Many others however, as in the story Death of a Salesman, view it as something that has to be achieved in order to be successful. The play takes issues with those in America who place too much pressure on gaining, rather than more worthy principles/values. The American society is symbolized by Miller’s work and shows us how a dream could turn into a nightmare. Arthur Miller’s, Death of a Salesman, depicts the author’s life and the psychological problems that brings the collapse of
In Death of a Salesman, Willy is an older man in his 60’s and is “an American everyman, in an America where what is produced becomes ever less tangible, ever more removed from reality” (Cardullo 29). His dreams isolate him from reality which results in his struggle to stay in the present; and often times during the play his mind will wander into the past when life was better. He is a struggling salesman barely making enough money to put food on the table and does not like the fact that he cannot provide for his family. Because of his inability to give his family what they need, he fantasizes in order to avoid the realities that he cannot handle (Shockley 7). Throughout the play it is apparent that Willy’s dream is to be rich and well liked, and for his son Biff to live up to his expectations.
We can also find many examples of Hamlet’s despair due to betrayal from his so called friends. (extend with examples) Hamlet also feels intense betrayal from his mother. He trusted her and feels like she has disregarded any love she ever felt towards her former husband. (extend, see below*) All of these factors not only contributed heavily to his depression, but caused his overall demise. *His father's death makes his mood very melancholy.
He lies and lives on the road degrading himself in every way to attain the friendship with the most people. Willy’s severe dementia cements him as unreliable early on in the play, and it also explains some of the resentment his family feels towards him. Willy is so obsessed with succeeding in the business world and being “well liked” (Act 1, Scene 2) he can’t except that his life in general has been a failure. He replays moments in his life when the world brought nothing but promise and his sons were talented young athletes with their whole lives a head of him. Willy drifts fluidly in between reality and fantasy fluidly sometimes having two conversations at once.
DEATH OF A SALESMAN In the play, Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is, at first, set up as the character of the tragic hero. He has had goals and ambitions that he did not fulfill, and that his sons have not fulfilled, despite the pressure that he puts on them to accomplish his opinion of what success should be. However, as the story moves along, we see Willy’s tragic hero status decreasing substantially. As he desperately sifts through his past for some sort of actualization or realization, he only proves himself a to be failure, by the standards that he himself had set. There are a great many comparisons to be drawn from this play, and compared to the novel, The Great Gatsby.
Tension and deceit escalate further with Brick at odds with his brother Gooper over who inherits the estate and fortune of Big Daddy. The biggest deceit of all is the one Brick conceals from himself and his family. Brick is tormented over the death of his best friend Skipper and becomes an alcoholic to avoid confronting the truth. Mendacity, lies and deceit and especially how they shape one’s life and affect one’s relationships with others are central to the theme of this play. Williams masterfully creates a scene that highlights the innate action for humans to twist, destroy or ignore truth and the reality of what lies beneath the veil of denial.
As an old man, Willy is currently having a nervous breakdown that he frequently daydreams the past and often idealizes it. He is at his best condition when he hears Biff is coming home, but he becomes worst when Biff arrives the house. This contradictory shows Willy’s uncertain feeling toward Biff: he is afraid that if Biff hates him. Willy daydreams not just because he wants to escape from the unhappy present, he also regrets about the past; he refuses to knowledge that he had destroyed Biff’s future by letting him failed math in high school so that Biff couldn’t graduate. Willy always loves Biff and wants him to have a better life.
It is through this bit-by- bit setting of the play where emotions, conflict and tension develop. In addition, the mending of the stocking serves as a reminder of the state of poverty that the Loman family is in. This again is ironic that, Willy a salesman; who sells stocking is unable to purchase stockings for his wife. In the same light, the mending of the stockings shows the disparity within the family; Willy and Biff’s constant bickering and argument, the inequality between Linda and Willy and apart from financial problems the social rut that the family is in. Overall the holes in the stockings represent the need for love, support and harmony within the family.
But when does this white lie turn black? When does it become detrimental to one’s self, and ultimately ‘crush’ a person? In Arthur Miller’s ‘Death of a Salesman’, Willy is both literally and figuratively ‘crushed’ as a result of his own self-deception. His steadfast belief in the American Dream ultimately leads him to suicide and physical destruction, as a result of his own mental deterioration. However, as we all know that life is not simply black and white, we are able to see that the lies in the play not only affect Willy, but also the people around him, especially poor Biff.
Unfulfillment in Life in Death of a Salesman Arthur Miller says “ I think it's a mistake to ever look for hope outside one's self.” In the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, both Biff and Happy show that they feel unfulfilled in life due to their father, Willy's, unrealistic expectations of them; his lack of affection and approval towards them as people; and his selfishness by committing suicide. Being mistreated by their father causes Biff and Happy to feel unfulfilled in life. The first way Biff and Happy are mistreated by their father, Willy, is by the amount of pressure/expectation that he puts on the both of them. Biff has the most pressure put on him to have a successful career in business, but that is not what he actually wants. Willy doesn't understand why Biff wants to be a farmer, and thinks: “How can he find himself on a farm?