“Why am I trying to become what I don’t want to be … when all I want is out there, waiting for me the minute I say I know who I am.” - Arthur Miller
Death of a Salesman is a play by the named playwright Arthur Miller, following the life of doomed salesman Willy Loman, is an exploration of the American Dream and the myth that surrounds success. Although living a simple life, Willy Loman believes that he is destined for greatness and holds the same expectations for his son, Biff. Yet, Biff wants to escape the life of the American Dream, which he believes confines him, and Willy struggles to accept this fact through the story.
Although I had heard Death of a Salesman was one of the greatest American plays, I didn’t have any thoughts or expectations of the play when I began to read it. I had read The Crucible by Miller and wasn’t really taken back by the story. But when I read and finished Death of a Salesman, I was truly blown back with the simplicity but multiple dimensions of the story. I enjoyed the story to the fullest, even though it was a short few-hour read.
Miller portrayed the downfall of the American dream in the most ordinary but touching way, which was felt through the characters Willy and Biff. Willy is blinded that he will always achieve greater in terms of money and pride. Yet, he clashes with his oldest son Biff, who was once “destined” for American greatness (football captain, UVA-recruited) but now wants to desperately escape the system. Willy and Biff clash, and as Willy loses his job and his grip on achieving his materialistic goals, it drives him into an uncertain schizophrenia, one that leads to his imminent suicide. The story portrays a contrast on two ends: one who finds joy in being able to escape the confines of the American Dream while one fails to escape the boundaries of the American Dream and dies because he is unable to climb the ladder.
Learning more about Arthur Miller’s life, I could see how personal this story of a salesman, stuck in the confines society has presented him, was. Based on the story of his uncle, who always saw Miller as competition to his son, I thought Miller was able to encompass a story that he had gone through on an universal level, which I thought was truly remarkable of Miller. I also loved that the story was able to encompass the dynamic well in play format. The way Miller seemed to portray the blurring duality between his memories/schizophrenia and reality seemed to work well in the play dialogue and I cannot imagine it in a more short story/novel format (maybe poetry format)
Overall, I thought Death of a Salesman was an important but relatively simple read. I would recommend for anyone, even if you aren’t familiar with play or play format.
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