The Tragedy in Death of a Salesman Essay - 932 Words

Modern domestic tragedies began between the late 19th century and feature ordinary people to be the heroes/anti-heroes unlike Greek tragedies in which the protagonist was of high status or noble birth. â€Å"Death of a Salesman† by Arthur Miller is a classic example of this and features the anti-hero Willy showing the audience how his perfect family lifestyle has falling apart contributing to the disorder of his world which increases as his mind slowly deteriorates. Through the play Willy is striving to live the American Dream; to have a better, richer and happier life. He is obsessed with materialism thinking that acquiring possessions will make him and his family happy. When Linda tries to mend her stockings, Willy tells her â€Å"I won’t†¦show more content†¦He became a salesman to follow this belief and live out his dream, instead of being a carpenter, a profession in which he would have been happy and good at, yet he thought it to be lowly. He expressed t hat â€Å"even your grandfather was better than a carpenter†Ã¢  ¹. This is also the same reason Willy declines a job from Charley, even though the money earned could provide him and his family with security financially. This is the rubicon, where Willy condemns his own fate. Biff and Happy once deeply respected and looked to their father for advice and encouragement, as in the past Linda says â€Å"few men are idolized by their children the way you are†Ã¢  ¶, but as they realise his advice was false and he had been living a lie throughout life. As soon as Biff finds out about his father’s affair he no longer respects him and Willy remains unable to win back his trust. â€Å"You fake! You phony little fake†Ã¢  ·. Willy feels that by his suicide, it will prove to Biff that he was truly committed to providing for his family. He still believes that Biff will become successful by having the money from his life insurance showing how he never learnt from his mistakes. â€Å"Can you imagine that magnificence with twenty thousand dollars in his pocket? ...When the mail comes he’ll be ahead of Bernard once more†Ã¢  µ. It is more tragic that Biff is the one who realises that â€Å"he had the wrong dreams†Ã¢  ´ at his fu neral. Rather than feeling proud, Biff he pities his father. Ironically it isShow MoreRelatedDeath Of A Salesman Tragedy Essay1365 Words   |  6 PagesDeath of a Salesman is a tragic play written in 1949 by Arthur Miller. The story is about a salesman who lost his identity after having an affair with another woman and can’t seem to accept the changes in his life since the event. The story has been performed in theaters and shown on film for many years. Lee Siegel, a writer for The Nation explains the role of Death of a Salesman in the entertainment industry: Every ten years or so, Death of a Salesman is revived, and every ten years we get theRead MoreExamples Of Tragedy In Death Of A Salesman1199 Words   |  5 PagesAmerican Tragedy Aristotle defines what a tragedy is in his famed piece Poetics. In it, he sets guidelines that all tragedies should meet in order to become the fantastic displays of misery that they are meant to be. Six main elements are present in every tragedy: plot, character, thought, diction, melody, and spectacle. The two most important, of course, were plot and character. Both had to be complex but believable, consistent, and possess the ability to arouse pity and fear in the audience. AlthoughRead MoreDeath of a Salesman as a Modern Tragedy2704 Words   |  11 Pages  Death of a Salesman as a modern tragedy Death of a Salesman as a modern tragedy   Death of a Salesman  is typically classified as a modern tragedy. This implies that it follows the example of the classic Greek tragedies, Roman tragedies and Shakespearian and Jacobean tragedy. There are, however, subtle but vital differences between these forms. Aristotle’s classic view of tragedy saw the form as one which only properly deals with the fate of gods, kings and heroes. In the twentieth century, suchRead MoreThe Tragedy Effect Of Death Of A Salesman1888 Words   |  8 PagesJune 2015 The Tragedy Effect From sudden death, to catching a loved one in an affair, what effect does tragedy hold on a person? Hamlet from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and Biff Loman in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman both experience life changing tragedy. Hamlet’s father died and his mother remarried to his uncle Claudius within two month of his father’s death. Hamlet is also compelled to avenge his father’s death and against his will he must kill King Claudius. In Death of a Salesman, Biff LomanRead MoreDeath Of A Salesman Is A Tragedy In The Sense That It Displays1015 Words   |  5 PagesDeath of a Salesman is a tragedy in the sense that it displays the consequences of commitment of one s life towards an idealistic goal such as the American Dream. Willy Loman fails to see that he is an unsuccessful salesman and to escape that harsh reality, he constantly reminisces his past. Which beg the question, is Willy Loman a tragic hero? He may not be a conventional tragic hero but he indeed had a downfall however, he wasn’t in a distinguished position to say the least. He was everybody yetRead More The Tragedy of EveryMan in Death of a Salesman Essay1663 Words   |  7 PagesThe Tragedy of EveryMan in Death of a Salesman      Ã‚   Will you take that phony dream and burn it before something happens? I dont say hes a great man. Willy Loman never made a lot of money; his name was never in the paper; hes not the finest character that ever lived. But hes a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. So attention must be paid ... Attention, attention, must be finally paid to such a person. from Death of a Salesman    Only in America. The AmericanRead MoreEssay on Death of a Salesman: Tragic but Not a Tragedy1360 Words   |  6 PagesDeath of a Salesman: Tragic but Not a Tragedy Though a more modern version of tragedy in its’ classical sense, Death of a Salesman in many ways is very much like an ancient Greek play. In his ‘Poetics’ Aristotle tries to set out the common ideas throughout tragedy, attempting to demystify the necessary elements for such plays. One of his main ideas was that of the ‘Three Unities’ - that of Space, that of Time and that of Action. He stated that all the action of a tragedy must occur inRead More Death of a Salesman is a Tragedy as Defined in Millers Tragedy and the Common Man1046 Words   |  5 PagesDeath of a Salesman is a Tragedy as Defined in Millers Tragedy and the Common Man In Tragedy and the Common Man, Arthur Miller discusses his definition and criteria for tragedy as they apply to the common man. The criteria and standards proposed by Miller may be used to evaluate his timeless work, Death of A Salesman. The first major standard of tragedy set forth is:   â€Å"...if the exaltation of tragic action were truly a property of the high-bred character alone, it is inconceivable thatRead MoreDeath of a Salesman vs. Tragedy and the Common Man1220 Words   |  5 PagesIt makes little sense that tragedy should only pertain to those in high ranks. As explained in his essay Tragedy and the Common Man, Arthur Miller establishes the pattern for his own notion of a tragedy and the consequent ramifications for the tragic hero. This pattern supports the central idea that a tragedy can occur for characters who are common men as well as those in high places. Throughout his paper, Miller demonstrates that it should be possible for every reader to be able to identify withRead More Death of a Salesman - A Modern Day Tragedy Essay1184 Words   |  5 PagesDeath of a Salesman - A Modern Day Tragedy The question which arises within Death of a Salesman is, Is this a modern Tragedy? A tragic play can be commonly observed when a protagonist falls from a great height. His decline is not about immediate death, although in most cases death becomes apparent at the end of the play, e.g. Macbeth. A tragedy shows the suffering of a character and utter compulsion of him if he does not succeed to reach his dream. These plays show the blissful release