Preview

Arthur Miller's Death of A Salesman - Controversial Tragedy

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1369 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Arthur Miller's Death of A Salesman - Controversial Tragedy
Tragedy was a very controversial issue in literature until recent years. Recent figures in literature have set a clear definition for tragedy. Author Miller is one of these figures. Plays and novels have distinguished the definition of tragedy. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary tragedy is a serious piece of literature typically describing a conflict between the protagonist and a superior force and having a sorrowful or disastrous conclusion that excites pity or terror. Miller's explains that a tragic hero does not always have to be a monarch or a man of a higher status. A tragic hero can be a common person. A tragedy does not always have to end pessimistically; it could have an optimistic ending. The play Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller, is a tragedy because it's hero, Willy Loman, is a tragic figure that faces a superior source, being the American dream and the struggle for success. Loman also excites pity in the reader because of his defeat and his inability to become a success or teach his children how to make their lives successful.

Miller defines a flaw as "an inherent unwillingness to remain passive in the face of what one conceives to be a challenge to one's dignity..." Loman fulfills many of the requirements of being a tragic hero. Willy is not "flawless" in his actions, which by Miller's standards make him a tragic hero. It is not wrong for Willy to have flaws and it does not make him a weaker man but a tragic figure. Miller designed the play so that Willy could be a tragic hero and for this he needs to have a flaw. Willy's flaw is that he is unable to see things in a more realistic perspective. Charley says something in the play that sums up Willy's whole life. He asks him, "When the hell are you going to grow up?" Willy's spends his entire life in an illusion. He sees himself as a great man that is popular and successful. Willy exhibits many childlike qualities. Many of these qualities have an impact on his family. His two sons Biff and
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Diminishing Pride In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman
    • 388 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Diminishing Pride In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

    Although it is seen in Act 1, it becomes more evident in Act 2 that Willy only fears of diminishing pride and popularity. It is in Act 2 where the meaning behind the story’s title, Death of a Salesman, is revealed: Willy states, “when he died, hundreds of salesmen and buyers were at his funeral” (idk). Dave Singleman was a popular man, and Willy strives to be as popular as Dave was, which is why he has the job of a seller. Furthermore, when Willy is fired from his job, he becomes devastated. Being a seller, especially in New York City, was Willy’s best chance of becoming a well-liked, or popular, man. Initially, the reader would believe that Willy is devastated for his job loss because he will not be able to support him and his wife financially,…

    • 388 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Romeo And Juliet Biff Character Analysis
    • 419 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Romeo And Juliet Biff Character Analysis

    A tragic hero is a character who has errors that leads to his or her destruction. In reading “Romeo and Juliet”, Romeo would be the tragic hero. If the audience looks at the role of justice or revenge and its influence on each character's choices when analyzing the literature. In the “Death of a Salesman” by Arthur Miller, the tragic character could be, Willy, Linda, happy or Biff. It would seem that the majority of the people would choose Willy Loman because of the choices he made in his life, like cheating on his wife and choosing to drive the car to his death but the real tragic hero is Biff.…

    • 419 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Tragic Hero In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman
    • 828 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Tragic Hero In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

    Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher, established the ideas that led to the development of modern science, the Industrial Revolution, and the creation of the United States. He laid the foundation for reason by creating the basic principles of scientific epistemology, which is the role of senses and abstraction, the laws of logic and of reasoning. Furthermore, Aristotle kept the Greek theatre alive through his analysis of poetry in his book Poetics. Poetics is the earliest surviving work of dramatic theory and the first philosophical book that focuses on literary theory. Through this, he created the tragic hero and states, “a man doesn’t become a hero until he can see the root of his downfall.” According to Aristotle, the hero must endure a reversal of fortune (peripeteia) due to his tragic flaw (hamartia). They must then discover their mistake (anagnorisis) and receive their harsh fate. Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman, mostly portrays Willy Loman, the main character, as a tragic hero. Willy believes wholeheartedly in the American Dream, influenced by his successful and wealthy father and brother. However, Willy is unsuccessful in achieving his goals due to the major industrialization around him, his excessive pride, and distorted…

    • 828 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Failures In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman
    • 1012 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Failures In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

    Growing up, my siblings and I participated in a variety of competitive sports. For my brother and me, this consisted of soccer, basketball, and running track. We would constantly practice together and would make every aspect of it a competition. For example, whoever was breathing hardest at the end of a sprint lost, whoever shot more goals in soccer won, and whoever could dodge and fake out the other was the best athlete in the family. I would try and try to beat my brother but he always found a way to get the upper hand. Compared to my brother, I saw myself as a failure. It wasn’t until one parent teacher conference night that i realized that I was far more academically capable than my older brother. I had better grades and was more well liked…

    • 1012 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Antigone and of Mice and Men
    • 684 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Antigone and of Mice and Men

    A tragedy is a serious work of fiction that presents the downfall of its protagonist, who through some error in judgment, weakness in character, or twist of fate suffers crushing defeat or death. It also must involve incidents arousing pity and fear. The novel Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, and the Greek drama Antigone, by Sophocles, both have the woeful elements of a tragedy. In Antigone, the main character Antigone is of the cursed family of Oedipus, who unwittingly slew his father and married his mother, who bore him two sons and two daughters. The Gods, enraged by this incestuous relationship, cursed Oedipus’ entire bloodline. In Of Mice and Men, two men struggle to make ends in the brutal times of the Great Depression, by traveling across America looking for jobs as ranch hands. Lennie, the larger of the two, has a mental disability, so George, Lennie’s best and only friend, takes care of him no matter how many times Lennie gets them into trouble.…

    • 684 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Tragic Hero In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman
    • 1407 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Tragic Hero In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

    Miller shows this throughout the play by showing his flaws. His main flaws are his hubris and obsession with money. These cause him to falter throughout the play. Miller also gives Willy a value system to which people can relate. Most fathers care about their families and want to do right by them. As many tragic heroes he never really knew who he was. He thought he was a roadman, a true traveling salesman. However, he never realized his true passion was working with his hands: “Biff: There were a lot of nice days…making the stoop; finishing the cellar; putting on the new porch; when he built the extra bathroom; and put on the garage. You know something, Charley, there’s more of him in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made”(1497). Willy really should have been a carpenter and then he could have been happier. His suicide however, was actually heroic because he knew that him being alive was holding his sons back, particularly Biff, and Linda was suffering through this experience of him deteriorating. His death caused Biff to finally break the cycle and go do what he loved. Also Linda’s having to choose between him and Biff was taking a toll on her. He also wants his family to be comfortable financially and the $20,000 life insurance policy would do that. Miller shows this in the play when he writes, “Willy: Remember, it’s a guaranteed twenty-thousand-dollar proposition…the woman has suffered, your hear me”(1491).…

    • 1407 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Tragedy In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman
    • 792 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Tragedy In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

    In this particular story, the protagonist - Willy Loman - is on the surface elevated no higher than a psychotic liar who often manipulates even those he loves the most. However, when looked upon through a harsher lens, the only thing that truly becomes obvious is that Willy himself is the archetype of a tragic hero. Lying to his family in friends, while in part cowardly, also questions the way in which a family could be defined as successful. Willy’s affair with another woman, while gross and unforgivable, allow others in the story to demonstrate the perseverance of love. In fact, it is throughout the entirety of Death of a Salesman that Arthur Miller uses his characters to question society, and then demonstrate their unwillingness to fall to adversity. Willy Loman, while indeed a pathetic man, falls through no weakness of his own…

    • 792 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    The Theme Of Success In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman
    • 951 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Theme Of Success In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

    Through hard work, anything is attainable. Success isn’t just handed to someone on a silver platter, there is lots of time and effort that must be put forward in order to achieve this. The American dream describes something similar and also states that the goal of success is attainable to anyone willing to put some effort in. The play Death of a Salesman illustrates to readers and also viewers of how this American dream can be interpreted differently by individuals. There are also a variety of examples in the play that describe the various interpretation of this dream. Charley for instance is a prime example of a successful man who worked hard for what he has, and never expected it to be any other way. This is usually how life goes for the…

    • 951 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Hamlet Vs. Willy Loman
    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Hamlet Vs. Willy Loman

    Death of a Salesman, written by Arthur Miller, is a book about a salesman named Willy Loman who lives in the past and holds on to ideals and dreams that simply don't exist anymore, constantly worrying about his material items and the "condition" of his family, Willy becomes distraught leading to his early death. Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, is about a prince named Hamlet, similar to Willy, Hamlet is also constantly worrying about life and the state of his family. In literature there's a common idea of the "tragic hero." Arthur Miller, author of Death of a Salesman, has a new updated version of what a tragic hero is; a character who is ready to lay down his life if need be to secure his sense of personal dignity, a character of nobility, has a tragic flaw. With this definition of a tragic hero in mind, both Hamlet and Willy Loman are tragic heroes.…

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller: Willy Loman's Deep Emotion and Despair
    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller: Willy Loman's Deep Emotion and Despair

    In the play "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller, the character Willy Loman displayed characteristics of deep emotion and despair. He blames society for his misfortune but in reality society was not the cause of his turmoil, it was within him the whole time. He made himself crazy by trying to please everyone, in doing so, he became a psychopath.…

    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Drama Essay "Death of a Salesman"
    • 1474 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Drama Essay "Death of a Salesman"

    Death of a Salesman, written by American Playwright Arthur Miller, in 1949, won many awards, including the Pulitzer for drama, and a Tony for the Best Play. This play has been performed on Broadway several times; in February of 1949 it ran for 742 performances and was continually acclaimed. Linda Loman the wife of Willie Loman, the salesman, a typical woman of her era, was a homemaker, busy cooking, cleaning and taking care of her two sons, while her husband frequently traveled. Linda in general was a weak woman, as most of the women were in her time period, unable to confront any uncomfortable situation with her husband. In today’s world a women in her place would not be so quick to overlook all that Linda did, if so perhaps the story would end differently.…

    • 1474 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Explain why Willy Loman is or is not a tragic hero
    • 919 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Explain why Willy Loman is or is not a tragic hero

    Literary critic, Professor Harold Bloom claims that Willy Loman is not a tragic hero by Aristotelian standards because he "does not fall from a great height, nor does he come to any realization of his complicity in the event." Traditionally tragic heroes are men of high standing, princes, kings and generals, who fail and eventually die due to a fatal flaw, or hamartia. Aristotle would not have considered 'Death of a Salesman' a tragedy, because a tragedy must show a person who is worth serious attention. Willy Loman, an 'Everyman', is not worth the attention given him. However, as Miller himself pointed out, Shakespearean and Greek Tragedies were "enacted by royal beings but… apply to everyone in similar emotional situations." In the past stories had been written about characters of high standing, that were looked up to by the general public. Arthur Miller asked the important question, why? Why does a story have to be about someone who, buy luck at birth, is royal? The everyday man worries as much about his own personal problems, be they large or small, as a prince may worry about his. Willy Loman's issues in the drama were very…

    • 919 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Who Is Willy Loman A Tragic Hero
    • 556 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Who Is Willy Loman A Tragic Hero

    According to Shakespeare, a tragic hero is not an ordinary man; he is a man at the zenith of society with greatness upon him. Concurring with this idea, critic Northrop Frye defines tragic heroes as someone that acquires inevitable power; however, catastrophes are more likely to occur to great trees, people with great power, than a clump of grass, common people. But when tragic heroes abuse their power, they become the cause of their own downfall, leading them to misfortune. In “Death of a Salesman,” Willy Loman is portrayed as the tragic hero as he irrationally chases after the American Dream. In his quest to achieve his dream, he manipulates his family’s feelings towards him. Since he admires good looks and personality over intelligence, strives to strike rich and is unable to separate reality from his illusions, his persistent aspiration to attain success causes suffering to not only himself but his own family.…

    • 556 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Death of a Salesman - Drama Essay
    • 925 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Death of a Salesman - Drama Essay

    Willy Loman was a man who had dedicated his life to work at an early age, but still wrestled with payments on the purchases of modern appliances, as well as a mortgage, in his later years. He had high aspirations and felt he was making progress with each successful payday of sales, only to be subsequently disappointed and brought back down to earth by the monetary obligations he held. Disappointment turned out to be a trend as he frequently confronted bitter letdowns in life, spawning emotions within him that allowed the audience to share and sympathize with his character. The episodes he experienced in the play contributed to problems with his self-realization.…

    • 925 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Death of a Salesman: an American Tradgedy
    • 1425 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Death of a Salesman: an American Tradgedy

    First of all, Willy Loman is not from a high background, but rather a common American man with a warped sense of his “American Dream”, including his successes and family. Willy’s problems all stem from his delusions about his life, career, and ability to be a good parent. Perhaps Willy’s tragic flaw in this play is that a man with so much potential loses everything by deluding himself into a downward spiral of failure, all the while lacking sense of reality and never accepting nor admitting to his errors.…

    • 1425 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics