Alienation in Death of a Salesman

Alienation in Death of a Salesman

It is often said that society, family and your inner self is very judgemental. Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman tells the story of Willy Loman, a salesman living in Brooklyn, New York and his family. Willy knows deep down what his capabilities and problems are which is why he exiles himself socially. Biff Loman, Willy's eldest son, is misunderstood but it is known that Willy has affected his life since Biff was a young man causing him to be isolated from his father and family. Happy Loman, younger son of Willy, is the most successful of his brother and father however he is isolated from society and his co-workers. Alienation is displayed in many ways throughout the play where Willy, Biff and Happy are isolated from themselves, from society and from their families. Willy was not successful as a salesman which eventually caused him to be isolated from himself. Subconsciously, Willy knows that he is a failure and that he cannot provide for his family. This is why he feels alienated, which could be the reason for his "conversations" because he feels he can't talk to anybody. "I've got nobody to talk to, Ben." (II, 126) Willy talks to himself to look for comfort and he seeks advice from his dead brother Ben on how to become successful. Willy's inability to provide for his family affects their view on him. Also, when Willy speaks to himself it is understood that his mentality is lost. "Let me talk to you-I got nobody to talk to." (II, 93) Willy explained to Bernard that he has nobody to talk to anymore not even his own family. Willy has lost the respect of many people including his family. He is isolated to a degree where he can't talk to anyone but himself. Willy's alienation from himself is caused by his ignorance to understand that his destiny was not to become a salesman which in the end is the reason of his "conversations" and his isolation from himself. Biff, a thirty-four year old man, realizes his whole life was a lie and that he was alienated from his family. Biff has been working out west and spent some time in jail before giving a long due visit back to his parents. Biff has mixed feelings about Willy where he sometimes exclaims that he is not that bad and other times that he is crazy. Biff understands that his father has provoked his failure in life. "And he came back after that month and took his sneakers-remember those sneakers with ‘University of Virginia' printed on them? He was so proud of those, wore them everyday. And he took them down in the cellar, and burned them up in the furnace." (II, 94) Biff had visited Willy in Boston when he was seventeen where he saw that his father had an affair on Linda. Biff then realized that his whole life was a fake and everything he was taught by his father was a lie. When he got home and burned his sneakers, Biff knew that he had given up his life which ultimately caused him to fail in the future. Linda, Biff's mother, feels that Biff does not care about his father. "Don't you care whether he lives or dies?" (II, 123) Biff is isolated from his mother because she thinks he doesn't care for Willy although he knows that Willy is deceitful and cheated on Linda. Biff is alienated throughout his life from his family because of Willy's unjustified behaviour. Happy is Willy's younger son who has become more successful in the business world than his father but is still isolated from society. Happy is more successful than his father and older brother but still wants more in life. He is trying to achieve the unachievable American Dream which his father also wanted. Happy's dream is to become a successful and prospers business man but in reality he will not. "I gotta show some of those pompous, self-important executives over there that Hap Loman can make the grade." (I, 24) Happy is isolated from society and at work because his co-workers think that he is not worthy of a promotion. Happy is not very social at work. He does not talk to his fellow co-workers because he is conceited and a womanizer. Happy sleeps with many women which include his co-workers wives. "I don't know what gets into me, maybe I just have an overdeveloped sense of competition or something, but I went and ruined her, and furthermore I can't get rid of her. And he's the third executive I've done that to." (I, 25) Happy knows what he is doing is wrong but understands the consequences. This leads him to become isolated from his co-workers because he does not want to talk to the man whose wife he had an affair with. Happy can be described as the most successful of his father and brother but is still alienated from society because of his strange desires.
Many characters in the play Death of a Salesman are isolated from the important aspects of life such as society, family and themselves. The males of the Loman family can be portrayed as alienated people from these aspects. Willy understands his capabilities and knows subconsciously that he is isolated. Biff's morals and values which he was taught as a young man affected his life in the long run and caused his alienation from his family. Happy's aspiration to sleep with his co-workers wives lead him to be isolated from his work atmosphere and society in general. Life is not always easy and hard work must be put in to achieve a certain goal. Otherwise, you might be alienated from the important aspects of life. This is why the theme of alienation is clearly identifiable in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman.

Work Cited
Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Toronto: Penguin Group, 1977.