) Discuss a criticism of society, which Death of a Salesman may make.
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Death of a Salesman is a play filled with many undertones. One undertone is the playwright's views on society. His views are subtly placed in his characters thoughts and actions. There are many examples of this throughout the play. .
One example is Willy's view that education is not as important as being good looking and well liked. He brought this point up while he compared Biff and Charley. During the 1940's and 1950's Willy's view seemed to be the general consensus in society. The emphasis wasn't put on education as much as it is today. The story seems to be an advocate for education. .
Another example is Willy's view that money makes a man. Willy believes that your job makes you who you are. He pointed this out to Biff and Happy when he told them about how much money he was making and how well he was liked. There are some of us that work and work so they get promoted higher up in the company while we neglect our friends and loved ones. Willy believed that his job would make him rich and very popular, but as we saw no one but his family and his neighbor attended his funeral. .
The third view point is that big business doesn't care about the individual just the bottom line. In the play Willy went to try and get a desk job and they ended up firing him because he was not bringing in a profit. Willy became quite irate and made a seen. We see this today with the abundance of cut backs and downsizing. Many workers have lost their jobs and retirement because of corporations not caring of the individual .
Question 6.) Remember how Aristotle defined Greek Tragedy; reflect on how Death of a Salesman is rightfully known as the Classic American Tragedy. .
Aristotle made a formula that a Greek Tragedy must follow.