Death of a Salesman: Flawed Character or a Flawed Society?.
Progressions in science in this century have led to remarkable innovations in business. Advancements in business, however, do not necessarily signify progressions in the ways that people live. Some people can never meet the standards that society sets for them. Most encounter a society with a standard of living that is unparalleled throughout history. The main character in Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman, lives a life of incredible grief and hardship, aggravated by worlds of promise that he cannot ever seem to meet. Willy's tragedy is due more to society's negative influence than to actual faults in his own character.
Willy Loman is host to many flaws and deficiencies ranging from suicidal tendencies to psychotic disorders; however, these faults do not totally account for his tragic death. Society's expectations play a huge part by stripping him of his dignity. Society robs him of his lifestyle and his sons took away his hope for the future. Willy's most important ambition is to take himself and his family from a life of nothing to a life full of material goods and prestige. The lifestyle that he hopes to lead turned out to be impossible. He wants to have wealth and high social status, but it never happened. He had huge hopes for his children, but they too failed at making anything of themselves. His biggest flaw is greed. He is forever trying to get ahead of other people, at any cost and he has little regard for other people's feelings. His only concern is his own personal gain. Society is full of people like this. People become so busy and focused on their careers or other personal goals that little else has much weight on their actions. They are greedy for power and money. This kind of attitude can drive people to great success, but sometimes it can result in their ruin. .
Parallel with this statement is another of society's main flaws, this being lack of compassion.
Discuss a criticism of society, which Death of a Salesman may make. Death of a Salesman is a play filled with many undertones. ... Remember how Aristotle defined Greek Tragedy; reflect on how Death of a Salesman is rightfully known as the Classic American Tragedy. ... Death of a salesman can be considered a modern tragedy. ... Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman was a very eccentric character. ...
Willy Loman, the protagonist of the tragic Arthur Miller play, Death of a Salesman, can be exemplified as a tragic hero in American literature. Arthur Miller describes a tragic hero to be "one who attempts to gain his 'rightful' position in society, and in doing so, struggles for his dignity.... Willy Loman's sequence of life events stems from his fatal character flaws. ... Willy's flaw, however, comes in his inability to separate his "salesman" persona from his actual nature, because as his business as a salesman declines, the audience can see him trying t...
Willy Loman, the protagonist of the tragic Arthur Miller play, Death of a Salesman, can be exemplified as a tragic hero in American literature. Arthur Miller describes a tragic hero to be "one who attempts to gain his 'rightful' position in society, and in doing so, struggles for his dignity.... Willy Loman's sequence of life events stems from his fatal character flaws. ... Willy's flaw, however, comes in his inability to separate his "salesman" persona from his actual nature, because as his business as a salesman declines, the audience can see him trying t...
Death of a Salesman Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman is a tragedy whose theme is the tarnishing of the American Dream. ... Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman breaks the mold of formulaic tragedies of previous eras. ... Death of a Salesman entirely reflects this general opinion of Miller. ... Realism is extremely prevalent in the play Death of a Salesman. ... Family problems were not exempt from the characters in Death of a Salesman. ...
DEATH OF THE AMERICAN DREAM "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller is a tragedy, which comments on American life and values. ... "Death of a Salesman" has earned Miller a number of awards, such as the Pulitzer Prize and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. ... Whether reading or watching "Death of a Salesman", the audience can relate to the tragic hero, Willy Loman. ... While Willy did have his flaws, it was the personal, economic, and social shortcomings of American life that caused him unhappiness and eventually consumed him. (123helpme.com) ...
Willy Lomans tragedy is due equally to his own flawed character and to society"'s flaws. ... For these reasons, his tragedy is due to society flaws. ... The most obvious flaw in society is greed, the desire to get ahead. ... The next largest flaw in society is a lack of compassion. ... It was the direct result of the flaws in society, which led Willy to his death. ...
An outstanding example of this is presented in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, which subtly points out many flaws with the American Dream. ... This misinterpretation of the Dream is represented well in Death of a Salesman, especially by the delusional aging salesman, Willy, who seems hell-bent upon monetary success; in Willy's mind success and money correlate directly to one another and money is the only barometer of success. ... This, however, is just one flawed view of the American Dream. ... The scene where Howard fires Willy is a strong example of how flawed Willy's vi...
Death of a Salesman is widely regarded by many as one of the masterpiece play of 20th century. ... Given the complex and compelling traits of the male characters in Death of a Salesman, it is surprising that Miller chose to give so little attention to the female characters. ... "marginalization of women"(Smith, Susan H.) permeates throughout the Death of a Salesman. ... They appear to have inherited only Willy's flawed teachings of life. ... In many respects, I am torn between compelling and tragic story telling of the play and the neglect of female character development in Miller's...
Willy Loman, the main character in Death of a Salesman is a complex and fascinating tragic character. He is a man struggling to hold onto what dignity he has left in a changing society that no longer values the ideals he grew up to believe in. ... Willy's main flaw is his foolish pride, this it what makes him a tragic hero. ... In 1949, shortly after the play's premiere, Miller wrote a controversial essay about how Death of a Salesman was a true tragedy, only with common people rather than kings. ... His foolish pride, bad judgement and his disloyalty are also at fault for his tra...
