Death Of A Salesman

Unlike the heroes of classical tragedy, he is not a man of stature or noble purpose but he commands our respect and pity because he pursues his dream with a passionate intensity that makes him unique and gives him a heroic quality. While Willy is flawed in many ways, it is not simply this, but the social forces beyond his control that lead to his downfall.

In Death of a Salesman, Miller is not so much calling into question the pursuit of the American Dream, but the dream itself. For Willy, his adventurer/explorer brother, Ben, and his salesman hero, Dave Singleman, are images of success, but the character of Ben is fantastical and the achievements of Dave are idealised and exaggerated.

Using these as his benchmarks, Willy can never achieve the success he so desperately craves. Through a series of flashbacks in the play, where we witness Willy's persistent efforts to make the American Dream a reality for himself and his family, Miller launches a scathing attack on the very notion of the dream. He questions the values upon which American society is based and the way in which these contribute to the destruction of a man such as Loman.

Willy's obsession and lack of insight thwart all his relationships and cause him to betray his own set of values. His loyal and loving wife, Linda, supports him in both his fantasies and failures and her life seems to be entirely absorbed into his.

Unable to achieve the desired success in his own career, he becomes preoccupied with ensuring the success of his two sons, in particular that of Biff who, he is convinced, is destined for greatness in his sporting, professional and social life. Sadly, his over-zealous attempts serve only to reinforce Biff's sense of inadequacy and lack of identity.

Willy realises toward the end of the play that he doesn't need to "sell" himself to his family, who loves him despite his failings. His suicide, an act in defiance of the system, which until now has defeated him, is also a tragic attempt to salvage something of his dream. According to Miller, it is this readiness to lay down his life to secure his dream that makes Willy a tragic yet heroic figure and one to whom, in Linda's words, "attention must be finally paid."

The play is a tragedy, with Willy playing the part of the tragic hero. This is someone who has a flaw in his character and pays the ultimate price for it. Willy's flaw is that he refuses to accept himself and his family for what they are.

Death of a Salesman is a social commentary on American society in the era before World War I to the time after World War II. During this period, America witnessed a rapid cultural change, with many people moving from rural areas to the cities, and the rapid increase in industry and manufacturing leading to high rise apartment blocks, city living and a profound change in which Americans worked and lived.

Miller uses the character of Willy to play out these changes. Beforehand, Willy lived comfortably in a job that enabled him to keep up a friendly relationship with his customers. His old style of working compares unfavourably with his new one, where this security is