Death Of A Salesman

Ability of a common man to experience tragedies Arthur Miller is correct when he states that a common man is as competent as a royal, in experiencing a tragedy. Firstly, a commoner is no different than a high- born since; they are able to confront similar emotions, during a tragedy. Moreover, just like the noble – born a common man values their personal dignity above all else, and are willing to sacrifice all they have in order to protect their dignity. Initially, during a tragedy a common person can evoke the same emotions that a high born can, for the two are no different. Surely Gotthold Ephraim Lessing agreed, since he wrote tragedies in which the protagonist was a common man. Lessing triggered sensations of pity and fear in the audience through the protagonist, which he hoped would exerted a moral influence, which can then be transformed into virtuous actions (Gotthold Ephraim
Lessing). Thus Lessing’s domestic tragedies prove that a normal middle class person is capable of creating a catharsis, and also can convey a moral influence just as well as any royal character in a tragedy. Therefore in conclusion Lessing’s tragedies prove that he too agrees with Miller, that a common man is equally capable of experiencing similar emotions, to those of a royal, during a play. Subsequently, a common man qualifies for tragedies because just like any human being, whether they be rich or poor, all humans value their dignity above all else.
Accordingly, in the tragedy Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman the protagonist realizes that he has failed as a father and a husband, and has lost his respect and self-pride in his eyes and the in the eyes of his family. This loss of personal dignity motivates him to create illusions in which he still has a sense of dignity; yet in doing so he loses his perception of reality, and becomes distant from his family and as a consequence ends up committing suicide when his illusion is shattered (Death of a Salesman). Willy’s tragedy proves to support Miller, in the sense that Willy gives up on his family, life and reality when he finds out that he no longer has a sense of dignity remaining. Therefore, this supports Miller’s thesis for it aids with the idea that all commoners hold dignity above everything else and will do anything to regain their sense of dignity, which is similar to what the royal protagonist execute in a
tragedy. In conclusion, Arthur Miller’s thesis is correct when he articulates that a common man is equally suitable as a noble for a tragedy. A common man is equally qualified as a royal in a tragedy because they can experience and evoke similar feelings. Secondly, another aspect that qualifies a commoner for a tragedy is that just like the royals they value personal dignity above everything. Therefore the similarities between the commoners and the royals, proves Miller’s thesis is valid.