Term Paper on "Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller"

Term Paper 3 pages (1128 words) Sources: 1

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller. Specifically it will discuss why Willy Loman is a tragic hero in the play. Willy Loman, an aging salesman, is the protagonist of this play, but he is a tragic hero in the drama, as well. His tragedy does not lie in the fact that he dies at the end of the play, but in the fact that he led such a meaningless and unfulfilled life.

A tragic hero is a character who makes mistakes, errors in judgement, and creates situations that ultimately lead to their death. Willy Loman is a tragic hero in this definition, but his story is even more tragic than that definition implies. Willy has spent his life dreaming dreams and going through the motions of life, but he has never been a success, he has never found his dreams, and he has rubbed off on his children, creating sons that will not amount to any more than he has. He is a sad and pathetic character, not because he dies, but because he leaves so little behind to be proud of and admire.

Willy is always looking to the future, thinking that he can always make one more sale, find one more job, and ultimately, become the hero to his family. If there is an uplifting message in this play, it is that the family is loyal, even if they do not approve of their family member. Linda truly loves Willy and tries to protect him from himself, and his sons love him, even if they do not particularly like him. They certainly do not want him to die, and they do not understand his choice, because it seems ridiculous in the end. Even Willy's dying is tragic, because he blunders the suicide attempts so much that the insurance company is bound to discover the truth and withhold payment. Willy is a pathetic loser, but there is something heroic about him, as well, somewhat like a modern Don Quixote who is off jousting at windmills instead of really making a success of himself and his career.

Willy is not a bad man, and that is another heroic quality about him. He is almost innocent in his ignorance of "real" life, because he is so wrapped up in his dreams, he cannot see the reality that people do not love or respect him, and in fact, they do not purchase items from him, either. Willy lives in a fantasy world where everything is going to be all right, when of course, it is not. In that, just about anyone can identify with him, because most people, just like Willy, want everything to turn out OK. They hope that Willy's life can turn around, and Willy can wrench a happy ending out of life by the end of the play. He is likable and sympathetic, and those are the heroic qualities that keep him from becoming just a parody of a loser.

When he commits suicide, Linda, his wife says, "It seems to me that you're just on another trip. I keep expecting you. Willy dear, I can't cry" (Miller 1054). She cannot admit Willy is dead, but she never understood the man she was married to for over 30 years, and so, that creates a very tragic figure. Willy lives and works with a family who really has no clue about… READ MORE

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