Arthur Miller’sDeath of a Salesman

By Ms. SchiffEnglish III CPA

The American Dream

• Freedom includes a promise of prosperity and success

• James Truslow Adams said, “…life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.”

• “all men are created equal” and they give the rights to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

• In 1776 the American Dream meant the ability of having low-cost land for farm ownership

• Today it indicates the ability through participation in the society and the economy for everyone to achieve prosperity: – This includes :• One’s child growing up and receiving a good education

and career without artificial barriers• Making individual choices without prior restrictions

that limited people according to their class, caste status, religion, race or ethnicity

• Traditionally home ownership was a way to assess accomplishing the American Dream

• Success, fame and wealth through hard work was the traditional American Dream

• Industrialization of the 19th and 20th centuries have changed that dream (previous bullet); replacing it with the philosophy of “get rich quick”

• Quest for money: big house and nice car now show a persons Americans success

• Americans have gone from traditional hard work to quick “easy” money

• “rags to riches”

Arthur Miller

• Was born in 1915 and raised in New York City• He was a college student during the Great

Depression of the 1930s (influenced his writings because he lived through the Depression)

• Concerned with social and economic injustices of capitalism

• Wrote about social and political pressures and their effects on human values and morality

Death of a Salesman

• Tragedy: “a form of drama exciting the emotions of pity and fear;” a character passes through a series of misfortunes leading to a final, devastating catastrophe

• Tragic Flaw: character defect that causes the downfall of the protagonist in a tragedy

• Theme: fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work

• Conflict: struggle between two opposing forces.– External: character vs. opposing forces• Man vs. Man (another physical person)• Man vs. Society (a group of people that feel the same

about a topic/situation)• Man vs. Nature (elements of nature including but not

limited to weather)

– Internal: character vs. self (inside the character’s mind)• Man vs. Self (inner fight with ones morals; good vs. evil;

right vs. wrong)

Setting of Death of a Salesman

• 1940s• Brooklyn, New York• Willy’s flashbacks take place in both Boston

and New York• Play takes place in a 24 hour time period

Character Development

• As we read the play we will write down character traits and how they evolve.

• When listing traits be sure to include page numbers so you can reference the information quickly during an essay, homework assignment or in-class discussion/do now assignment.

Willy Loman

• 60 years old (12)• Salesman (12)• Exhausted (12)• “New England Man” (14)• Wandering mind (14) • Contradicts himself (16) example: “Biff is a

lazy bum!” “There’s one thing about Biff-he’s not lazy.”

• Rude (12-14)• Mercurial (12)

Linda Loman

• Jovial (12)• Willy’s wife (12)• Nurturing personality (12)• Admires Willy (12)• Concerned about Willy’s state of mind (12)• Makes excuses for Willy (12-14)

Biff Loman

• 34 years old• Wants to be a farmer• “lost”/ “finding himself”• Well built/ personal attractiveness• Dreams are strong but unacceptable• Womanizer• Doesn’t need materialistic things

Happy Loman

• Tall and powerfully built• Very sexual• Womanizer• Won’t accept defeat• Hard skinned• Pretends to be content• Apologist for Willy• Materialistic

• Competitive• Has affairs• Feels the need to “prove himself” to co-

workers• Lost but in a different way than Biff

Character Conflicts

• Biff: Man vs. Society (struggle to do what he is passionate about or what society deems the “proper” career)

• Man vs. Self (inner conflict trying to determine if he should do what makes him happy, or do what would make his father and society happy)