Death of a Salesman - the Three Unities “Decorum”

In the light of Aristotle’s Poetics, we see the philosopher’s fundamentals regarding Greek drama, a structure or foundation that every tragedy needs for maximum expression and catharsis. It needs Plot, Character, Thought, Diction, Song and Spectacle – arranged in order of importance – so that it can be considered a Greek drama. In Plot, Aristotle explains how the drama is in the form of a tragedy, is efficiently maximized through the use of certain rules or laws called the Three Unities. Aristotle wrote after the Golden Age, and he was describing what made ancient Greek works so much better than his modern age's poetry. The French scholars derived from Aristotle three principles which they decreed classical French tragedy should follow. These three Unities were repeated in Italian studies and became European in scope. Although referred to as Aristotle's Three Unities, he never required them, mentioning in fact only Unity of Action and of Time as descriptions of great works. The Aristotelian Unities were in fact a European creation adopted in any European literature and in English as well.
These rules, according to him, define the very essence of a Greek drama – such rules include the unity of action, place, and time. First, the Unity of Action states that only actions and scenes relating to the main plot should be included. Moreover, any unnecessary or superfluous subplots should be disregarded. Second, the Unity of Place primarily says that a play should be set in only one location. Lastly, the Unity of Time declares that a play should confine itself to a single revolution of the sun; if ever there are past events, these should be recounted by the characters. These three are the basic standards if the plot of the Greek tragedy, according to Aristotle.
Using these aspects, we can analyze the play, Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, and whether or not it is considered to be a Greek drama according to Aristotle standards. We believe that Death of a Salesman can be classified as a Greek drama, for it conforms to Aristotle’s three unities. First, it follows the Unity of Time. The events in the play primarily occurred in less than 24 hours – from Willy Loman coming home from work to his death in the night. As demonstrated by the performance, past events, which composed a big chunk of the script, were merely part of recollections and flashbacks. Second, there were no digressions found in the play. All the events, even the flashbacks, gave the audiences a more vivid picture of the play; these details each had their own part in explaining the tragedy of Willy Loman at the end. Thus, the Unity of Action was fulfilled by the play. Lastly, the whole story mainly revolved around Willy Loman’s home and his small town, to a certain extent. Therefore, the last component, Unity of Place, is fulfilled, making the play, Death of a Salesman, fit in as a Greek drama. Analyzing character, we see through Willy’s purpose in life, which is to promise good life for his family, that he is good such that he becomes a perfect source of catharsis. He is conventional and consistent in his character as a “crazy” salesman and controlling father, and through the presence of Plot and Character, we can say that this play is truly a Greek drama.