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“Death of a Salesman may center on personal and family breakdown but it also involves contradictions in national American ideals.” Discuss. On the surface, Arthur Miller’s groundbreaking play, Death of a Salesman, does seem firmly rooted in the “familial arena”. The whole play is structured to gradually reveal the deteriorating condition of Willy’s mind as well as the worsening relations of the entire Loman family, through a series of complex flashbacks. Beneath this, however, the structure of American society as a whole is analyzed and the ideals of the nation held up for review. Many of these come into conflict with each other, one often contradicting another, such as the ideal of the agricultural frontier versus that of the successful urban worker. The two issues are also essentially linked as it is the fact that Willy is often caught between two opposing ideals that lead to his personal breakdown, and the subsequent breakdown of his family. Willy Loman’s personal breakdown is the central issue in the play, as the title suggests. Within the first few lines of the opening scene, the audience is confronted with a man in obvious mental distress and forced to ask; is he mad or merely exhausted? Miller is instantly creating the persona of a deeply troubled man, he is quickly irritated by his wives questions and contradicts himself, firstly claiming; “Biff is a lazy bum!” then changing it to; “There’s one thing about Biff- he’s not lazy.” The audience is also quickly presented with the image of Willy becoming lost in the past and, even at this early stage, it is obvious that he has trouble distinguishing between the two. His perceptions of time and place are breaking down, a sure sign that he is no longer mentally stable. This impression of the leading character is strengthened by the first appearance of his dead brother, Ben. In this scene, as he sits playing cards with Charley, Willy is unable to distinguish between real and imaginary. He converses with both men in the same way, making no distinction between his long dead brother and his very real friend. The way in which Willy interprets what Ben is saying now begins to give the audience some idea of his delusions; it is obvious to most that Ben never answers his brothers questions but Willy hears only what fits in with his preconceived ideas, only what will make him feel better. This widens the gulf between the reality perceived by the audience and what is obviously becoming Willy’s reality. Miller’s whole critique on the business world is also a device for revealing the breakdown of Willy Loman’s psyche. He is adamant that being “well liked” is the most important factor when doing business. While this is an admirable quality, it is also one that is no longer appropriate for the society portrayed in the play.
Approximate Word count = 1897
Approximate Pages = 7.6
(250 words per page double spaced)
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