Death of a Salesman Summary

Author: Arthur Miller wrote Death of a Salesman in 1949, which won him a Pulitzer Prize and was named as the first great American tragedy.

Setting: The play takes place between the 1930-1950's at the Loman residence in New York. The backyard is home to flashbacks and also Willy's famous garden scene. The kitchen is one of the only places where all of the Loman's are together, and this is where most of the arguing is done. The front stoop of the house is Willy's proudest accomplishment, and it is referred to often throughout the play. Direction is also an important part of the setting, as east and west are constantly mentioned.

Plot: Willy is an unsuccessful salesman who believes he can still make it as a salesman. The story revolves around the false hope that Linda feeds to Willy so he can have something to look forward to. Willy idolizes his brother Ben's success and wants Biff to live a successful life as well since Willy didn't. Willy is obsessed with Biff's success, as Happy is usually just pushed aside out of the picture. Willy has very high expectations for Biff although he has no skills that will help him follow these, just like Willy. Willy believes the most important thing in life it to be well-liked, because with that you will succeed.

Significant Characters:

Willy: He can't seem to live his life in the present. He is an unsuccessful American salesman who obsesses with the facts of the past. He is self-centered, irresponsible, a liar and delusional. His health is a main concern of the family throughout the entire play. Willy wishes for Biff to have the perfect life that he couldn't have.

Linda: The mother and wife to Willy Loman. She takes care of his every last need from getting him cheese, to making sure he goes to bed. Linda is a strong woman at heart, but she is unable to show this front to Willy. Around Willy she is weak of her own voice, and has to tell Willy exactly what he wants to hear. When she is only around her boys, she is firm, aggressive and most importantly- respected. She is the displays her true emotions the most in the play, but around Willy she can't because she needs to defend and protect any threat to towards him. She is easily shut down by Willy, but I think she doesn't fight back to maintain peace.

Biff: The most praised Loman child. As a kid, Biff had it all going for him in his father's eyes; he was well-liked, handsome, athletic and determined to make his father proud. Biff ruins the rest of his life when he flunks math and goes to Boston to see his dad. Because of what happened in Boston, he doesn't go to summer school to earn the credit. Biff is angry because his father has filled him with a false self-esteem believing he could do anything! All Biff wants is for his father to tell the truth so he can idolize him once again.

Happy: The least favorite child of the Loman family. Happy is often shut down, ignored, and seen as unimportant. He pleasantly lives in a life run off lies and oftentimes contributes to them with his sense of false hope. Happy's achievements are overlooked and don't measure up to the success of his brother.

Ben: Willy's brother and role model. Willy greatly admires and even obsesses over Ben's success, striving to live his life like his and achieve the same success for himself and his sons. Ben appears in Willy's flashbacks where he provides advice to Willy in times of need.

Symbols:
-Stockings: represents Willy's affair, and how it will always be in the back of his mind
-Rubber hose: Willy's desire of suicide, his way out
-Seeds: Willy's desire to practice success, a renewal of life
-Jungle: The opportunity for success
-Front porch: Only place where Willy accomplishes something

Motifs:
-appearance
-success
-dishonesty
-need for approval
-mistreatment of women
-denial of the truth

Narrative:
3rd person, flashbacks allow a different look on the situation

Quotes:
"That's just the way I'm bringing them up, Ben--- rugged, well liked, all-around."
-Willy says this to Ben referring of his boys. Willy looked up to Ben a lot and took what he said to the heart. It was very important for Willy to be approved by Ben in his own eyes, successfully raising children would of been one way to prove that. Willy thinks the key to success is to be well liked, he teaches his kids these morals even after they fail in his own life. Willy never understood how to fulfill his own life and this quote explains how Willy still struggles in helping his boys fulfill their own lives.

"Nothing's planted. I don't have a thing in the ground."
-Willy says this line towards the end of the play after he realizes he has failed at everything. He was an unsuccessful businessman lacking any previous achievements. Towards the end of the play he acknowledges that he hasn't started on a successful path either; he had never built up a solid foundation able to support himself. This quote is important because Willy finally realizes he hasn't done one thing to help gear him towards success and it takes him this long to realize this.

Theme: Accepting the truth and evaluating one's self must come before success.
Willy has a hard time accepting the truth and adjusting to situations due to that. He refuses to listen to what he doesn't want to hear, therefore living a successful life is very challenging. Personal success is impossible if your foundation only exists in your imagination. A main issue in this play is building success off of nothing. The character's believe that success can come from perseverance, which is true but that isn't the only thing needed. True talent and benchmarks are required for real success. Ben lived a successful life, but Willy was unaware of the steps taken for Ben to be able to achieve this. Willy is delusional towards the effort that truly matters.