First performed in 1949, premiering in Philadelphia

Won the Pulitzer Prize, achieved critical acclaim and ran for 742 performances on Broadway

Considered to be playwright Arthur Miller’s masterpiece

Examines the myth of the “American Dream”

The work mixes realism and emotional issues without descending to melodrama

Arthur Miller was born in New York in 1915Miller worked his work through the

University of Michigan during the Great Depression

Among his other works, “The Crucible” (1953) is well known for its satirical view of the McCarthy hearings and the Red Scare

Miller was accused of being Communist, but his conviction was overturned on a technicality

Miller was briefly married to movie star Marilyn Monroe

Arthur Miller died in 2005

View the play in the context of the Great Depression of the 1930’s and the end of World War II in 1945

While all but nonexistent today, traveling salesmen were common during the era

Television had been invented but not yet ubiquitous, the most frequent sources of entertainment were radio, movies and staged plays

Audiences continue to be drawn to the pathos of the protagonist, Willy Loman

The play is considered a recognized element of American culture

Appearances vs Reality: Willy’s frequent flashbacks suggest he is losing grip on reality. What appears to be true, or wishes to be true, often is not

Individual vs Society: Willy fails because he cannot stop living in a reality that does not exist, which dooms him to fail in the reality that does exist

Individual vs Self: Willy’s perception of what he should be is continually at odds with what he is

The American Dream: Willy’s lack of education dooms him to failure. Seen as an indictment of the American Dream as represented in the 1920’s

The play is set in the urban areas of New York and Boston

While grounded in realism, the play includes expressionism, specifically when it depicts imaginary sequences and characters’ internal thoughts and emotions

The play is cyclical rather than sequential, told often through flashbacks

The play is largely the representation of what takes place in the mind of Willy Loman during the last two days of his life

The end of World War II in 1945 created an unprecedented period of economic growth in the United States

Housing and non-farming incomes grew, but the economic situations of the poor did not

Inflation caused economic challenges and lowered the value of what little money the poor were able to save

Economic growth resulted in many consumers using credit for the first time. Until this era, individuals paid cash for major purchases other than their homes

The onset of the Cold War led Americans to prove that capitalism was a more effective than Communism

Rather than being motivated by a strict moral code, many Americans became more concerned with what others thought of them

Ben: Willy’s brother, who appears only through Willy’s imagination

Bernard: Charley’s son and Willy’s only supporter outside the family

Biff: Willy’s elder son, a former high school football idol who caught his father in an affair

Charley: Willy’s only friend who eventually becomes Willy’s sole source of cash

Happy: The younger of Willy’s two sons who grew up in the shadow of his brother

Linda: Willy’s long-suffering yet devoted wife; the only major female character in the play

Willy: The salesman around whom the play is constructed

Identify Willy Loman’s personality and character. What influences have shaped his views? How does Arthur Miller convey Willy’s outlook and emotions?

How do Biff and Hap’s adult lives show the influence of their childhood as seen in flashbacks?

How does Willy’s love of what he terms “personality” conform to Howard’s idea that “business is business”?

How does Miller begin and end flashbacks, memories and hallucinations and why?

To what extent is Willy responsible for Biff’s difficulties in life? Find examples of Willy’s “hot air” in the play.