Category: Death Of A Salesman

In “Death of a Salesman,” Arthur Miller presents a wide range of themes throughout its story. Themes such as the “American Dream” are shown in various ways through the lens of the characters such as Willy Loman that reveal the problems of trying too hard to achieve this dream only to be frustrated by failures that come along the way. Family is also a present theme in this story as it is the tragedy of a family that could not accept the changing times. Willy Loman, while trying to materialize his American dream, loses his senses. He knows that he has lost touch with the modern market. Therefore, he depends on his sons to realize his dreams, but both fail as Biff is lost in life with no big aspirations, while Happy does not seem to dream for anything ambitious himself. “Death of a Salesman” shows the reader of the tragedy of living in a fantasy world for too long and figuratively dying in the real world.

To begin, a frequent theme utilized in “Death of a Salesman” is the “American Dream” which was glorified in the 1950s. Willy Loman is a tragic example of failing to live the “American Dream”. Everyone around him in his life succeeded in some shape or form as his older brother Ben became wealthy by finding diamonds in Africa, his hero Dave Singleman became a wealthy salesman that everyone admired after his death, and his boss Howard Wagner inherited his father’s dream which was the business he built on from the ground up. Willy Loman, on the other hand, had failed to become a well-known salesman and even failed to make his sons accomplish his failed dreams. All Willy Loman had in life to talk about was other people’s successes while he had to boast about as he failed to succeed in anything.

Moreover, his failures are caused by his own decisions he had made. Willy Loman is a person that could not wake up from his dreams of being successful as he failed to make his dreams come true in the real world. One reason that Willy could not continue to be an active salesman is not due to weariness, age, or people he once knew retiring or dying, but rather he was unable to remain mentally present in the real world. Throughout the play, he slips from reality and enters his fantasy world, where he is living through a past event of his life while still talking to people in the present moment. A small glimpse of this occurs at the beginning of the story when Willy talks about opening the windshield on his car to his wife Linda. When Linda mentions the windshield, Willy corrects her by saying ‘the windshields don’t open on the new cars’—and realizes that he was ‘thinking of the Chevy’ that he had in 1928. But it is more than thinking of it: ‘I coulda sworn I was driving that Chevy today.’ (19 Miller). It is normal to recollect the past, but Willy uncontrollably relives it. Regardless of whether to consider these occasions fantasies or dreams, they are a critical piece of the play. These dreams always occur when Willy is dealing with a crisis, especially when it is an issue about his older brother Ben and his son Biff. So this shows that not only does his actions affect himself, it affects his family also as shown various times throughout the play.

In addition to the theme of dreams, another recurring theme that plays out is family. Willy’s family is a tragic failure on its right as everyone suffered in different ways. Linda is Willy’s loving wife. She is blindly loyal to her husband which enables him to carry out his fantasies and lies. Linda is never able to see the bigger picture of Willy’s issue and never thought to question him on it. This blind loyalty led her to be oblivious to the fact that Willy was not doing financially well and that he had an affair with a mistress during his business trips. She even believed in the “American Dream” like Willy does as she believed that anyone could be successful and gain happiness from material objects. In contrast to Willy, she acknowledged that their son Biff was failing math class and had a habit of profusely stealing things that are not his. But at the end of “Death of a Salesman”, Linda’s blind fidelity to Willy made it hard for her to understand why he committed suicide and why only his family had shown up to his funeral. Linda had even left an ironic statement at the end by which she says ‘we’re free’ just to remind the reader how oblivious she is (112 Miller). Linda failed to realize how tragic her life was around Willy.

Out of everyone that suffered more than Willy himself, Biff was the worst victim of his actions. Biff Loman in his prime was the hotshot high school football player that was described to be strong, good looking, and in Willy’s words “Well Liked” amongst his peers. Willy. However, like his father, he too was a flawed person in his regard. He had anger issues and lacked putting in hard work academically which led him to fail math as a senior. Of course, this was the result of Willy’s poor parenting skills as he enabled him to get away with any misdemeanors he caused and never motivated him to succeed academically. Due to him not passing math, Biff was unable to graduate and therefore couldn’t do college football. Even though he failed math, he still had a chance to redeem himself through summer school. However, once again Willy’s actions made things even worse as around the same time, Biff caught him cheating on his mom with the mistress and unfortunately took made him lose it. Biff decided to give up on summer school and more importantly his chances of becoming a football player. From that point on, Biff’s life took a major downturn.

Death of a Salesman, written by Arthur Miller in 1949, is a novel that focuses on the family life and how they have been affected by the society as far as destiny of an individual is in this case concerned. On the other hand Great Gatsby is the name of the novel that was authored by Fitzgerald during the year 1925 and it focuses greatly on the western society that was in this case capitalistic and the dominant one concerning the manner in which they changed the lifestyles. However, The Great Gatsby focuses more on the different dominant class groups while focusing on the economic classes as far as the individual control of destiny is in this case put into consideration. Both of the novels are an indication that people will be pushed to certain lengths with the intent of achieving a rich stereotypical life with the intent of being rich and successful which is the definition of the American Dream.

Death of a Salesman is an illustration that people will stop at nothing in order to achieve this thing that they refer to as the American Dream and one that can be in this case referred to as the destiny. However, according to Miller, no one is in control of their own destiny. For instance, one of the characters outlined in the novel ,Willy, has, at times, dreamed of his success his whole life and the ‘American Dream’ and will do nothing rather than achieving it. This is despite the fact that Willy is finally not in a position of achieving his dream goal or rather the destiny that they have been referring to as the American Dream. On the other hand, Gatsby had gotten rich on his own through hard work unlike Daisy and Tom where one must be born into money in order to reap the benefits. Gatsby set out to earn enough money to win Daisy over rather than thinking about achieving the American Dream as Willy does in Death of a Salesman. According to Gatsby, the real American Dream meant that one had to have a Rolls Royce, mansion and extravagant partier in each and every weekend with an infinite number of friends. This seems to be a wrong choice of destiny in regard to what. They have all viewed to be the ‘American Dream’. For example, Willy’s plan tends to backfire in what he thought to be his destiny and leaves hid and his family in a desolate manner for not being in a position to achieve what he really wished for.

Within the Great Gatsby, the civilisation of the jazz was ethically broke as perceived by Fitzgerald and it was morally bankrupt, as a result, it was frequently afflicted by a calamity of personality. And yet Gatsby fights to be a portion of this domain, he remains stubbornly a stranger. His life is an outstanding satire that’s a falsification of the 20’s – style pretension. Nick Caraway, another character in the Great Gatsby novel, reveals that Gatsby’s strength of mind, proud goals and most prominently, the charisma of his ideas set him above his uncouth associates, he was indeed a man that wan not in a position to control his own destiny as he was able to follow Daisy everywhere because of the love for her. By praising the catastrophic diminish of visionaries; Fitzgerald condems the 1920’s in America as an age of thoughtlessness and ravenousness, and age aggressive to work of visualising (Fitzgerald 2995). In the Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald shows the remains of his peer group.

As an alternative, Fitzgerald proposes that the collective vice that. Triumphed in the 20’s was exceptionally hostile to dreamers and that people were wrong about their destinies despite the efforts to shape them (Miller 1996). It was these men who managed the utmost unsuccessful lives of all. The character of Dan Cody from Great Gatsby novel, demonstrates the sufferings encountered by the visionary. Another indication of the deterioration of the American culture is its incapability to satisfy its dreamer’s wishes. At his tender age, Gatsby’s dreams of prosperity and triumph, eager to turn out to be a part of the societal best.

In the Death of a Salesman, Willy’s life appears to be gradually worsening. It is clear that Willy’s dilemma is of his responsibility and that his silly conceit to his ruin in regard to what the society define’s to be one’s destiny. It is clear that Willy’s difficultness is his own doing and that his own silly pride and arrogance led to his own downfall and his failure to efficiently make a living and in so doing, disappointment to attain his goals and visions.

In conclusion, the failure by many characters both in Death of a Salesman and the Great Gatsby, such as Willy Loman, Jay Gatsby and many others are an indication that their perceptions were wrong about their destinies since no one is in control of such and are not aware of it. These characters as portrayed in both of the novels tend to fail terribly in achieving their destines that they thought were the American Dream and source of happiness that each and everyone should be seeking for. For example, both Willy and Jay seem to be perfect tragic characters and this is an implication that one can be led nowhere with what they refer to as the American Dream and the perfect life to live.

Introduction to Masculinity in ‘Death of a Salesman’

The idea of masculinity is an expectation that plays a role in how someone approaches their everyday life. Masculinity is often interpreted as a requirement men must possess to be classified as “masculine” or “a real man.” If this idea of masculinity is taken the wrong way, it can lead to severe limitations on people’s true abilities to reach success. This thematic concept is present in Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman, and it is explored through various characters in the play. It is evident that the Lomans’, primarily the men, are limited in their full potential due to their narrow-minded idea of masculinity, as this mindset about masculinity plays a significant role in how these characters view their priorities in life. Both Biff and Happy fail to find themselves satisfied with their lives, both struggling to find emotional satisfaction and commercial success as a result, Willy’s influence on his beliefs. However, Willy, just like his sons, is also seen struggling with his life due to this idea of masculinity and how they believe that to be successful, you have to assert yourself as a masculine figure. Even though Charley and Bernard are not masculine figures in Willy’s mind, they show more personal success than Willy and his two sons through their own, more realistic perspective on masculinity.

Willy Loman’s Misguided Beliefs on Masculinity and Success

Willy Loman’s strong belief that having a great personality, a charming appearance, and overall being a well-liked person is key to becoming successful in the business world. He prioritized this philosophy, always talked about how being academically smart does not matter, as long as you are a well-liked person. Willy continued to preach this mindset to his two sons, Biff and Happy. Willy, being not only a salesman but also their father, helps him further influence this idea that personality is more important than smarts. Biff is clearly seen to be influenced by this idea when Willy asks if his friend, Bernard, is well-liked at school, “[Bernard’s] liked, but he’s not well-liked” (Miller 33). Biff clearly, “inherits from his father an extremely fragile sense of self-worth dependent on the perceptions of others.” (Ribkoff 122), and as a result convinces Biff that in order to be successful, you have to be a well-liked man, that having a great personality is a more masculine trait than being academically smart.

Willy continues to encourage this false sense of masculinity and success through Biffs’ school life. When a man is described as masculine, it is often interpreted that that man is fearless, physically fit, charming, and although the reality is that that is not always true, there are men who are constantly trying to fit that description of masculinity, often having their judgment clouded by this idea and leading them into a hole of unhappiness and disappointment.

This can be reflected upon Willy and Biff. Willy prioritizes athletics over academics since it is seen as a more masculine trait and believes that since Biff is an outstanding athlete, he will be set on the road of success. He tells his sons, “Bernard can get the best marks in school, y’understand, but when he gets out in the business world, y’understand, you are going to be five times of him… you’re both built like Adonises… Be liked and you will never want.” (Miller 33). Willy carelessly misguides both his sons, telling Biff and Happy that they will always be a bigger success than Bernard because athleticism is a masculine quality, and therefore becomes a key trait to being a successful man. Willy is too focused on being well-liked that it blinds him to see the reality that Biff struggled academically. If Biff had instead focused on academics and studied with Bernard, he would not have failed math and could have continued playing football in university, which is a more successful path than where Willy lead him.

The Impact of Willy’s Ideals on Biff and Happy’s Lives

Biff, like his father, believes that the job of a salesman is a more masculine, well-respected job and that having any other job will prevent him from reaching success. At the beginning of the play, Biff struggled to take hold of his life and achieve emotional and commercial success. This idea of masculinity prevents Biff from pursuing a job where he gets to work with his hands, something that Biff actually finds enjoyment in. When Happy asks Biff if he really enjoys working on the farm and is content with himself, Biff tells Happy, “There’s nothing more inspiring or—beautiful than the sight of a mare and a new colt … What the hell am I doing, playing around with horses, twenty-eight dollars a week!… That’s when I come running home. And now, I get here, and I don’t know what to do with myself” (Miller 22). Biff struggles to find a job where he feels content with himself because he is always pursuing the masculine job of a salesman. Biff neglects all other jobs and continued his search to acquire a job as a salesman, not because he wants to but as a result of his belief that the job of a salesman is a more masculine job and that that is the only job which will lead him to success. This idea of masculinity that is embedded into Biffs’ mind hinders him from finding a job that suits his best interests and provides him enjoyment.

Happy, Willy’s other son, also fails to find emotional success. Although Happy is making money and is relatively successful in comparison to Biff, he still finds himself emotionally unsatisfied. Despite having, “My [his] own apartment, a car, and plenty of women. And still, goddamnit, I’m [he is] lonely.” (Miller 23). Happy thought he had everything he would need in life. He had a job, money, a car, and women, yet his feelings of loneliness overwhelm all feelings of success. This loneliness is derived from the Lomans’ ideology of masculinity. He is unable to find a woman to settle down with and create a proper and meaningful relationship with, instead of having multiple women for a one night stand. He sees women as a cure for his loneliness and as a trophy for success, which in Happy’s mind, translates to being a powerful man. This idea that Happy must obtain numerous amounts of women hinders him from finding a partner to love and leaves him with this feeling of emotional emptiness.

Willy is the main influencer of these ideas on masculinity and how it leads to success. Although Willy wants Biff and Happy to pursue this dream of being a successful man, Willy himself struggles to attain this fantasy as a result of his decisions being limited by his mindset on masculinity. When Willy is offered a job by Charley, he tells him, “[He’s] got a job… [he] don’t want [Charley’s] goddamn job!… When the hell are [Willy] going to grow up?” (Miller 96 – 97).

Willy’s pride is the clear influencer on his choices. Despite the fact that Willy is in extreme financial need, he refuses Charley’s job offer, saying that he has his own job and he does not require Charley’s help. Willy wants to prove himself by being independent and going forth with becoming the perfect salesman, yet his idea on masculinity blinds him to see the reality that he is not going to become successful this way and the salesman’s job is ruining him. Willy’s idea of masculinity limits him to make poor choices which leads him away from reaching commercial success.

The Contrast Between Loman’s Ideals and Charley and Bernard’s Success

In contrast to the Loman’s perspective on masculinity, Charley and Bernard can be shown as an alternative perception of masculinity, both becoming successful and content with where they are. Both Bernard and Charley understood that success does not come from having just a well-liked personality, but understood that success comes from working hard and taking the time to focus on academics. Bernard clearly understands this concept about academics leading to success when he went to the Loman’s household and asks, “Biff, where are you? You’re supposed to study with me today… [Biff’s] gotta study, Uncle Willy. [Biff’s] got Regents next week.” (Miller 32). Bernard understood the importance of academics and portrayed this through his concern for Biffs’ lack of studying. This reflects Bernards’ character, showing that he had a clear idea of what he needed to focus on in order to build his future and showed his concern for other people’s futures. This enabled Bernard to become successful in the future, both emotional and commercial success. When Willy hears about how Bernard is going to argue a case at the Supreme Court, Willy, in shock replies, “No! The Supreme Court!” (Miller 95). Willy is astonished that Bernard has become this successful, completely destroying Willy’s belief that personality outweighed academics. Willy always believed that being a well-liked, powerful man, was the key to unlocking the door of success, yet Bernard contradicts this by finding the personal success that neither Willy or his sons have yet to achieve. Bernards’ success shows an alternate viewpoint on masculinity, showing that someone can not just be well-liked, but instead a proper mix of reputation and academics.

The idea that success does have a direct relation to how masculine someone presents themselves is prevalent through the example of Ben Loman, who discovered a diamond mine at the age of twenty-one and became incredibly rich. Willy idolizes Ben, seeing him as a prime example of “success and manhood for his sons to live up to,” (Ribkoff 122) and that Ben is Willy’s influence for “bringing [Willy’s sons] up… rugged, well-liked, all-around” (Miller 49). Ben is seen as a symbol of success and manhood by Willy, and as a result, leads Willy’s to conclude that being a well-liked man is how someone becomes successful. This conclusion by Willy, however, is very misguided. Willy does not understand that Ben did not mean to end up in Africa, it was by sheer luck that he ended up there instead of Alaska. If Ben had made it to Alaska, it is likely that he would not be the successful man that Willy thinks of him now. This false accusation on how Ben became successful leads, Willy, to create false ideas of masculinity and results in the Loman men being personally unsuccessful.

Conclusion: The Limitations of Narrow-Minded Masculinity

The Loman men are restricted in their true abilities and passions through Willy’s narrow-minded idea of masculinity. Willy taught Biff and Happy false ideas of masculinity, leading both of them struggling to find personal success, never really feeling satisfied with how their lives are going. Willy has also steered himself away from success because of his idea of masculinity, unlike Bernard, who has become a success by the end of the play as a result of his clear mindset on masculinity, which steers him to make wise choices and ends up becoming successful and content with his life. The typical idea of masculinity is that a man must be strong and fearless, however, this idea can drive people down the wrong road. Masculinity is not a concept that people will understand or have an idea about on their own but rather learned or influenced through the words of others.

Works Cited

1. Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Penguin Plays, 2000.
2. Ribkoff, Fred. “Shame, Guilt, and Empathy, and the Search for Identity in Arthur Miller’s Death
3. of a Salesman” Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Updated Edition. Ed. Harold
4. Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 2007. 121-128.
5. Shmoop Editorial Team. “Ben in Death of a Salesman.” Shmoop, Shmoop University, 11 Nov. 2008, https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/death-of-a-salesman/ben.

Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” and David Mamet’s “Glengarry Glen Ross” are two American dramas that have sparked fierce debates among analysts, writers, literary critics, scholars, and even readers when it comes to tragic heroes. The major characters and central focus of the two dramas, are Willy Loman in “Death of a Salesman” and Shelley Levene in “Glengarry Glen Ross.” In watching these characters, one can perceive the disparities between a modernist tragic hero and a postmodernist tragic hero. Willy and Loman were tragic heroes in their individual capacities because they made decisions and erroneous judgements that ultimately led to their own destruction and according to Aristotle, “A tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction.” (1). One can bet that the arguments that ensue among critics regarding this topic in relation to Willy Loman and Shelley Levene, is because the term hero, standing alone is a positive thing. Hence the prefix ‘tragic’ which differentiates tragic heroes from classical heroes as these two characters were anything but positive.

Willy Loman was a 63-year-old fictional character in Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman.” According to Aristotle, “he represents the normal man with whom the audience can identify, as all tragic heroes are expected to be” (1). He was an aging salesman who had worked for the same company for 34 years and had had to endure so many negative turns in events, including but not limited to a pay cut and getting fired. He was undeniably hardworking made but made multiple suicide attempts because he kept losing the battle to stay relevant and whatever foothold he held in the American middle class world. He was an intelligent salesman no doubt, with sound business knowledge but time does affect how much value you can add to an organization, as well as the strength you need to add said value. Loman was in the business of marketing products, a traveling salesman, and the forces he was combating, led him to become delusional and want to end his life as he no longer found the joy of living in such misery. It also did not help that he was surrounded by people who fueled his delusions. Loman’s idealism and his overreliance on the fruition of his American Dream should have been substantially fruitful but it ended up being detrimental to his success, hence this can be referred to as a tragic flaw, making him a tragic hero (Sickels 81). According to Aristotle, the error of judgment is a common trait among tragic heroes, and as we see in the case of Loman, his inability to accept his past failures and move on was the root cause of his ultimate downfall.

Loman was a modernist in the sense that he was anything but realistic in his thoughts and expectations. Loman assumed he was loved by the world, such as when he said to his sons, ‘And they know me boys, they know me up and down New England. The finest people. And when I bring you fellas up, there’ll be open sesame for all of us, ’cause one thing boys: I have friends’ (Death of a Salesman 56:45). He hallucinated a lot and spent more almost half the play living in his hallucinations, had tons of flashbacks, lived and thrived on daydreams, which are elements of modernists characters, whereby they relive past glories and refuse to come to terms with the present and current happenings.

Shelley Levene is a major character in David Mamet’s “Glengarry Glenn Ross.” Like Loman, he is equally an insecure, desperate and struggling salesman, a low down dirty one at that, who would do anything to strike a deal with a client, including barge into a client’s house on a rainy day. In a bid to succeed at work, win a Cadillac, and avoid being fired, he caved into the pressures that welled up around him and opted to play dirty. Levene was in the business of selling real estate and was very dishonest at it and so had become a failure so to speak. Levene was once a powerful and successful salesman but time had caught up with him, hence he was now on a downward spiral plus he had a chronically ill daughter with an unknown medical condition in the hospital. He attempted to charm, coerce, threaten and even bribe the office manager, John Williamson into giving him leads because he was scared to lose his job for lack of sales generation. Levene was a tragic hero because he made several bad decisions that marred his career, such as when he sold the leads, as this cost him his job. His decision to admit to Williamson that he robbed the office and sold some leads illegally, when he said “I sold them to Jerry Graff,” (Glengarry Glen Ross 3:13) was an error of judgement that came back to haunt him later on when Williamson was ready to dish out his revenge. Also in response to Williamson’s killing of Roma’s deal, he welcomed the eye-for-eye concept by incriminating Williamson, revealing that he could not watch as realism reigned (Delaney 2). He shared similar traits with Loman, that exposed his tragic flaw, one of such being his decision to attain success through unorthodox ways.

These major errors, made by the Loman and Levene led to a very significant turn of events and misfortunes, in their respective lives, which according to Aristotle, is another fundamental commonality among tragedies. Loman’s adamancy and inflexibility rendered him poor and unable to sustain his family. He was caught up in his anticipation of the American Dream, to which he refused to put in the work to achieve. Harder work, less talk, and less expectations could have yielded better results but instead he did nothing towards the realization of the goals. He got overly dependent on his obsolete ideology of how things should be done and went on to place more importance on irrelevant things. One of such being his years of loyalty to his company, while also prioritizing his reputation over gaining current knowledge and keeping up with the fast paced world and ever changing ways of doing things. A world where information and technological know-how is increasingly dominating every field, especially business related industries such as the one Loman was in. Knowledge, which Loman seemingly despised, is the backbone of efficiency. Another error of judgement he made was to live in the past and turn himself against the world leading the world to in turn, turn itself against him. He himself acknowledged that there was nothing left for him in the world when he tried to take his life and said, “I am doomed in the modern world” (Death of a Salesman 1:45:34).

Another occurrence in the plays, was what Aristotle referred to as tragic pride or “hubris” and this manifested itself in the two main characters. At different points in time, when the respective characters attained some level of achievement, they became arrogant and forgot their basic moral obligations hence given room for tragic flaws. In the case of Loman, he failed to humble himself to his wife despite the love and care that she showers upon him. He treated her poorly severally, even to the extent of cheating on her with Miss Francis (Death of a Salesman 1:12:36).

In the case of Shelley, we see his pride, when he attained some fraudulent but substantial success in his salesmanship, he was quick to brag about it to Williamson who eventually shut him down by saying “those leads enjoy talking to salesmen” (Glengarry Glenn Ross 2:11). The flaw there being that it was his breaking point and final straw. Just like all other tragic heroes, “their fate will eventually be as a result of their actions” (Aristotle). Both characters are real tragic heroes because they come face to face with several fates that overwhelm and shed even more light on their flaws.

In the end, Loman gets a lot more than he deserves, though true that he failed to make the necessary adjustments to better his situation, under normal circumstances, the eventual fate that befell him may have been reversed or altogether different. He had a chance at a good life, even though part of what pushed him was the jealousy he felt towards his brother Ben, who was doing way better than him in the diamond mines. His son Happy, perhaps not Biff who was estranged, could have come through for him as even Howard asked him to rely on his sons. His final resort to death was unnecessary, unwarranted, and undeserving. Every financial and emotional issues that his family faced were typical to any regular family; thus, committing suicide was not the best option. When it comes to Levene, even though death was not the final straw for him, he lost his job for sure after the stunt he pulled with the leads burglary, hence he is not at all innocent, his fate was not the most befitting, considering his situation and that of his counterparts. Miller explains in his critique of tragedies, that the hero must be a person that does not accept the realities presented by the status quo (Miller 1). As with Loman, he did not accept the realist world but instead relied on an idealist American Dream, like many other Americans in the real life world. Levene, too, was a go-getter who was willing to go extra miles to achieve his dreams.

One of the recurrent themes in both Miller’s Death of a Salesman and Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross is capitalism. It presents itself in several occasions throughout the plays, and the two main characters handle the concept differently, though some convergent positions still exist. The two plays were set in the twentieth century, a time when capitalism was overwhelmingly popular.

Miller’s play is evidently a modernist work which critiques capitalism of the early twentieth century. Particularly through the story of Loman, the influences the capitalist society has on the citizens of America are clearly evident in the plays. The America we perceive in this play is one we can relate to, one where industrialization and globalization are gaining astronomical growth with the wave and era of new information and technology. The world is currently facing several ups and downs as well as imbalances in the economic, social, and political aspects of todays world. The modernist elements were embraced and popularized in this era and according to Sickles these characteristics were very substantial in influencing the kind of fate Loman faced (82). In examining the height of capitalism in America in a more relevant way, Miller couples his criticism with a sense of idealism. His favorite character for this cause being Loman, who is presented with a modern idealism whose perceptions of life are that of optimism but overly founded on profound illusions and imaginations. He draws most of his ideas from past reflections, especially from a capitalist uncle who became rich upon visiting West Africa to undertake the infamous diamond trade, a true reflection of the American Dream coupled with idealistic notions of success.

Focalized through Loman’s consciousness with a fazed perspective, Miller rejects the traditionally accepted norm and expectations of plays in his modernist critique. Particularly on idealism and realism, the play embraces multifaceted premises held by several characters like Happy, Loman, and his wife. Loman was facing psychological and social problems which stemmed from fierce capitalism, as they were prevalent during the era of a growing and thriving society. He became somewhat alienated from the society due to his sense of reasoning being overwhelmed by capitalism and the zeal to live the American Dream.

In Glengarry Glen Ross, Mamet’s superior skills on the postmodernist critique of capitalism became evident. He exudes concepts of private ownership and consumerism are incorporated throughout the play and growing competition as well as jealousy thrives. For example, each of the four salesmen are ready to do anything to ensure that they emerge as victors in the game of salesmanship, including but not limited to committing deplorable crimes. It is only in the postmodernist culture that you find die-hard sellers who would throw their morals under the bus and are even willing to go the extra mile, such as utilize threats, stealing, bribery, and flattery, empathy, among other unethical deeds all in a bid to outwit their competitors and win the favor of the clients and employers.

The play is significantly founded on the concepts of the current capitalism where there is a generalized universal industrialization. It mirrors into our present day world, as it shows rhow real estate firms which have formed sects operate. Levene is a victim of the postmodernist capitalism because all he had wished for was the expansion of his business prospects and profits. He is no different from a present day realtor trying to rope one in to buying a house or leasing. Unfortunately, the ramifications and rewards of his overreliance on advanced capitalism caught up with him and did him in eventually. Mamet’s play coincided with the era of capitalism and served as a mirror into the heart and soul of what really goes on as an effect of postmodernism culture. Mamet’s play shows figuratively, the truth, according to the models and illusions of postmodernism, which projects the inadequacies and downsides of capitalism in our postmodern world. The bottom line and lessons learned from the play, are the weaknesses of capitalism and how it triggers envy, greed, jealousy, nd lethal competition (Delaney 4). Impliedly, it is either you have money, or you are doomed, there is no inbetween. Millions of lives are wasted in the pursuit of happiness and quick money. People like Leven, Roma, Aaronow, and Moss almost lost their souls in this race a race defined mainly by money, then jealousy, deceit, bribery, and vengeance among other wicked vices. Postmodernism becomes evident in the play through the embracement of a forgiving voice by the author. Mamet believes that these salesmen, in spite of their moral inadequacies, are wonderful people at heart and should be treated with pity, empathy, and acceptance. He does not capitalize on their pride, unscrupulousness, and nerviness. It is only postmodernism that understands these as faults of advanced capitalism and forgives the perpetrators.

Overall, capitalism is a theme that helps in the development of the plots of both Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” and Mamet’s “Glengarry Glen Ross.” The stories reflect on the implications and adverse effects of capitalism on the society, as well as on the tragic heroes whose lives have been wasted in the pursuit of material and temporary gains. Modernism and postmodernism have many similarities when it comes to the discussion of capitalism. However, postmodernism seems to have lost the fight against the idealism and realism established by modernism as globalization and consumerism continues to prevail.

Works Cited

1. Aristotle. The Tragic Hero http://www.bisd303.org/cms/lib3/WA01001636/Centricity/Domain/593/10th%20english%20Fall/C%20-%20The%20Tragic%20Play/Antigone.Medea/Definition%20of%20Tragic%20Hero.pdf
2. Delaney, Bill. Critical Evaluation: Glengarry Glen Ross. Masterplots, Fourth Edition; November 2010, p1-3
3. Mamet, David. Glengarry Glen Ross: A Play. Grove Press, 1984.
4. Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman.
5. Miller, Arthur. “Tragedy and the Common Man .” www.nytimes.com/books/00/11/12/specials/miller-common.html
6. Sickels, Amy. ‘Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman: History of Criticism.’ Critical Insights: Death of a Salesman (2010): 76-91.

Introduction

This essay will explain what postmodernism is and how it differs from previous movements, and in what ways this movement had such an impact on theatre and the arts. It will also explore how Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman can be considered an example of postmodern theatre through Miller’s use of techniques, style, and characters.

What is postmodernism?

The postmodernist movement arose in the late 20th century and succeeded the modernist period. The modernist movement was a concept that rejected traditional and classical beliefs regarding the arts, criticism, and architecture; it steered away from lavish lifestyles and showiness, favouring practical architecture and the growth of science and technology. The postmodern period was arguably a developed form of modernism; the two sharing similar qualities yet largely opposing each other. John Storey simply described the shift to postmodernism as ‘modernist culture has become bourgeois culture’ (Storey, 2018, p. 205), as postmodernism followed on to diverge from the modernist self-discipline and instead embraced flamboyance, indulgence and artistic elements from older time periods.

Terry Eagleton confirmed the clear divide between the two movements, by saying that ‘postmodernity means the end of modernity, in the sense of those grand narratives of truth, reason, science, progress and universal emancipation’ (Eagleton, 2008, p. 200). He mentions the decay of beliefs in metanarrative (a theory which legitimises society through a grand idea) that occurred during the postmodern era. Society grew sceptical of these metanarratives and absolute claims to existence, and thus saw the decline of them, as Strinati settled by explaining, ‘postmodernism rejects the claim of any theory to absolute knowledge, or the demand of any social practice to universal validity’ (2004, p. 215). The arts had begun to adopt a shrewder approach to science and religion; completely differing from modernist beliefs.

The blending of styles was also something that defined postmodernism. Thomas Leabhart acknowledged the common use of bricolage within the era, by stating that a significant element of postmodernism was its ‘juxtaposition of disparate elements to form a resonant whole’ (1990, quoted in Carlson, 2017, p. 205). Bricolage was defined by Jean H. Duffy as ‘a process of selecting and combining existing materials into new arrangements’ (1998, p. 144). This was demonstrated in architecture, music, and artwork, for example the 1977 Sex Pistols album cover for God Save the Queen which features a traditional picture of the Queen with cut-outs from modern newspapers. The adoption of historical styles and fashions being moulded and merged with elements of the current time period, resulted in a blurred sense of time period within the postmodern culture.

How did postmodernism impact on theatre?

The postmodern theory had an impact on all art forms, particularly theatre. The modernist era had already begun to discard regular theatre that society was accustomed to, as ‘in literature, finally, there was a rejection of traditional realism (chronological plots, continuous narratives relayed by omniscient narrators, ‘closed endings’, etc)’ (Barry, 2009, p. 68). This continued to develop through to the postmodern times; theatre became less fixed and more random, less absolute and more relative, as plays with disjunct narratives were being written and performed.

Postmodernism also introduced immersive theatre and one-to-one performance, in which the audience were no longer bound behind a fourth wall or obliged to sit conventionally, and were often treated as an equal participant to the performer. Immersive theatre is often described as having the removal of the conventional stage, and one-to-one theatre could take place in the form of performance art, where the traditional large audience is abandoned, and one person is perhaps making direct contact with a performer. This process of blurring the separation of spectator and performer was an outcome of the postmodern obscurity that influenced the arts. ‘These practices share an approach which actively, spatially and scenically integrates audiences as, to varying degrees, co-makers of the performance’ (Allain and Harvie, 2014, p. 192); postmodern beliefs were having a divergent and radical effect on theatre making.

Why might Death of a Salesman be considered postmodern?

Arthur Miller wrote Death of a Salesman in 1949. Despite it being written in a time when the modernist movement had not majorly gone out of fashion, Death of a Salesman undoubtedly harmonizes with postmodern theatre.

Even the title Death of a Salesman demonstrates a common characteristic of postmodernist literature. The characteristic is literary narcissism – ‘where novels focus on and debate their own ends and processes, and thereby ‘de-naturalise’ their content’ (Barry, 2009, p. 74). This applies to Death of a Salesman because, once the audience learn that Willy Loman is a salesman – ‘Willy Loman… enters, carrying two large sample cases’ (Miller, 1961, p. 8), they already know he will die due to the title of the play. Consequently, there is no longer the conventional mystery of closing events in the play, de-naturalising the play from the beginning. Furthermore, Willy has the line ‘these goddam arch supports are killing me’ (Miller, 1961, p. 9) in the first scene of the play, creating dramatic irony for the audience as they know he will later die. This demonstrates literary narcissism as the character comments on his own ending state of the play, as if he is almost self-aware.

Death of a Salesman exists as one of the more recognised pieces of literature to comment on the consumerism and urbanisation in 20th century America. Throughout the play Miller comments on the fact that ‘postmodernism was the cultural “dominant” of late capitalism, [and] commodity-driven’ (Fuchs, 1996, p. 144). Tormented protagonist Willy Loman, much like many of the other characters, is driven by his fantasy of being successful and being able to thrive in an urbanised America. His state of denial – ‘business is bad, it’s murderous. But not for me of course’ (Miller, 1961, p. 40) – and then sense of unfulfillment eventually leads to his death at the end of the play, therefore Miller suggests that the materialistic tendencies of society at the time were detrimental to people’s wellbeing. Miller criticised the capitalist society that was so prevalent in postmodernism, fitting Death of a Salesman comfortably under the postmodern theatre category.

Philip Auslander said that postmodernist acting includes characters that ‘are understood to be made up of fragments: words and actions cannot be expected to add up to a psychologically consistent entity’ (2004, p. 106). Miller’s writing of the psychologically-anguished Willy Loman epitomises this description, through his fragmented thoughts ‘I still feel – kind of temporary about myself’ (Miller, 1961, p. 40) and his confusion of time ‘I coulda sworn I was driving that Chevvy today’ (Miller, 1961, p. 13). Willy is constantly switching between the past and the present, and despite this being subject to his fragile mental state, it still attaches a random and disjunct nature to Willy and the entire play. Death of a Salesman is certainly postmodernist, therefore, as the character of Willy seems to represent a collection of his own memories and past, rather than a whole, constant being.

The style of Death of a Salesman certainly cannot be reduced to a single term, as Miller used various elements from a range of styles. ‘Postmodernism… believes in excess, in gaudiness, and in ‘bad taste’ mixtures of qualities’ (Barry, 200, p. 70), which can be noted in the merging of expressionism and realism within Death of a Salesman. Expressionism in theatre is defined as the writer seeking to express the inner world of emotion rather than external reality. The play jumps between present day and Willy’s memories, due to his pyschomachia (conflict of the soul), which demonstrates the expression of Willy’s mind rather than an exterior truth. Contrastingly, Death of a Salesman also includes elements of realism, which is defined as the quality of representing a thing or person in a way that is true to life. This can be seen through stage directions describing the kitchen as ‘actual enough, for there is a kitchen table with three chairs’ (Miller, 1961, p. 7), which reflects a realistic domestic setting. These two styles are so contrasting, arguably opposite, and therefore exemplify a disorderly blend of qualities that was common to postmodernist theatre.

Despite Death of a Salesman not having an obvious narrator, Willy Loman is the protagonist of the play and the audience are led through the narrative by this character. Due to his unstable mental health and inability to know what’s real and unreal ‘sounds, faces, voices seem to be swarming in upon him and he flicks at them, crying’ (Miller, 1961, p. 108), he could be considered an unreliable narrator, which gives a sense of distortion to much of the play. Mark Fortier said that ‘to live in the postmodern condition, phenomonologically speaking, is to live without a grand and deep sense of abiding truth’ (2016, p. 146). This relates to the character of Willy living in a postmodern world and therefore feeling lost and alienated, because he struggles to find truth in what is present and what is not. The unreliable narration also leaves the audience without a sense of certainty, reflecting the postmodern condition and therefore making the play an example of postmodern theatre.

Conclusion

Overall, Death of a Salesman is undoubtedly a postmodern play. Arthur Miller created a bricolage of styles within the play, producing a story that diverged from the conventional realism in theatre in the mid-20th century. Willy Loman is a disjointed protagonist whose frequent reminiscing and confusion gives the play a sense of disorder, which perfectly resembles the typical sporadic nature of postmodern theatre. Miller’s criticism of consumerism in the play certainly relates to the altitude of capitalism in the postmodern era, making Death of a Salesman an example of postmodernist theatre.

Reference List:

1. Allain, P., Harvie, J. (2014) The Routledge companion to theatre and performance. 2nd edn. Abingdon: Routledge.
2. Auslander, P. (2004) ‘Postmodernism and performance’, in Connor, S. (ed.) The Cambridge companion to postmodernism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 97-115.
3. Barry, P. (2009) Beginning theory: an introduction to literary and cultural theory. 3rd edn. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
4. Carlson, M. (2017) Performance: a critical introduction. 3rd edn. Abingdon: Routledge.
5. Duffy, J. H. (1998) Reading between the lines: Claude Simon and the visual arts. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press.
6. Eagleton, T. (2008) Literary theory: an introduction. Anniversary edn. London: Blackwell.
7. Fortier, M. (2016) Theory/theatre: an introduction. 3rd edn. Abingdon: Routledge.
8. Fuchs, E. (1996) The death of character: perspectives on theatre after modernism. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
9. Miller, A. (1961) Death of a salesman. London: Penguin Books Ltd.
10. Storey, J. (2018) Cultural theory and popular culture: an introduction. 8th edn. Abingdon: Routledge.
11. Strinati, D. (2004) An introduction to theories of popular culture. 2nd edn. London: Routledge.

There are few dramas that continue to resonate across the ages as ‘Death of a Salesman’. So multifaceted and subtle are the elements of the story as it unfolds, the best advice is to read the play at your leisure prior to attending a stage production. This will ensure a more comprehensive appreciation of the tale. While there are any number of subjects that would be good fodder for an essay, in this composition we will examine the multiple examples of the illusion of the American dream and its folly as they appear throughout the drama. Let us begin with a brief summation of this classic account of an ordinary American man’s life in the late 1940’s.

Willy Loman, his name indicative of something less than a member of the winning inner circle, was naught more than a traveling salesman. One would have to lived during this era to understand the near contempt such an employment position instigated from others. Before venturing further into this review, it bears noting that the term ‘traveling’ has a double connotation – first as it indicates Loman’s job but, as well, regarding Loman’s endless search for happiness and success throughout the course of his life. One can feel the urgency and despair wafting from Loman from the opening lines. I daresay that it is human nature to want to distance yourself from an individual who so obviously falls within the ‘loser category’ – even today and despite psychology that claims we should be understanding of others and offer a helping hand. No, like a drowning man it is as much an inclination to avoid him lest you, too, be pulled under. That stench of failure and death emanates from Loman in each exchange and makes it difficult to continue to read the script. For myself, I was in search of the ‘proverbial’ exit with the exhalation of each line.

A pall of depression hangs over this dramatic narration from opening to close. In Act 1 we learn that Loman has poured the realization of all his hopes and dreams into his sons, whose future and success will validate Loman’s own life. Mind you, this is not untypical of most parents, but was likely becoming more pronounced at the time of Miller’s play because the country was on the cusp of prosperity that would allow for this indulgence. In other words, it was indicative of the ‘American dream’ as it was growing and taking shape during this decade. Biff and Happy, Loman’s prodigies, would fall short of his expectations and not only because of their own shortcomings. A life-changing event occurred when Biff found his father with another woman, and this caused a profound change in their relationship – never really to be repaired. We learn that Willy has aged and become less suited to a life on the road. At his wife’s behest he asks his boss for a local ‘gig’ and finds himself unemployed. The story continues down this spiral of depression in relentless fashion drawing the reader or play-goer to experience not only the same despair as Willy, but the poignant pain of each of the other characters, too. In order to pacify their increasingly erratic father and his complaints of their lack of success, the boys console him with tales that are exaggerations of future career possibilities.

Biff, certainly the one whom Loman had pinned his hopes and dreams on, attempts to engage a former boss in a business proposition only to be turned down. His brother, Happy (such a starkly out-of-place name in this dramatic presentation) warns him to shield his father from the truth. Raw emotions complete with flashbacks nearly drown the cast and audience in despondency as the truth is revealed during a restaurant sit-down. We are reminded that Loman had spoken earlier to a neighbor and delivered what was an obvious omen – ‘the writing is on the wall’, claiming he was worth more dead than alive. That is his ultimate fate – as neither he nor the play could be saved from any other outcome. It is the proposition of this writer that the illusion of the American dream drove the events of this story – from Loman’s obvious desire to provide material comforts to his family – all while offering no sense of emotional reliance (a wife who has been cheated on and treated as a non-entity, a son who finds his father with another woman) – never realizing that is the origin of true success, to the references to the trappings of what even then were considered to be evidence of having reached the ‘American dream’ – i.e., Charley’s son a successful lawyer.

Time and again, we hear Loman complain he does not have the money to keep his family in the same lap of luxury of possessions as the people around him. He complains of running short of money, and his life’s regret of not joining his brother, Ben, who ventured to Africa in search of a diamond fortune. All of this yearning for material goods has done nothing but bring about an unhappy mental state and an inability to appreciate the true wealth in life. Let us consider at greater length the origin of the ‘American dream’ or its conceptualization as authentic.

According to one source the American dream is ‘the ideal by which equality of opportunity is available to any American, allowing the highest aspirations and goals to be achieved’ ( ). The concept can be traced to an author named James Truslow Adams who popularized the phrase in a 1931 text titled “Epic of America”. It only iterated the belief held in many corners of the globe that the United States is a land of hope and promise. But, originally, it was the goal of those who were willing to work hard for it, and it did not come as a guarantee along with citizenship. It did not take long for the idea to be reshaped and embraced as a covenant that many believed was prerequisite to adulthood and citizenship. If this were true in the 1940’s at the time of Miller’s premiere, it is only a thousand percent more so today.

The concept lives on in American life today, but a review of the country’s history might confirm the idea is cemented in this era as Loman (and his fellow Americans and family). Perhaps it has been fueled by technological innovations that set into motion the ceaseless quest for material goods that oftentimes cannot be quenched – a phenomenon that has continued to the present day. Or maybe it was Madison Avenue that created this bill of goods and sold it to everyone willing to pay a buck for a glossy magazine that shouted ‘this should be you’ from every page. For the reader or play-attendee, this quest for material goods obviously does not equate to a rich and fulfilling life. We can see it and want to shake Willy Loman into the same realization.

To introduce all the elements, it is important to understand the hamartia of the main character. According to Aristotle, hamartia falls under three categories; to make a mistake, to offend morally, and error of judgment resulting from ignorance or arrogance. In King Lear, Shakespeare portrays a king, whose supreme arrogance, superiority, and great animosity bring King Lear’s tragic downfall. King Lear’s suffering and calamity cause chaos in Lear’s life, eventually leading to his demise which achieves catharsis in the literary work. From the first moment, Shakespeare introduces King Lear as an insecure individual who runs the entirety of his kingdom and reduces him to abject misery. King Lear distributes his kingdom based on his daughter’s flattery and he divides his kingdom between Goneril and Regan who say they love him the most. Unlike Cordelia, who expresses her genuine love for her father “Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave My heart into my mouth: I love your majesty, according to my bond; no more nor less” (1.1.4) Cordelia’s integrity prevents her from making false declarations to gain wealth. However, King Lear is not satisfied with Cordelia’s words, he banishes Cordelia. Thus, proving King Lear’s hamartia, and error of judgment due to ignorance. King Lear’s sense of superiority is his greatest hamartia which acts as the main internal force pushing him towards his inaccurate judgment, his rash decisions, and ultimate destruction lead King Lear to his tragic end. After King Lear is stripped of his possessions and identity, he unconsciously goes mad to salvage his pride, unable to recognize his stripped self. “Does any here know me? Why this is not Lear. Doth Lear walk thus? Speak thus? Where are his eyes? Either his notion weakens, or his discerning’s are lethargied. Ha, sleeping or waking? Sure, ‘tis not so. Who it is that can tell me who I am?” (1.4.10) After King Lear is treated unfairly by his daughter, Lear does not quite know how to define himself due to his loss of power and respect. Lear has turned insane as he lives under the illusion of the king. King Lear believes that madness is a desirable option rather than accepting defeat and suffering the loss of his kingdom, along with his arrogance shattering. Lear’s hamartia arises from his inability to strike a balance between his temperament and arrogant manner. As Aristotle explains, the audience is filled with oleos, as uncontrollably everything in King Lear’s life is taken away. A tragic hero is an ordinary person whose downfall is not deserved and someone whose decisions impact a nation. Just as King Lear’s destiny was altered from a wealthy and powerful king to an ordinary man.

To compare, Arthur Miller uses Willy Loman, a common man to portray the tragic hero. Comparable to King Lear, In Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is full of pride and excessive arrogance as he continues to live his life as an unsuccessful salesman. Willy Loman’s tragic flaw is his belief in the American dream. Constantly underwhelmed and unsatisfied by the reality of his life as he chooses to follow his path of fantasy ideals. Willy Loman’s pride restrains him from seeing the true cause of his unsuccessful lifestyle, instead, Willy Loman conveys the blame somewhere else. “There’s more people! That’s what’s ruining this country! The competition is maddening! Smell the stink from that apartment house! And the one on the other side…How can they whip cheese?” (1.1.12) This quote captures Willy’s fantasy ideals. Willy Loman believes the reason for his unsuccessful business is because of a corrupt country and America’s growing population which is decreasing his clientele. Willy also holds a strong belief in the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interests, is a man who gets ahead and becomes successful. This impels Willy Loman to become eager about his appearance at the expense of doing what is right to change his financial issues. “Be liked and you will never want. You take me, for instance. I never have to wait in line to see a buyer. “Willy Loman is here!” That’s all they must know, and I go right through” (1.1.13) Willy continues to base his success on the likeness and opinions of others. Willy’s self-sense of pride is so strong that he believes he is destined for success, regardless of what he accomplishes or does not accomplish. As Willy Loman lives in his fantasy world, his excessive pride and lack of understanding of his financial situation drive to his downfall. Willy Loman commits suicide so that his family can receive the insurance money. This brings catharsis, Willy Loman did not deserve such an ending because overall, he was just an average man who was trying to become successful in such a large business world.

Anagnorisis is one of the most important elements of the tragic hero, according to Aristotle. It is when the character realizes his flaws and admits he was wrong. In King Lear, this critical discovery by a tragic hero is made by King Lear as previously mentioned, he divides his kingdom. When giving his Kingdom to his daughters King Lear has not realized that he was surrendering the authority he previously possessed as King. Shakespeare uses this confusion to subsequently produce an instant of clarity for Lear after becoming banished from his kingdom with solely his fool by his side. As King Lear realizes that his downfall from the kingdom is due to his arrogance. Lear quotes “Pray, do not mock me: I am a very foolish fond old man” (4.7. 190) Shakespeare displays Lear’s realization that he was foolish to entrust his kingdom based on love, between his daughters. This moment is critical for Lear and for the catharsis, which is slowly being developed, the audience feels empathy for Lear as he is now left with nothing, due to putting trust in his daughters. “Is it not as this mouth should tear his hand for lifting goof to’t? but I will punish home. No, I will weep no more. In such a night To shut me out! Pour on, I will endure.” (3.4.102) This reinforces the defeat King Lear has. Despite his insanity, Lear shows a sign of reason in his madness by becoming aware of his mistake. Like anagnorisis, peripeteia is also a reversal of the situation, however, it is a change of fortune for the tragic hero in the plot. King Lear’s banishment forms the very kingdom he previously gifted to his two daughters acts as a turning purpose within the play. Lear’s actions showed how greedy Lear was with his daughter’s love, an element of tragedy that appears I lay as peripeteia. King Lear goes from a powerful king to not being wanted by any of his daughter’s. King Lear’s great plan, unfortunately, fails as both Goneril and Regan begin to lot against Lear. “Then we must look to receive from his age, not alone the imperfection of long engrafted condition, but therewithal the unruly waywardness that infirm and choleric years bring with them.” (1.1.20) Goneril and Regan plot to gain power from the kingdom after Cordelia’s banishment. The daughter’s betrayal of their prideful father ultimately leads Lear to have less power than his daughters. This achieves catharsis, as the anagnorisis and peripeteia bring the character to their catastrophic downfall, the audience feels oleos.

Anagnorisis is also prevalent in Death of a Salesman, as Willy Loman realizes the mistakes he has made and how they have impacted his financial instability. Anagnorisis for Willy occurs towards the end of the plot, Willy never says his mistakes, however, Willy realizes he will never succeed in the business world as Willy kills himself, to allow Biff to collect the life insurance money. To compare to King Lear, Willy does not achieve the self-realization typical of the tragic hero. His suicide represents his discovery of truth. As Willy does understand that he cannot achieve much in the fundamental nature of his profession, he does not realize his failure and the betrayal of self. “He had the wrong dreams. All, all, wrong.” (2.14.111) After Willy’s death, Biff depicts that Willy’s mind was never in the correct place. “A change from ignorance to knowledge.” (Aristotle) His prideful and ignorant conscience stopped him from being able to provide for his family. As oleos develop, Willy Loman has died for his actions, he realizes that the only product that he has sold, is himself. The implication of Anagnorisis develops the plot of the tragic hero in this play, a realization of weakness. Willy’s poor job performance, a drastic reduction in sales and his outburst in his office was to get him fired. Peripeteia is exhibited as Willy’s neighbor Charley is concerned for his well being and financial situation. Through empathy, Charley offers Willy a position at his workplace to work for him. “I offered you a job. You can make fifty dollars a week. And I won’t send you on the road” (2.3.74) Willy constantly goes to Charley to ask for money but working for Charley cannot happen for Willy because of his hubris. Willy Loman’s existence represents a reversal of fortune, because of his tragic flaw. Willy Loman’s life goal was to become a successful businessman like Biff, however, his quest to achieve the American dream ended in a catastrophic failure. Willy’s family is now in debt and he is not noticed by his peers. The pitiful salesman suicides believing that he can bring a little good to the great harm he has done. A common man who has died for the American dream, a Phobos most people have. Hamartia and hubris bring Willy Loman down achieve a cathartic response in the audience.

The end to a traditional Aristotelean tragedy is formed from hamartia and hubris which brings catastrophic consequences towards the tragic hero. Thus, presenting a cathartic response from the audience. Hubris is when the hero displays immense pride in themselves. Shakespeare intentionally uses King Lear’s anger towards Kent, King Lear’s servant, to express his hubris. “Do kill thy physician, and the fee bestow Upon thy foul disease. Revoke thy gift, or whilst I can vent clamor from my throat, I’ll tell thy dost evil” (1.1.25) Kent warns Lear not to banish Cordelia, believing it will be the demise of the kingdom. Lear refuses his idea and chooses to banish Kent along with Cordelia. Shakespeare shows that King Lear’s hubris is so strong that he is unable to admit his wrongdoings, even if it is for the good of the kingdom. King Lear’s arrogance results in the destruction of both his family, kingdom and himself. King Lear’s catastrophic, impulsive actions lead to the death of his daughter Cordelia. King Lear’s inevitable death is the last characteristic of a tragic hero. As Lear reflects on his poor judgment, Lear and Cordelia are imprisoned by Edmund. Edmund calls for the execution of Cordelia. As Lear watches the death of his daughter, he is not able to cope with the overwhelming feeling of guilt and devastation. “And my poor fool is hanged. No, no, no life? Why should a dog, a horse, a rat, have life, And thou no breath at all? Thou ‘It comes no more, Never, never, never, never, never.” (5.3.369) Shakespeare refuses to console us as to why Cordelia has died. It is difficult not to oleos Lear due to the extremity of his punishments in the play. He is banished from the kingdom he chose to gift his daughters; he banished the only daughter who truly loved him, and he suffered as Cordelia died in his arms. King Lear as a tragic hero shows insight into Shakespeare’s intentions to reach the goal of catharsis.

To emulate the hamartia and hubris in Death of a Salesman, in comparison to the Aristotelean tragic hero. In Death of a Salesman, the cathartic moment in the story is when Willy Loman realizes that he is a failure. It is Willy’s arrogance that leads him to believe he is an eminent businessman and father; however, his prideful self is the exact hamartia which leads to his downfall. “Yeah, heh? When this game is over, Charley, you’ll be laughing out of the other side of your face. They’ll be calling him another Reg Grange. Twenty-five thousand a year.” (2.4.70) Willy’s insecurities are shown as he speaks about what his son Biff will accomplish in life. Willy’s also believes that Charley offering a job to him is insulting, his pride does not let Willy see how generous Charley is. To develop a cathartic response, as the play had developed as mentioned, Willy has a moment of discovery. Willy realizes that he can not amount to much in life, and he will never be remembered as he thought he would have. However, at the end of the play, when he believes that Biff loves him is when Willy chooses to end his life. His entire life Willy was never the best father figure yet, he always wanted the best for his sons, especially Biff with his potential. “Can you imagine that magnificence with twenty thousand dollars in his pocket?” (2.19.108) Willy recognizes what he must do for his family. Willy runs into oncoming traffic, which kills him, so Biff can receive twenty thousand dollars to fulfill his life as Willy never did. “I can’t understand it. At this time especially. First time in thirty-five years we were just about free and clear. He only needed a little salary. He was even finished with the dentist.” (2.110) Oleos is felt as Linda weeps to find the reason behind her husband’s suicide.

Robert Stam, in his essay “Beyond Fidelity: The Dialogics of Adaptation” has explained the concept of converting a single track medium (book) into a multitrack medium ( movie) and how now must take into consideration the various facts which revolve around such a task. A written work consists of a single material expression, the writer’s contemplations and is able to create depth in the mind of the readers, where every individual is able to create his or her perspective on the work. Whereas film adaptions inhibit moving photographs, sound, music and the written materials of the text which act as the director’s resources for expression. In a film, the audiences witness the happenings through the perspective of the director. The main argument which Stam makes is that while watching film adaptations of literary works, one must not compare his or her personal reading of the work or how much in tone is the film to the novel with the director’s because films exhibit a certain economic value which is determined by the audience and the director’s innovation. A director works on condensing the film to a certain time frame in order to attract the attention of the audience because a majority of people are accustomed to a certain time frame and moreover nobody wants to watch a film which is too lengthy.

Arthur Miller wrote “Death of a Salesman, in the years following the Second World War. The play has been viewed generally as one of America’s most acclaimed dramatic works. Willy Loman, the play’s hero, is a salesman whose living off commission and is struggling to keep up with his family’s standard of living. As the plot unwinds, what is uncovered is Willy’s false notion of the ‘American Dream”, that by being well liked an individual can attain riches, material success and satisfaction. Willy completely ignores the importance of diligence and handwork which are the real stepping stones to achieving success or “The American Dream”. This work was well known on the grounds that it shed light on what numerous Americans felt about the unreasonable weight they had on their shoulders of achieving success. Instead of working to be successful in all spheres of life, the Americans were attempting to be wealthy. The discontent of Willy and his fall into uncertainty, both physical and mental, cover the truth of the American white collar class. Life in American popular culture was sweet to look at but the matter of fact remained that only a few could live up to its expectations.

The Second film adaptation of Miller’s Death Of A Salesman premiered on 16th August,1985. The first version (black and white) of the film was released in 1951. Directed by Volker Schlondorff , the 1985 version of the film follows the play almost word by word following a runtime of 130 minutes .Its cast comprises of Dustin Hoffman (Willy), John Malkovich (Biff), Stephen Lang (Happy) and Kate Reid (Linda). Schlondorff’s main goal for releasing the film was to highlight the underdeveloped idea of The American Dream by representing the existential crisis of Willy

Loman at face value. By associating the life of Willy Loman with abandonment, idealised notions of the past and family crisis, he offers a chance to the audience to take entry into the mindset of the Protagonist through the screenplay of the film. Reading Miller’s text does not allow the readers to have a deeper insight into the play because there are many occasions in the play where two time frames function simultaneously and there is no specific mention of it in the stage directions . The readers are expected to understand numerous instances on their own by drawing a line between the past and the present. The adapted version, film on the other hand offers a clearer picture to the audiences by focussing on simple editing and sound design.

Quoting the stage direction provided in the play “A melody is heard, played upon a flute”, the following instruction is executed in the film with a melancholy tone and after listening to it the viewers are certain about the sounds being produced by a flute. While reading the play, we as readers know of this sound, but we do not really sense it. Sound cannot function through writings. It requires a medium and a listener. The sound of the flute in the film is representative of the nostalgia and it symbolises Willy’s past memories with his father who was a flute maker. This representation cannot be comprehended completely by the readers while reading the text. It is only through the medium of the film that we are able to fathom the occurrences and importance of the flute’s sound by taking into account the action of the movie related to Willy’s past reminisces and present crisis . Another feature which strikes the viewers of the film is that the beginning and the climax of the movie are precisely similar with their relation to the sound. The sound played during the opening represents old age and existential crisis in Willy’s life whereas the other is representative of his death.

“Fences” is American playwright August Wilson wrote in 1985, in Wilson’s ten-part “Pittsburgh Cycle” it was the sixth-part. Like all August Wilson’s play about Pittsburgh, Fences explores the growing experience of African Americans and explores race relations and dysfunctional family.

In “Fence”, August Wilson was focus attention in Troy, a fifty-three years old household. Troy used to be a baseball star, but he was imprisoned for an accidental robbery and murder. At that time, the American Major League Baseball apartheid policy was not completely abolished, blacks had few chances to appear, and Troy was old after he was released from prison. So, his baseball life ended, and he became a sanitation worker in Pittsburgh. His family life is not very smooth, he lives with his wife Rose, his son Cory, and his younger brother Gabriel. Cory tells Troy and Ross about the opportunity to get a college football scholarship. Troy told Cory that he would not let afraid of racial discrimination stop his son play football, as Troy thought he had experienced in his career in the national league. However, Troy told Cory’s coach that his son is no longer playing football. When Corey discovered this, he and Troy fell into a battle, causing Troy to kick Cory out of his home. Later it is revealed that Cory enlisted in the military after this event. Seven years later, Troy has pathed away, Cory comes home for a visit from the military, Due to long-term resentment, he initially refused to attend his father’s funeral, but his mother was convinced that he would pay his respects to his father. The man, though indifferent, often performed poorly, but loved his son.

August Wilson was one of the most powerful African American voices in the 1980s and 1990s. As a playwright, Wilson tells interesting and enduring stories. His “Pittsburgh Cycle” collection ten plays addressing aspect of African American life. This is a reason makes him undoubtedly the most ambitious and respected black dramatist of twentieth century. Wilson’s drama won several New York Drama Critic Award for Best Plays, and two Pulitzer Prize for Drama, one for “The Piano Lesson” and another for “Fences”.

Reading Fences, one can see the resemblance to another classic twentieth century American drama “Death of a Salesman” by Arthur Miller in exploration of domestic dynamics.

Arthur Miller is considered to be one of the three pillars of American drama. “Death of a Salesman” described a salesman William ‘Willy’ Loman has more than thirty years of sales experience, he believes in the fake business culture of the United States, blindly estimate his abilities, fantasizes about has gained fame and unrealistic prospects through merchandising, he is often in a state of bragging, boasting, and lie, until he is dying to think that he will be able to achieve fame, but he is ignorant of the cause of his own destruction.

Like Ladrica Menson-Furr said in “August Wilson’s Fences (2008)”, “Fences could be staged alongside its twin, Death of a Salesman.” (August Wilson’s Fences (2008) Ladrica Menson-Furr ,87). Many of the constructs in the article are very similar, such as: the similarity between father and son conflict, the reconciled death ending, and described the dysfunctional family.

Both “Fences” and “Death of a salesman” shows the conflict between father a son. In salesman, Willy’s anguish mainly comes from the universal sorrow of his father’s failure. While the father-son tension between Willy and his older son Biff is the most distinct conflicting force throughout the play, their involvement into the father-son dilemma could trace back to that between Willy and his own absent and thus not well-delineated father, “All I remember is a man with a big beard, and I was in Mamma’s lap, sitting around a fire, and some kind of high music.”( Death of a salesman” Miller, 34). The entanglement between Wily and his son Biff is connected with Willy’s “dream”. As Linda, the wife and mother, explains that “it’s when (Biff) come home (Willy)’s always the worst” (Salesman 54), Willy’s vision in this period is more like a nostalgic retrospect, recalling the euphoric time with the former athletic young Biff and his own promising salesman career. Biff’s customary theft which leads to the turning point of Willy’s reverie as well as the “revealing moment” of the play—years ago he was caught by Biff for a one-night-stand with his customer at a motel on a business trip. It belittles Willy’s dignity as a competent son and responsible father. He fails either to realize or to rewrite his father’s legacy as a salesman, whereas his reckless venturing spirit evokes Biff’s constant challenge and eventually “overthrown”, Willy commits suicide to amend his love for Biff. Similar as “Fences”, Troy and his younger son Cory conflict deteriorates in three steps which again in Troy’s story is built into the form of the three disputes in baseball competition. Grudging over his own frustrated baseball life, Troy provokes Cory to take the first dispute when Troy dictatorially declines the football recruiter’s offer to grant Cory’s football pursuit which is hoped to gain him scholarship for college admission. Then Cory dispute the second time as Troy becomes physically fierce trying to explain himself to Rose about his extramarital affair. Till then Troy’s paternal authority is already on the verge of collapse after twice dispute. And lastly, Cory directly articulates his challenge against Troy, saying that “you don’t count around here no more” (Fences, 85) which lead to their last violent dispute with Cory ending up leaving the house just like the way Tory left his father.

“Fences” and “Death of a Salesman” both have the reconciled death ending. For the salesman and Fences, the protagonist’s death outcome can be considered a concept that embraces the dramatic whole. Specifically, the title of the death of the salesman has pointed to the narrative direction of the show. Due to the tension between the father and the son, the dramatic conflict of the salesman reached a solution, and Willie committed suicide in the realization of Biff’s love. The crisis between father and son in Fences has always depended on the life of Troy. In Salesman, this is further indicated in its subtitle: “Certain Private Conversations in Two Acts and a Requiem”, According “Arthur Miller: A Critical Study” by Christopher Bigsby “it is crucial as a moment when the contradictions are stilled, the false hopes laid aside, and we no longer see the world through the eyes of a man who never knew who he was, or what he might be, apart from the flickering images projected by a society at risk of subsuming the spiritual in the material.”(121). As for Fences, the preface poem by Wilson also suggests, the “sins” of Troy is banished with forgiveness at his death. Its final scene erases Troy’s dominant personal voice to show an extended and reunited family at Troy’s funeral which helps to open the “gates of Heaven” for Troy in return (Fences 101).

The representation of dysfunctional family, as illustrated in both Miller’s Salesman and Wilson’s Fences, has been a constant theme in the American modern theatre. In “The Death of a Salesman”, Willy Loman as the title hero is a low-man as what his name implies. Willy is universally real and fully human which also makes him vulnerable. Concerning this, his nearly crazy intention to pursue his displaced dream of becoming a “well-liked” salesman and a loving father makes him a hero. In his sixties, Willy still runs the basic errands as a salesman. Shuttling between New York and Boston every week, Willy struggles for money barely enough to support the whole family and to pay off the loan for their house after his life-long work. To put an end to his thirty-six-year’s work, the company for which Willy “opens up un-heard-of territories to their trademark” takes away his salary (Salesman 56). Being a salesman that feeds on “a smile and a Shoeshine”, old Willy is marginalized in the commercial world in America just like their “small, fragile-seeming home” which is squeezed in by “a solid vault of apartment houses” (Salesman. 11). And the frustration in his salesman career ferments the familial conflicts which drives him to death. However, exhausted and defeated as Willy is, his heroism exactly consists in his tragic yet necessary struggle. On the one hand, Willie embodies the individual’s doubts about the society’s sluggishness. On the other hand, although Willie is to some extent a victim of his own wishes and accompanying behavior, his desires and guilt are inseparable. Tory Maxson, a garbage man in Fences represents the inferior. His African American identity has put him in constant displacement: Tory left home at fourteen only to find no place to live and no way to make a living but to steal and then rob himself into The prison. After fifteen years of imprisonment, Troy lost his wife and the chance to father his first child Lyons; while in prison he developed an exquisite craftsmanship on baseball, which still turned out to be no help to improve his marginalized situation, and finally To play the bread-winner who supports a whole family with his weekly seventy-six dollars and forty-two cents, Troy has to resort to the compensation money for his younger brother Gabriel, who became mentally retarded from And his personal displacement, to a great extent, induces his shattered familial relationship: due to his illegitimate daughter, he is estranged from his wife and becomes a ‘womanless husband’, while his son Cory is also driven away by his domestic coercion which makes him a bereft father at the same time.

Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” and August Wilson’s “Fences”, both of which, though composed out of different temporal condition by separate writer, exhibit crucial similarities in their dramatic tone and structure evolving around dysfunctional families.

The two plays, Death of A Salesman by Arthur Miller and Fences by August Wilson, are both impactful in the sense that they explore the idea of how underprivileged classes pursue success in spite of The American Dream leaving them behind. Willy Loman is a businessman, one who is ironically left behind by the ever-changing world of business. In spite of being past his prime and suffering from a splintered family, his idealism shines through in almost all of his work, to the point of idyllic delusion. He is contrasted by Troy Maxson, a black garbageman, disenfranchised by the white man and denied the American promise; success for hard work. Both of these men properly convey the American archetype of one who does all that is advertised as necessary to succeed in their work and life, but ultimately was left in a non-advantageous, unrewarding position. Both of these literary works assert throughout their texts that the root cause of both the protagonists unfulfillment is not just an unwillingness to conform to the progressing world, but also, a misplaced trust in the American way of life.

Death of A Salesman is upfront with the ‘rags to riches’ story narrative; a narrative promoting hard work and perseverance, in conjunction with the high hopes and struggles that often accompany it, and that with these aforementioned actions fulfilled, success should eventually follow. Willy Loman takes this idea to heart, feeding himself this idea of a successful salesman, and doing whatever he can to conform to it. To him this means pursuits to develop his charisma, popularity, and likeability, with his rationale that as a result, success in sales should follow. This can be exemplified in that when Biff was a high-schooler he told his dad, Willy, about his offensive mocking of his math teacher’s “lithp”(Miller, 93). Willy questions Biff in response to his reprehensible behavior saying, ‘You did? Did the kids laugh?'(Miller, 93). This perfectly encapsulates Willy’s methodology, one in which he teaches his children to meet the archetype of his aforementioned ideal salesman and ignore the moral foundation that being charismatic necessitates. Perhaps one of the most prevalent influences in how the American Dream manifests in Willy is probably his brother Ben. Ben possesses no family, and no known interpersonal fulfillment. He is idolized by Willy for his seizing money in Alaska. It is in this regard that Willy struggles to balance success with family, and although he seems to know his sons and wife love and idolize him, he instead chooses ‘the death of a salesman,’ cementing his commitment to his craft by killing himself. Willy quite literally gave his life to his work, and the result was not the funeral observed by thousands he’d hoped for, but instead, a grief-stricken family, incredibly distraught and slightly bitter. This is The American Dream in inaction, Willy’s hard work and idealism ultimately resulted in his demise, and the disintegration of his family.

Troy Maxson juxtaposes Willy in a few interesting ways, notably in that his unsuccessful career is arguably not his fault. His baseball career’s failing was not a result of his own moral turpitude failing, but instead in the failing of the American dream to integrate blacks, forcing Troy and others into jobs both unrewarding and unprosperous. This in many ways defies the very nature of baseball itself, a sport in which all those who step up to the plate has a chance to succeed, to see their skills beget rewards, in essence, to shape their destiny. This idea is accentuated by Bono’s remarks in the beginning of the book, in which he reminds Troy that Babe Ruth and. Josh Gibson were the only players to hit more home runs than him, Troy responds coldly, ‘What it ever get me? Take that fellow playing right field for the Yankees back then Selkirk.” (Wilson, 19). The sad truth however, is that Troy is justifiably bitter, he could have been the admiration of the world, but instead, his hard work was rewarded was a minimum wage garbage-cleaning job, in which the only joy Troy can find in life is through philandering with other women and at the bottom of the bottle. However, Troy is stubborn but nonetheless is determined to provide for his family, much like Willy. In this regard, he is a tragic hero in that while his intentions are understandable and justifiable, he suffers from a deep-seated resentment within himself. He stops his son Cory from playing football professionally despite his talent because of his own history with professional athletics. Much like Willy Loman, he imposes his methodology onto his children, cynically forcing Cory to work at the A&P, a job that Cory has absolutely no interest in, as opposed to football; something Cory is quite good at and enjoys. Troy does this on the basis of security, and it makes sense when looking at Troy’s own story. Furthermore, a common theme throughout Fences is Troy’s inability to move along with the progressiveness the United States is undergoing. In fact, in 1957, when the events of Fences occur, The American Dream was only just beginning to extend itself out to persons of color, in particular the mass desegregation of schools and public areas. At any rate, Troy’s response to Cory’s aspirations is not baseless, he simply doesn’t want Cory to undergo the same deal Troy did, one where talent is negligible in regard to race. And while this belief may have foundation, it still fundamentally exacerbates the truth about the American Dream, in contrast to the American reality.

Troy Maxson and Willy Loman are at different ends of the spectrum in terms of justification and personal responsibility for their economic situations, but what is abundantly clear is that the two were not exacted a commensurate exchange for the talents and work committed. A businessman and a garbageman, both displaced by their country, succumbing to either cynicism or delusion. The world must take notice of these men who have been forgotten by society, forced to work menial jobs, and denied the American Dream. August Wilson and Arthur Miller both explore the struggles of the everyman in that they explore the internal consciousness common among many men who despise their fields, such as the failing salesperson, or the unenthused garbageman. There is no argument to made that Troy and Willy haven’t worked hard; Troy devoted himself to baseball until he was unfairly disenfranchised, and Willy quite literally gave his life to his work. The result of this unfair exchange was Troy and Willy’s collective truculence. The plays are impactful in this regard as the worst aspects of ourselves seem to shine through when we feel as though we haven’t been given a fair shake, in that regard, the plays explore this idea perfectly.

Works Cited

1. Miller, Arthur, 1915-2005. Death Of a Salesman. New York :Penguin Classics, 1996.
2. August Wilson. Fences. New York: Plume, 1986.