Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman

Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman

The play “Death of a Salesman is a stage play that was written by an American playwright by the name Arthur Miller. The play is a dramatic presentation that describes the tragic tale of character by the name Willy Loman. In the play, Willy Loman is portrayed as a person who is very dedicated and hardworking. He struggles very hard to be prosperous in life. This is likened to the struggle to achieve the real American dream. Therefore to make this dream, he lives a life full of deceit in which he is involved in doing things that turn out to be worse. In that regard, by being deceitful, he is unmasked as someone who doesn’t live a truthful, thus revealing his true self (Sarkar n.p).

Willy Loman’s story in the “Death of a Salesman” presents some similarity to the story of Miller’s father, who was previously a salesman who traveled a lot. With a sterling career in the sales business, Arthur Miller’s father devoted his entire life to pursuing a life filled with success and happiness. Based on this narrative, the focus of the play involves six significant characters. These include Willy Loman, who is an aging salesman whose current predicament is attributed to his wrong perception and philosophy in handling situations. Another main character in the play is Biff Loman, who is the eldest son of Willy Loman. Biff Loman is portrayed in the play as someone who is confused about his place and his overall purpose in life.

Happy Loman is also another character in the play. He is the younger son of Willy Loman and is ready to live up to his father’s dreams. The play also involves a character by the name Howard Wagner. He is the biological son of the previous owner of Wagner Company. Lastly, there is Miss Frances. Miss Frances is portrayed in the play as the secretary who works for Happy’s pickups in the restaurant. Besides, another character included in the play is Willy’s only friend, who provides regular support but ends up getting knocked back by Willy (Miller n.p.).

There is also Biff’s friend, who goes by the name Bernard. Biff also has a son Charley. He is the son who has become a successful lawyer. Another essential character in the play is Ben. He is Willy’s dead brother. Ben idolized his brother Willy and made most of his fortunes from Willy’s clients. Willy Loman also has an affair with a woman from Boston. The other two women in his life are Litta and Miss Forsyth.

On the other hand, there are several themes in the story that are dramatized through a series of scenes that are brightly lit and are portrayed by the dramatist Willy Loman. However, as the play progresses, Willy Loman ends up committing suicide while in pursuit of the false American dream. This presents a setting in the play that is ideally expressionistic. This explains why the play is suited for dialogue. The dialogue in the play is recognized as colloquial and expressive when written as a lyrical. Moreover, Willy Loman is shown as someone arrogant and egotistic. This sets him on a dangerous path of power and success, thereby leading him to the way of isolation and alienation.

Arthur Miller also uses figurative techniques in the play Death of Salesman. The symbolic methods also entail narrative dialogue, mise-en-scene, as well as a component of satire, which enables him to convey the significant tenets of realism against illusion as stipulated in the play. Furthermore, the playwright provides a chronological account of the tragic life and career lived by Willy Loman. As a result, the audience gets introduced to the significant events happening in Willy’s life.

Meanwhile, drawing back to the first scene, which is the introductory scene, the author reveals to the audience the significant people and events that play a crucial role in Loman’s life. For example, a closer look at the family of Loman, it is quite difficult to distinguish the illusion and reality that exists in the play. From the play, the audience can observe that Willy Loman, the main character in the play, is suffering from a severe ailment. This presents a case of the forces of reality that is created by a society working against him. Nevertheless, despite his predicaments, Willy Loman is still hopeful that eventually, he will be able to achieve his goal of getting his dream job in the city of New York. The role has the prospect of getting a good salary.

Furthermore, there is the use of symbolic techniques in the play. These techniques are extensively used to present the theme of reality versus illusion. This is observed at the start of the scene in which flashbacks are used in the play to display Willy’s memory during the reality. The illusion versus reality theme is, therefore, revealed as one of the most central and significant elements in the play. The illusion here not only suggests the past but also present the lost pastoral life. This is observed in that particular instance where Willy has the dream of starting a personal business of his own. He has been dreaming of success for his whole life and makes up lies about it.

However, the reality fades away as Willy is unable to achieve his dream because the business seems to be slowing down. His indulgence in illusion makes it even more, harder for him to face reality. This further puts him in turmoil as his plans and dreams don’t seem to work out. It is only Biff who realizes that the whole family was living a life of lies and tries to face the truth (Nahvi, n.p).

On the other hand, the audience gets introduced to the public version of the private life of Willy Loman. This is observed from his political and social life. Such attributes are, therefore, revealed in the character’s real qualities. The life he lives initiates a spark of interest and fascination surrounding Willy Loman. Willy Loman, in this case, is portrayed as someone rich, powerful, and famous.

Moreover, the narrator also incorporates mythology in the scene to incorporate a hollow concept of realty. For example, this can be observed in the scene where the main character Willy Loman discovers an ugly truth about his life. This is based on his desire for wealth, success, and power. Despite having that unlimited power, it gives him the happiness and love that he is has always desired. Nonetheless, the play concludes with the suicide and subsequent funeral of Willy Loman. During the requiem, Linda and Happy are shocked by how the funeral is poorly attended. Biff, therefore, states the Will pursued wrong dreams. However, Charley defends Willy as a victim of his profession.

In conclusion, Arthur Miller’s play Death of Salesman explains the issue of identity and the inability of a man to accept the change within himself and society. The play paints Willy Loman as someone who has the powerful enigma oozing over him. In this play, he confronts a montage of memories and dreams, all of which make up the life of Willy Loman in which he lives a life that is quite complicated. It, therefore, leaves the audience in suspension as to mystery surrounding the character’s life. This raises lots of questions about the role of Willy Loman.

Nonetheless, the techniques and the themes of symbolism used in this play leaves the audience quite intrigued. In that regard, one may want to explore further the mysterious character who is held up high as a person high power but has lots of shortcomings. By living a life of deceit, it unmasks the central issue of self- awareness in the play. Therefore by living a life full of fraud, it turns things for the worst, thereby masking his self-awareness, which is something he has devoted his life to the search for success and happiness.

Works cited

Nahvi, Alaeddin. “The Illusion of American Dream in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman.”

Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman: Revised Edition. Penguin, 1996.

Sarkar, Saurav. The American Dream in the Context of Death of A Salesman. Academia.