Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller Essay - 768 Words

This story is about four unethical real estate salesmen who will do whatever it takes to sell undesirable real estate to uninformed buyers. All four salesmen are feeling the constant pressure of management to close sales, but feel they are given poor sales leads. Shelly Levene is a has-been salesman in his fifties, who finds himself in a terrible sales slump, and worries about losing his job. Shelly eventually bribes his manager, John Williamson, to sell him the Glengarry leads, but doesn’t have the cash in advance that John Williamson requests. Ricky Roma has been rather successful, and outwits James Lingk into buying undesirable real estate, by playing to his sense of adventure. Under strain of constant pressure, Dave Moss and†¦show more content†¦Salesmen have tragic endings to their career, Willie commits suicide, and Shelly ends up in prison. One could say that ending up in prison for robber in your late 50’s was just as life ending as Willie’ s suicide; in both accounts, life as you know it is over. John Williamson v. Willie Loman For some reason, I want to relate how the salesmen felt towards John in a similar picture as to how Biff and Happy Loman felt towards Willie. In Glengarry, John is disliked and not respected by the staff because they feel he doesn’t fully understand the pressures of being a salesman, and shows a lack of concern towards their difficulties. While John represented himself as a company man, he was willing to compromise his employment situation by accepting a bribe for the Glengarry leads. As Willie’s sons matured, they showed the same disdain and disrespect for their father, and felt they were constantly being pressured to become successful, like their father. The great irony here was that Willie was not the successful salesman he led everyone to believe. Willie also represented himself and a family man, but he too was willing to compromise his marriage by having at least one affair. While the characters are not exactly equal, they both s how that when push comes to shove, they were willing to compromise a secured position, whether it was a marriage or employment, for self gratification. Both characters portray a lack of leadership, responsibility, ethics, andShow MoreRelatedDeath Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller1387 Words   |  6 PagesAmerican play-write Arthur Miller, is undoubtedly Death of a Salesman. Arthur Miller wrote Death of a Salesman in 1949 at the time when America was evolving into an economic powerhouse. Arthur Miller critiques the system of capitalism and he also tells of the reality of the American Dream. Not only does he do these things, but he brings to light the idea of the dysfunctional family. Death of a Salesman is one of America’s saddest tragedies. In Arthur Miller’s, Death of a Salesman, three major eventsRead MoreDeath Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller888 Words   |  4 PagesDeath of a Salesman† is a play written by Arthur Miller in the year 1949. The play revolves aroun d a desperate salesman, Willy Loman. Loman is delusioned and most of the things he does make him to appear as a man who is living in his own world away from other people. He is disturbed by the fact that he cannot let go his former self. His wife Linda is sad and lonely; his youngest son Biff is presented as a swinger/player while his eldest son Happy appears anti-business and confused by the behaviorRead MoreDeath Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller1573 Words   |  7 Pagesrepresents a character with a tragic flaw leading to his downfall. In addition, in traditional tragedy, the main character falls from high authority and often it is predetermined by fate, while the audience experiences catharsis (Bloom 2). 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The play inflated the myth of the American Dream of prosperity and recognition, that hard work and integrity brings, but the play compels the world to see the ugly truth that capitalism and the materialistic world distort honesty and moral ethics. The play is a guide toward contemporary themes foreseen of the twentieth century, which are veiled with greed, power, and betrayal. Miller’s influence with the play spreadRead MoreDeath Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller949 Words   |  4 PagesDeath of a Salesman can be described as modern tragedy portraying the remaining days in the life of Willy Loman. This story is very complex, not only because of it’s use of past and present, but because of Willy’s lies that have continued to spiral out of control throughout his life. Arthur Miller puts a modern twist on Aristotle’s definition of ancient Greek tragedy when Willy Loman’s life story directly identifies the fatal flaw of the â€Å"American Dream†. Willy Loman’s tragic flaw can be recappedRead MoreThe Death Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller846 Words   |  4 PagesA Dime a Dozen The Death of a Salesman is a tragedy written by playwright Arthur Miller and told in the third person limited view. The play involves four main characters, Biff, Happy, Linda, and Willy Loman, an ordinary family trying to live the American Dream. Throughout the play however, the family begins to show that through their endeavors to live the American Dream, they are only hurting their selves. The play begins by hinting at Willy’s suicidal attempts as the play begins with Linda askingRead MoreDeath Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller Essay2538 Words   |  11 PagesSurname 1 McCain Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course: Date: Death of a Salesman Death of a salesman is a literature play written by American author Arthur Miller. The play was first published in the year 1949 and premiered on Broadway in the same year. Since then, it has had several performances. It has also received a lot of accordances and won numerous awards for its literature merit including the coveted Pulitzer for drama. The play is regarded by many critics as the perfectRead MoreDeath Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller2081 Words   |  9 Pages#1 â€Å"Death of a Salesman† by Arthur Miller is a tragedy, this play has only two acts and does not include scenes in the acts. Instead of cutting from scene to scene, there is a description of how the lighting focuses on a different place or time-period, which from there, they continue on in a different setting. The play doesn’t go in chronological order. A lot of the play is present in Willy’s flashbacks or memories of events. This provides an explanation of why the characters are acting a certainRead MoreDeath Of Salesman By Arthur Miller1475 Words   |  6 Pagesto death to achieve their so- called American dream. They live alone and there is no love of parents and siblings. They may have not noticed the America dream costs them so much, which will cause a bigger regret later. In the play Death of Salesman, Arthur Miller brings a great story of a man who is at very older age and still works hard to achieve his desire, which is the American dream. Later, he no tices that his youth is gone and there is less energy in his body. Willy Loman is a salesman, who