...Willy Loman When one thinks of Willy Loman, victim is the last word that comes to mind. His character flaws make him responsible for his own misfortune. He has never taken responsibility for any of the disgraces in his life and has constantly blamed everyone, for not being able to live the life he feels he deserves. Some people are able to curb unrealistic expectations into something that is more tangible for them, while others such as Willy are not. Normally a salesman is someone who is able to accept their flaws and learn ways to improve, because this is how they make their living. Because Willy Loman never fully accepts his flaws, he has no way of progressing in life. He has reached the age where he can’t compete with the younger salesmen or keep up with the traveling that is required in order to be successful in his field. This is causing great strife in his life. The pride of a man can contribute to his life by being either a great asset or a ridiculous flaw. This trait is definitely a flaw for Willy Loman. Pride can assist you with taking control of your life and allow you to get what you think you deserve, however, it can also be crippling. This was the case for Willy. Pride kept him from talking to his boss earlier in his life as to why he needs to stop traveling and work from New York. Driving over 700 miles out of town just to come home empty handed would be too much for anyone, but it definitely weighs a toll on a 60 year old man. Once Biff decided he would stay...
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...would like to be, what he is, what he is not, and yet what he must live and die with.” –John Mason Brown (Brown 207) The Two Sides of America and Willy Loman America is a madman. America became a man who fell off his rocker and is free to roam the earth to disturb the minds of those who inhabit it. The American dream is often considered a fantasy by those who criticize it. Capitalism sometimes may not be all that it is cracked up to be when you get down in the dirt and start building. Even when you begin to believe you are moving forward you can be eternally unsure of the direction you are moving. At this point, the race to the top can drive you crazy. In Arthur Miller’s play A Death of a Salesman, the central character Willy Loman embodies the American dream and he is certainly mad. In the story, Willy works as a growing salesman who is getting older and tiring from travelling for work for small returns. His hard work goes unrewarded as each paycheck goes right into the house which always needs to be serviced and mended. This house as it gets to be paid off after 25 years finally becomes owned by the family who ironically may soon not live in the house together. Willy’s family consists of his humble and caring wife, Linda, and his two handsome and able-bodied sons Happy and Biff. The story centers around the external conflict of Willy pushing Biff to be what he wants him to be and Biff’s internal conflict of what it is he would like to do with his life. Death of a Salesman is...
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...Tragic Hero Willy Loman By definition according to Aristotle is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction. So by his definition Willy Loman does fit into that category. But according to Arthur Miller a tragic heros is categorized according to social class. To add Miller believed that the common man is a hero based on dealing with aspects of everyday life. Willy Loman however is not of noble birth but he is a common man with the struggles of everyday life. By combining both definitions he does not fit the catagory because he did lead to his self destruction but he could of avoided his death by trying to work his way back to becoming stable again. I believe that killing himself was a way to take the easy way out and it was a cowardly and unjust act....
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...Willy Loman - A Tragic Hero Is dying a way to become a tragic hero? According to Aristotle, a tragic hero is defined as a literary character who makes a judgement error that leads to his/her own destruction. Most tragic heroes hold a position that is of a noble stature. Willy Loman is the main character in the play, Death of a Salesman and displays the rise and fall of a tragic hero. Many people may not consider Willy a tragic hero because he is not of high social class and he is like the millions of other Americans trying to living the American dream. However, because he portrayed the characteristics of being a failure and making mistakes, by the end of the play the audience witnesses what Aristotle called “Hamartia” Death of a Salesman can be considered a tragedy. In the play, Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, we learn about the main character, Willy Loman, the pity that Willy should receive, and the thought of the main character. Aristotle discusses the idea of hamartia, which he defines as a fatal flaw leading to the downfall of a tragic hero of heroin. Willy’s stubbornness and excess pride could be considered as such. Often, Willy had to borrow money to pay their bills. Linda told Biff, “When he has to go to Charley and borrow fifty dollars a week and pretend to me that it’s pay?”(633). Guilt and feeling like a failure not supporting his family led to Willy’s daydreaming. Willy’s inability to admit that he needs help creates worry and tension in...
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...Compare and Contrast Willy Loman and Othello If there was a completely perfect, virtuous hero with no flaws, there would be no sense of enjoyment at watching horrible events afflicts this perfect person? Conversely, if the individual had too many flaws, vices, and moral depravity, it would not be a tragedy; it would simply have been seen as his getting what was coming to him, karma, if you will. Although Othello and Willie Loman can be said to fall within the definition of a tragic hero, each represents a very different interpretation of the concept. Othello, the tragic hero of Shakespeare’s play by that name, is an even more sympathetic character. Othello’s tragedy is orchestrated entirely by the scheming, malevolent Iago. Iago, having very little motive, creates a web of deceit by convincing Othello that his new bride, Desdemona, is unfaithful. “Receive it from me. I speak not yet of proof. Look at your wife; observe her well with Cassio, Wear your eyes thus, not jealous nor secure” (Act III, Scene III, Lines 196-198, Othello). Othello’s jealously eventually causes him to murder Desdemona by smothering her. One could argue that Othello isn’t truly a tragic hero. After all, what fatal flaw does Othello have? Aren’t all of his actions simply the result of the malicious intent of another? This cannot be true, for, if so, Othello would not be the classic it is today. An audience does not want to watch a totally innocent person randomly punished. Rather, an audience...
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...Willy and Oedipus Tragedy Essay Oedipus is a play by Sophocles about a man who saves a town from a sphinx, becomes king,weds with his mother, and kills his father. His whole path is driven by fate. Death of a Salesman is a drama by Arthur Miller about a salesman named Willy Loman who has this big dream to be successful. He ends up failing and commits suicide. Both Oedipus and Willy are exquisite tragic figures, but Willy is superior because he has a higher relation to the audience, had a chance to make it, and Oedipus had no control over what happened to him. Aristotle and Arthur Miller had very different views on what a tragedy entaled. Aristotle thought that a tragedy must start out great, but end in a tragedy. It must have magnitude and...
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...Willy's Loneliness and Alienation in Death of a Salesman Willy Loman’s feelings of alienation and loneliness are direct psychological results of his interaction with society and the conditions that are found within it. Although, he does not necessarily have the ability or allow himself to have the ability to define his feelings as such, they are still very much a part of his everyday existence. This is evident in his constant bragging and attempted compensation. He does not feel that he is truly a part of society. Indeed, he is not. Miller himself seems to be saying that this is not necessarily a bad thing; this society is not that wonderful. Yet Willy still yearns to be like his brother, Ben, and the other men he sees making up the work force. He desperately wants to command respect and be a part of the group. Although usually he just goes about his business as best he can, he does at times admit his feelings: ‘Because I get so lonely—especially when business is bad and there’s nobody to talk to. I get the feeling that I’ll never sell anything again, that I won’t make a living for you, or a business, Business for the boys. There’s so much I want to make for— (Baym 2001) He wants to provide for Linda and for the boys, but he does not know how to go about this within the confines of society and still maintain his individuality. Even the things he dreams of having for himself and for his family are shallow. He will never find relief from his search...
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...In the dramas Macbeth written by William Shakespeare and Death of a Salesman created by Arthur Miller, the characters Willy Loman and Macbeth are led by their uncontrolled ambition which change their reality, ultimately destroying them. Macbeth's ambition to become king blinds him of his morals and consciousness, as well as with Willy Loman's ambition to become a successful salesman. Both Willy and Macbeth are also guilty of allowing their ambition to get in between their relationships with their loved ones. Once Macbeth rise to the throne, his relationships with his wife completely changes for the worst. As with Willy Loman, he allows his ambition of wanting to become a salesman collide with his family life. Their ambition also causes Willy and Macbeth to become isolated from their peers, which resulted in a breakdown of communication with the other characters. In both dramas, Willy Loman and Macbeth are presented with an uncontrolled ambition which leads them to their tragic downfall. In both Macbeth and in Death of a Salesman, the characters are presented with their uncontrolled ambition which blinds them of their morals and...
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...Willie Loman died a Hero? Willie Loman has failed to live up to the standards of being a tragic hero because he neither accepts nor admits to his faults. Willy loses his dignity and one of his biggest faults is his failure to be a good father. Willy’s problems come from his own delusions, the American Dream and his misunderstandings of his job and family. All of this tells the story of everyday people in American Society. His environment is changing faster than his beliefs which are why he is in the dilemma that he is in. Willy Loman delusions are a result of his father to succeed in life. At age 63, He still believes he is a popular, respected and good looking, which is not the case. Willy s delusion was that there would be many people from across the country at his funeral. Nobody liked him that much and very few people attended his funeral. In the moments where he would realize the truth, his wife would support his delusions in attempt to make him feel better about himself. A tragic hero is someone who dies for personal dignity. Willy dies for his sons dignity . In act two, Willy reveals his desires to win back Biff’s respect by committing suicide. During one of his illusions, Willy says “Ben that funeral will be massive...that boy will be thunderstruck, because he never realized I am known”. In trying to persuade Biff that their father is a great man, Willy will not accept any challenge to his dignity. He refused to realize that the ideas he set for himself and Biff...
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...not what you know, but who you know and how well you are liked. At one point in time Willie was a very successful salesman, when Howard’s father ran the company. Many promises were made between Willie and Howard’s father across that desk in the office. Despite the fact that Willie worked hard his entire life, and was rewarded very little, the promises that he believed in for all his years of work and strived towards fell through. Now that he is old and not able to keep up at the pace he used to Howard thinks he is useless to the company. Evidence of this is found on page 81 when Howard says to him “Kid, I cannot take blood from a stone”. By saying this Howard implies the fact that since he is not getting the amount of sales he wants from Willy, he has to let him go. The environment in which a person lives has a very large impact on the type of decisions as well as how the person perceives...
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...revolutionary technique to portray the protagonist, Willy Loman. He juxtaposes the scenes of present with those of the characters past to provide insight into Willy’s behaviours and beliefs and thus reveal how Willy has been victimized by the American Dream. The concept of developing a protagonist’s character by depicting formative experiences is one that offers an excellent approach to analyzing Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman. By juxtaposing scenes of the protagonist’s present with scenes from Willy’s past, Miller provides insight for Willy’s behaviours and beliefs. Through lighting and sound techniques, Miller recreates significant moments in Willy’s life that shape him. Miller’s staging...
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...Nyonza Musinguzi 7/22/14 American Lit Death of A Salesman The story Death of A Salesman takes place in Brooklyn. It is all about a family that plans to live the American dream. Willy is a sixty three year old father married to Linda and they have two sons named Happy and Biff that are now currently living with them during the play. Biff is a “go with the flow” type of person that currently is moving from job to job trying to find his way in life. Happy is a successful businessperson so far living in the city working his was up the corporate ladder. Willy seems to be determined in his brain that his boys are not reaching their potential and it is his fault. Linda holds it down at the house and is very concerned in Willy’s mental health. Every family in the world main goal is success on all levels, this family has a very difficult path to reach success but they are heading the right direction. Success in America is living comfortably everyday in our economy. You do not have to be super rich to be considered successful, but you cannot be struggling to have food on the table and be behind on payments and still be successful. Some one successful is someone that wakes up and has a job to go to everyday that they enjoy their work and is passionate about it. This person will always have a meal to eat and light to shine in their homes. “The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the...
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...Demographic and Environmental Timeline Demographic transition is the process by which a nation/country moves from high birth rate and high death rates to low birth and low death rates as the growth population in the interim (Weeks, 2005). Some of the nations that have gone through this transitions are; Canada, Germany, United States and England. The demographic transition to an industrialized society is harmful to the environment. Industrialized countries also have the largest ecological and carbon footprint comparative to developing/non-industrialized nations. Nevertheless, demographic transitions have some notable advantages. Countries that have gone through demographic transitions have low birth and death rates. Citizens in industrialized nations have fewer children thus it is easier to control the population size (Dyson, 2010). The following is the demographic and environmental timeline of Germany between 1800 to date. STAGE YEAR SITUATION IN THE COUNTRY Stage 1 1800 Major Historical Changes: The country is resisting Napoleon, who wants to take control of Germany and cities such as Austria. Prussia provides military education to its military before it defeats Austria and France in the war. The country is under Ottoman Bismarck who improves it by introducing Liberal measures and welfare policies such as insurance for workers against illness and accidents. Changing Population Size: There is a decrease in population due to such wars between Napoleon and other cities...
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...The GDR: “Workers’ and Farmers’ State” or “Second German Dictatorship”? Between 1949 and 1990, the German Democratic Republic existed as an independent socialist state behind the Iron Curtain. Defining itself in its constitution as “a socialist state of farmers and workers”, it aimed to become a “socialist utopia”, without class boundaries or social restrictions. However, the controversial means of controlling the population employed by the government and the dominance of the Socialist Unity Party (Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands, SED) in East German Politics has led many scholars and experts to claim that the GDR was a “Second German Dictatorship”. Fulbrook (2009: 159) says “A combination of methods was employed to ensure the compliance of the East German populace, including terror as well as attempted ideological indoctrination, as the SED sought both to control the state means of administration, policing and justice, and to exert its influence in education, the media and all avenues of opinion formation.” Characteristics of the GDR resemble those of a twentieth century dictatorship, where oppression and fear were parts of daily life. This essay will examine the GDR, determining ultimately whether it was, as its government suggested, a “workers and farmers state” or, as suggested by many theorists, a “second German dictatorship.” Jarausch (1999: 341) says that the SED “glorified the GDR as an egalitarian and open society on the path towards a communist utopia.”...
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...The German Democratic Republic is a world built behind a wall made of lies. The consequence of these lies makes it very difficult for Funder to make sense of what is real and what is missing important chunks of information and what is altered by emotions. When investigating these stories Funder has to come to terms with the idea that some people are just not interested in knowing what happened and some would rather just forget it ever did. As years pass memories fade and accuracy is damaged. From the beginning Funder has to accept the idea that some people do not want to hear the stories from within the German Democratic Republic. When making the suggestion to Scheller and Schmidt they both believe “there’s no point” dragging up the “past” and that Funder “won’t find [a] great story of human courage”. Throughout Funders journey she encounters evidence of people attempting to put the GDR and its stories behind a glass wall and label it the past. As her journey begins to concluded it becomes clear that even the United German government does not want to acknowledge the past in its entirety, building a museum that presents a “sanitised” version of the dark past and putting “pitiful” resources towards putting together to puzzle pieces the make up the German Democratic Republic, making it almost impossible to ever fully piece together what truly happened. Years have passed since the wall came down, at the start of Funder journey it has been 7. As time passes the memories of what...
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