem as long as possible, while some attack the problem to get it out of the way. In the case of Willy in Arthur Miller’s, Death of a Salesman, the way he deals with his life as a general failure leads to very severe consequences. Willy never really faced his problems in fact in stead of confronting them he just escapes into the past, whether intentionally or not, to those happier childhood times where problems were scarce. He uses this escape as if it were a narcotic, and as the play progresses, we learns that it can be as dangerous as a drug, because of its ability to addict Willy, and it’s deadliness.
Moreover, the psychological view of Willy Loman is shown as a person who works as a traveling salesman and decides to commit suicide because the “American Dream” overwhelms him. As Charley says in the story: “the only thing you got in this world is what you can sell”. He is a normal person “who embodies traditional American values of success.”(Hansberry) In fact, Willy Loman wants to a great extent believe that he is one of the finest salesmen, a winner in life and a great father. For Mr. Loman, the accomplish...
Willy Loman, the main character in Death of a Salesman is a complex tragic character. He is a man struggling to hold onto the little dignity he has left in a changing society. While society may have caused some of his misfortune, Willy must be held responsible for his poor judgment, disloyalty and foolish pride.