One definition of "tragedy" describes it as "a form of literature that depicts the downfall of the leading character whose life, its disastrous end notwithstanding, represents something significant" (from Edward Quinn's Dictionary of Literary and Thematic Terms, Checkmark 1999).
Does the story of Willy Loman fit this definition? What's so significant about him or his life? Is Willy's failure to achieve the American Dream his tragedy?
Consider any and all of these questions in your entries. The posting period will end at class time on Monday, April 5.
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I would like to begin this blog by saying I believe that this story, after reading the definition of a tragedy, should be considered as one. Willy Loman, the protagonist of the story, to the reader is a man in the middle class struggling to succeed but instead of social climbing, he "social declines", steering away from the American Dream (being a huge idea around this time). As we have read so far he does try to improve his situation by asking Charley to work in New York, asking for more money, and even asking to keep his old job. It is sad that he gets fired and it is because he is going crazy and can't help it. I think that is part of why this book is a tragedy. Also, the fact that this is the story of a family failing through the Great Depression, something that is tragic and was an important issue to many people also describes the significance of Willy's life. I also think that Linda and his sons find Willy important. Although they do not have a good relationship with their father, we can see that hey become worried once they hear all of the news about Willy being suicidal. In conclusion, I think that because Willy is significant to his family, a representative of the Great Depression, and slowly failing and can not help it due to insanity (although he makes an effort to try) suports my opinion that Death of a Salesman is a tragedy. Any comments?
ReplyDeleteI absolutely believe that Death of a Salesman is a tragedy. Without even having completed the play it is clear that we are in the midst of the downfall of our protagonist - Willy Loman. While it may be argued the Willy Loman's life story cannot be considered tragic because he himself is not very significant, I would like to direct your sympathies towards his two sons, Biff and Happy. He has raised these two boys, who are now middle aged men, and neither of which are doing much of anything productive with their lives. Willy, as a father figure, has a very significant influence in the process of raising his sons. So perhaps although Willy has little significance in society, he does have significance in his role as a father. We watch Willy fail brutualy in his responsibility as a role model to his boys as he allows Biff to steal and slack in school. We also see him damage his other son, Happy, as he frequently disregards him during his teenage years, constantly paying homage to his "perfect" brother, Biff, instead. This is a tragedy in itself because we see the beginnings of a vicious cycle, a father who is unproductive and makes little contribution to society and his sons who are following closely in his footsteps because they have not learned any better.
ReplyDeleteThis play is a tragedy if there ever was one. Even though Willy is not a king or anyone important for that matter he does have, just like the definiton states, a disastrous end or the beginings of one. I do think that Willy's tragedy, which leads to his end, is the fact that he has not achieved the American dream, or rather his version of the American dream, being rich and well liked. Yes a big portion of the American dream is being rich or being able to provide for one's family, but it seems as though Willy is more concerned with being popular. He says his idol is Mr. Singleman, a salesman who was so well liked that his funeral was packed. This need for peoples approval and praise causes Willy to exaggerate things and make up crazy stories which is definitely his downfall. He doesn't realize it but the other characters in the play notice that this is happening, such as Mr. Howard, and as a result Willy gets fired from his job that he desperately needs. If these crazy stories contiue there is not telling how far Willy will fall next. Will it be the end of him? That's for sure a tragedy.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Willy’s significance and that of the other main characters of the play is their resonance with readers in their own lives or in someone they know. All of these characters are slightly exaggerated as they almost need to be for their personality to read clearly, but everyone knows what it feels like to be overlooked like Happy, or be suppressed like Linda, or go slightly crazy like Willy. The fact that it is possible to read this story and blame the characters for their own downfall but then realize that at times we act like them or we know people who do, is the tragedy for me. I agree with what has been said already about failing to reach the American dream but I’d like to tie in our own lives with that and say that because parts of the characters in this play are so recognizable in the reader it is especially sad when Willy and his family fail.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the play is a tragedy and that Willy brought it upon himself. As we disscussed in class, their is a difference between talking and actually doing. Willy's life consisted of him telling people of the great things he was going to do, however, he never actually accomplished any of them and that was a tragedy for him. I also agree with Catherine and think that we do feel for these characters and have either seen people or been in situations like this ourselves. Willy is a significant character because the audience can picture themselves or someone they know in that same position. Everyone knows the feeling of failure or loss so when Willy fails to achieve the american dream it seems like the reader is loosing something as well. As we have been reading this, ever time something goes wrong for Willy, I feel sad and that connection between the reader and characters is very important.
ReplyDeleteDeath of a Salesman is an example of a tragedy. The aspect of a tragedy regarding the significance of the main character's life is vital to what the play is trying to tell the reader. Willy Lohman is a classic example of "the common man". He is a middle-class working man with a wife and two kids. On the surface, he is living the American Dream. Aren't these the most important people in America? The nation would not be able to function without people like Willy; they are the backbone of our society. By chronicling his downfall, Miller says a lot about the nature of the American Dream, and therefore the nation as a whole.
ReplyDeleteAs Catherine V. said, Willy's main flaw is his obsession with being rich and well-liked. As he is neither of these things, he lies to himself and others in order to give people the sense that he is is living the American Dream. The way the play is written, I think the reader is supposed to feel that there is nothing truly unique about Willy's circumstances. By doing this, it makes the truth of his situation all the more shocking. If this is the common man in America, what does that say about America itself?
I think an important part of the definition given is the word "significant." Everything that is happening to Willy is extremely significant, or serious. Anybody reading this story can relate to Willy's circumstances, maybe not personally, but understands the impact of the failure of pursuit of the American Dream. This play is a tragedy because the lack of success being experienced by Willy is extremely significant, or large. While Miller does downplay the situation to make it seem as though it is not unique, the fact that it is still happening is of importance.
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ReplyDeleteWhen finishing the play today, I was very interested in the Requiem at the end, when Biff states "He had all the wrong dreams. All, all wrong" and Charley tells him that "a salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." It is interesting to try and question exactly what a dream is. Dreams keep people going, and the American Dream especially is famous; that idea that theoretically, anyone can be whoever they want to be in America is what gives this country its reputation, and also what keeps many people going each day. However, dreams can also be a person's downfall. They are nothing without some drive and action behind them. Willy lives so deeply in dreams of what could be that he cannot stop and face the reality of what's actually happening. He also seems to dream for the wrong reasons: he defines success as being liked byothers, but finds that he can't really achieve that. Therefore, his downfall, due to such unrealistic, "wrong" dreams, is what indeed makes the play a tragedy.
ReplyDeleteBy that definition of a tragedy I think Death of a Salesman is a tragedy. The interesting thing is that the end does not seem tragic. At the very end Willy gets what he wants and has always wanted, the approval of Biff. Bernard said that something in Biff died after he went to Boston and from the scene we read when Biff catches Willy cheating on Linda it becomes clear that what died was his admiration for his father. After that trip Biff and Willy constantly fight and argue and the only time we see Willy even a little bit happy is when he says "Isn't that- isn't that remarkable? Biff- he likes me!" on page 106. So in a sense Willy got what he wanted in the end which was to know his son still loved him. Also the last thing we hear is Linda speaking to Willy's grave saying "We're free" over and over again. So although it is sad that Willy killed himself as things were starting to look up it is also happy in a sense because Linda is free from payments and Willy is free from his stories and lies.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with everyone who has commented so far, Death of a Salesman is indeed a tragedy. Like someone mentioned above earlier Willy isn't very significant to society but is very important to his two sons Biff and Happy. While the ending is really sad and tragic, it is also has closure and therefore leaves the reader satisfied. Willy ends up hearing what he always wanted to hear from Biff (that he loved him) and Biff tells his father everything that needed to be said. At the end of the play, its a huge turning point and we see how Biff comes to realize everything and what had gone wrong within the Loman household for so many years. While the death of Willy is really sad and tragic it allows Linda, Happy, and Biff to move on from the past and all the stories and move on to bigger and better things.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Death of a Salesman fits this definition of tragedy. Willy Loman speaks for everyone who has traveled, who has been tired, who feels old and useless, who has regrets. He speaks for everyone in pursuit of an image, a dream.
ReplyDeleteBut I don't think that his failure to achieve the American dream is the tragedy. I think his tragedy is his refusal to listen to people who try to help him and tell him the truth--in short, his pride. It is his pride that deludes him, that fills him with dreams, that causes his ultimate failure. Pride, a virtue, some might say, is turned into a vice.
Given the definition of a tragedy, I believe the story of Willy Loman does fit this. Willy has eagerly lived all his life to be what he calls a “successful” salesman: A man who is “well-liked”, praised by others for achieving the American Dream and for being rich. However, he, as a father of a family, decides to commit suicide when he fails to accomplish these dreams. Through out the play, there is no one change in Willy’s habits or personality; He is still not able to break himself out of the illusions he creates, and to see himself in reality. In fact, he continues talking to Ben only to justify his mind and actions. Even though Willy realizes the love from his family at the end of the play, especially from Biff whom he has set all his hope on for a “successful” future, Willy lacks the ultimate realization- Not of his failure to achieve the American Dream but the realization of himself and the truth of being a successful man. The last conversation he has with Ben before his death is about the proposition, which he believes will help Biff become a “successful” man. Here the pattern of comparison appears again, which in this case Willy compares Biff to Bernard: “Imagine? When the mail comes he’ll be ahead of Bernard again!” (108). Willy, so trapped into his idealistic dreams, loses opportunities for a change in himself, and finally ends up being in a confined room that he himself has created, unaware of it.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the fact that Willy has little significance in his society makes the story even more tragic: By putting Willy, one of an example of ordinary people with family working hard to have a better life, as a main character of this story, Miller tells the readers much of the society back then, what they lived up for, and what the majority of the society valued the most.
As we clearly read the downfall of Willy Loman throughout the entire play, I believe Death of a Salesman does fall under the category of a tragedy. When I first read the proposed prompt, I originally thought the answer would be no, since we do, in fact, see Willy have some hope at times. After a moment of thinking, I realized that all of the hope Willy has had was false hope. He made himself think he was quite successful in his past, when we see through the flashbacks that he barely was making $100. Willy was optimistic about Biff's meeting with Bill Oliver and that night at dinner, refused to believe that the reunion was anything but perfectly successful. His last bit of faith came when he realized that Biff had always loved him. Biff opened himself up and cried for Willy which overjoyed the failing father. Before taking his midnight drive, Willy was calling to Linda because he had a sudden burst of happiness, but it was quickly forgotten.
ReplyDeleteTragedy is described as the downfall of a "leading" character, but Willy Loman was not a leader; he was an ordinary man with a depressing life of lies. He gave Biff and Happy grief about not having purposes in life, when he was the one with no motivation to live. He attempted suicide multiple times and couldn't even meet his own standards. Willy admits that he was probably worth more dead than alive and Charley disagrees by saying that no one has value when they're dead. But Willy probably is worth more dead because Linda doesn't have to worry if he'll make it home at night or work to find him a better job situation, or calm him down and make him happy all at once. She also received enough money to finally pay off the house. Willy failed; he doesn't know it, but he failed. The lack of presence at his funeral showed that he couldn't even end his life happily. He had no unfinished business because there was no business left for him to have. He was tragic and the play about him was a tragedy.
I think "Death of a Salesman" is not a tragedy as long as there was no further chance for Willy to develop his situation. If Willy did not die at the end, he would keep attempting suicide over and over again, and we can easily infer that from his general personalities. He is overly idealistic and he is not capable of fulfilling or imitating his ideal feature: Ben, Charley, etc. His great idealism made him so narrow-minded throughout the story and it was quite obvious that he would not change himself for the rest of his life. "Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare is considered to be a tragic story because "Romeo and Juliet could have been together" if Romeo waited for a few minutes until Juliet woke up. But there is no "could-have-been" in "Death of a Salesman" since Willy's strong pride and belief in himself.
ReplyDeleteOf course, there were some signs that I thought this man Willy could improve his situation when I read Willy's first flashback on page 16. Even though our class found that he was exaggerating himself and wanted to be looked up by his children, I saw something else: his love for his family. Even though he tended to exaggerate his story and feel better, the close relationship between him and his children showed me how much he loves his children. For a moment, I thought he would overcome any difficulties just for his family. But the rest of the story showed his full personalities which makes Willy a flat character.
Also, in Willy's perspective, it is not a tragedy at all. In some sense, Willy succeeded what he had been longing for. He was trying to kill himself for a few years and finally he got it. Even when he finally made the decision, he did not hesitate at all because he realized that Biff always loved him which was what his life was for: being liked and worshipped. He looked satisfied than he ever was throughout the story. And Willy always talked about "being liked after death." Therefore, it could be considered as Willy's success rather than tragedy.
Hey everyone,
ReplyDeleteI definitely would not put Will in the category of "Tragedy" if that's the definition. His life is not disastrous. A lot of good happens to this character, in the past. He is the top salesman, he has two sons that adore him and a wife that worships the ground he walks on. I feel like Willy has a problem more with a warped perception, than tragedy, when it comes to his failed attempt at the "American Dream". He is not completely in reality and escapes to telling stories instead of living in the truth, but that is not tragedy. He's just choosing believe in his lies then facing reality. He's battling a mild case of depression, is what it seems like. I do think that if some of the things he says didn't have an ounce of truth to them, then it would be considered a tragedy; however, it is proven that Biff was a star athlete and that Happy was insecure and that Linda does jump when he says jump. So, as previously stated, he needs to get his priorities straight and start living in reality or else his family will give up on him. One day his suicide attempt will work and he won't have a second chance to re-build his relationship with Biff, never cheat on Linda, pay attention to Happy, go on that expedition with Ben and continue being an amazing salesman.
Honestly, I do not know if the story of Willy Loman’s life can be called as “tragedy.” To compare past and present scenes, there appears to be the downfall in Willy’s life: he earns less and less money, finally loses his job and expectations of Biff. However, his personality and qualities remain the same throughout. We see Willy altering the number of sales in the past; he was having an affair with “the woman” and Biff has been stealing things since his high school years. Thus, there is neither downfall in the characterizations, nor any “corruption.” I also agree with what Chang talks about: how the ending is NOT necessarily tragic for Willy.
ReplyDeleteWhile hesitating to answer whether the story of Willy Loman is tragedy or not, I cannot resist saying that what is being “tragic” in this play is the society in which Willy Loman lives. Instead of presenting Willy’s downfall, the play often shows the downfall of the society, especially of the business world. The tragic change in the society is most vividly depicted in the scene with Willy and Howard. Willy, after working for the company 36 years, begs Howard for a New York job, saying “I’m talking about your father! There were promises made across this desk!...You can’t eat the orange and throw the peel away—a man is not a piece of fruit!” (61) However, old comradeship that Willy emphasizes is not a valid promise anymore in the present world, as Howard responses: “I don’t want you to represent us. I’ve been meaning to tell you for a long time now.”
If Willy's failure to achieve the American Dream was the tragedy of the play, the play would have been trivial story of an individual. The significance of Willy’s life is that it represents the tragedy of the society. As Arthur Miller has mentioned that “In fact, it is the common man who knows this fear best,” it is Willy Loman, a common salesman, who realizes the “tragic change” of the business world the most.
I also think that Death of a Salesman could be categorized as a tragedy. Willy his entire life has reached for the "American Dream" but even at such and old age has never reached it. The entire play is about the downfall of this life and dreams. I agree with those who said that Willy brought this upon himself. He had these things he wanted all related to fame and fortune but he lied to himself about them. If Willy had been truthful with himself and seen himself for who he really was (a lonely old salesman) then he might have not had a tragic end but could have accepted his life and lived it to the fullest. Willy's inability to see his real life and the real world are what make this play a tragedy.
ReplyDeleteI believe the play Death of a Salesman is quite the disaster. Throughout the play you see this elderly man of 60 years old live between the present and the past. Memories of which were pleasant, others which were sour.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kevin 100%. I believe that he hasn't failed to live the American Dream, but he has failed to listen. He doesn't listen to his loved ones, and the people who care about him. This leads into the biggest disaster of all, death.
Willy is selfish. It was mentioned ealier that he loves his family and does everything in there honor, but I would argue that Biff, Happy and Linda are only tools he uses to try to achieve this "Dream." They are part of the idea. Linda is his doting wife, Biff is the star, and Happy is the one who lags behind. Willy cheats on Linda - "I was lonely, I was terribly lonely," (120 in my book)- for no other reason than to satisfy himself. Everything Biff does is "in spite" of his
ReplyDeletefather because that is what Willy chooses to believe, it's all about his feelings. And Happy is never seen, never spoken to by his father.
Willy's decision to kill himself was not done out of love for his family, but so he could have a massive funeral in which all his clients and friends would come pay homage to him. And he didn't care that he was leaving his wife a widow or his sons father-less, "...he'll see it with his eyes once and for all." He wants Biff to see how great he is.
Enough of my rant. I agree with Chang. There was no opportunity for the Loman's lives to change. Willy was not significant and neither was his life. Can we say that it's meaning, it's lesson to everyone else, is? Perhaps. But I think not. Here I will agree with a comment made earlier (sorry I don't remember who) that society is the tragedy. That we can have examples like Willy and continue in the same course, never learning, never growing. And in this case perhaps we are stunted by pride, as Kevin said, or our closed minds.
Death of A Salesman is indeed an example of a tragedy. Weather or not Willy is completely to blame in his own downfall is arguable. Society (like many people mentioned) is in no small part to blame. Society dictated what Willy's goals in life were. This impacted not only Willy, but Willy's family as well. Like Vangie said, Willy is selfish and his actions are, for the most part, for self-promotion. Willy wanted to be loved by his family, but only so he could have the picture perfect family. I wondered throughout this play whether or not Willy would have been happy had he "achieved the American Dream". The love he sought was not a deep love, but rather an admiration, and a desire for attention. The true tragedy of this play is Willy's desire to be noticed and admired. Once it finally becomes evident to him that he will never live the life he desires, and he has already ruined at least three in the process (Biff, Happy, Linda), he lets go of this persuit of the dream. There, another tragedy lies. This play is without a doubt a tragedy, with a plot line which contains aspects that still hold true to our society today.
ReplyDeleteI think that the story of Willy does represent a tragedy. Like Kevin said, everyone can relate to Willy in some way. He tried to make his "american dream" come true. He was consumed by his goal and it was his downfall in the end.
ReplyDeleteThe story can be seen as a reflection of society's values in those days, and I think the tragedy is what Willy's downfall represents, not the event itself. The pressure to succeed back then (and even now) was so great that it broke Willy. This resonates with us because we can see ourselves in Willy. Perhaps we, too, are going in a downward spiral.
Like most of the other comments, I also would agree that "Death of a Salesman" is a tragedy and I think that the definition definitely directly relates to Willy Loman's life. He plays a very significant role in his family's and friend's life and his outburst of crazy actions affect them the most thus his downfall is disastrous.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Kevin about the fact that he never reaches the American Dream is not the true tragedy. I think the real tragedy is the fact that Willy can no longer pull himself up out of the lies he has created and has become to proud in his lies to believe the truth. Also, I think that my class has talked about this a few times, but in some way, the audience is left in a tragical state because, in some of the flashbacks, it seems so fictional and unbelievable and they are left wondering if they are also some of the lies that Willy has made.
I would also agree that "Death of a Salesman" is a tragedy. Willy is not only significant to his family, Willy is also significant in his own mind. For example in his "flashbacks" (whose reliability is questionable) Willy is seen as an "well-liked", important, and admired salesman and father.
ReplyDeleteThe tragedy is not so much as the loss of the American dream, but perhaps in his failed realization that he is not so significant as he originally thought.
--Sarah C.
First of all I don’t think the story of Willy fits a tragedy because a tragedy contains a character who’s life represents something significant. If there is indeed any tragedy in this story I would say it lies in the imminent failure of Biff and Happy due to Willy’s actions as a poor father. I would agree with people that say Willy’s life was not tragic simply because it remained unchanged right up until he killed himself. It may be confusing that it remained unchanged because of how frequently he is in his dreamworld of success, popularity, and successful fathering. However if you see the facts about Willy, revealed by other characters, Willy was never successful and instead he always had trouble raising his kids and was never a well liked or popular man. So I believe there was never a downfall just the readers slow realization of all the facts about Willy. As I mentioned in the beginning the only tragedy I can see is of Biff and Happy. In the end we see that they could have been great if Willy had been a good father. Biff had so much potential and Happy could have been great if they had recognized or encouraged him. Instead because of Willy we see the downfall of Biff and Happy as they age from young boys to adults. Happy is left to follow in direct footsteps of Willy saying “He had a good dream...I’m gonna win it for him:” (130)
ReplyDeleteI believe that Death of a Salesman is definetely a tragedy. I'm not sure that Willie's tragedy is his failure to acheive the American Dream. I know that Willie wanted to achieve success and become a buisnessman that was rich and well-respected, but I think the real tragedy of Willie is that he never realized he could be happy as himself. He never really took the time to see his sons for who they were and instead put his dreams onto them and forgot who they were as people. His failure is that he misses the chance to be happy, even if he is not rich with his family. Instead of trying to find contentment or having obtainable goals he puts himself in a position for constant disappointment and failure with outrageous goals for who he is. It is sad that he has convinced himself that his life is not good enough and instead he lives in a fantasy world where everything is the way he wants it to be. However, he can't escape what is his reality and it ends up killing him. That is the real tragedy that befalls Willie.
ReplyDeleteI do believe that this story is a tragedy. Willy, while he is not always the most likable character, is a man who we sympathize with. Though Willy kind of destroys himself, we feel bad for him, and wish and hope for him to achieve what he wants. He destroys himself, and his behavior effects those around him. His tragic end is significant of so much loss besides his own. Willy has so many problems, and one tragedy is that, through the whole play, past and present, we never see him fix any of them; he never even realizes what he must do to fix them. Willy is confused, and this causes him personally pain. The significance in him and his death is that his dreams were that - just dreams rather than realities, and Willy failed to even realize this simple fact, and it eventually killed him.
ReplyDeleteWilly's life is significant because attributes in his character can be found in almost every American family today. His tragedy is not that he is unable to achieve the American Dream, but more-so that he is unable to see the damage he is causing onto himself and his family by carelessly following his dreams. Willy's downfall has yet to come in the play, yet I am almost certain there will be a moment of self-reflection and realization that he has lived his life in the past and the future, yet never in the present. This makes Willy significant because it allows the reader to go through a journey and see the outcome, almost as if willy is a test hamster and we are the observers who are learning what to do and what not to do. The story of Willy Lohman and his family has taught me that living dreams is healthy, but we must always be analyzing ourselves so that we will not end up running around in circles. If no-one had every been exposed to the story of Death of a Salesman, we could all be making the same mistakes as him and having no idea.
ReplyDeleteI think that Death of a Salesman is a tragedy. Willy Loman is left as a mentally deranged man late in his life who has accomplished nothing and has to lie in order to in his own mind maintain his pride, even though everybody around him knows Willy is lying. As somebody has already said, I don't think that Willy's life is the tragedy of the American dream. I think the tragedy of the American dream in this play is the fact that Willy pushed the dream unto his kids and one of them turns out to be a "lazy bum". I think that Willy's tragedy is now the fact that he's coming to the realization that everything he has worked for, and everything that he believed in has done him no good.
ReplyDeleteI'd have to say that "Death of a Salesman" should not be considered a tragedy. In my opinion I feel that Willy's situation does not get any worse, nor does it get any better. But his constant 'pity parties' gives the other characters and possibly the reader, the impression that his life is getting worse. The only time the story takes a turn is when he commits suicide. But I can't count that as his life getting worse, because after the action has been done, he no longer has a life. In Biff's point of view, I'd have to say it was more of a tragedy for him. He attempts to succeed with Happy and they fail miserably. Biff tries to lie to Willy, which just escalates the conflict within the conversation.
ReplyDeleteBut for Willy, he was just a complainer. Things only got worse through his eyes.
- Dahvin
In my opinion this whole play is pretty tragedy. I think his (Willy Lomens)most failure is from the failure of listening. He denied to listen from the people who cared about him also family. As some people said in these comments, his failure of listening to people drove him to the death.
ReplyDelete-Glenn
I once again must agree with Dahv. This play is not a tragedy. That does not mean that it is a comedy either of course. I think, like Dahv, that Willy’s life conflicts and problems never get worse as well as never get better. He is constantly in the same place with his life throughout the entire play. He never solves much of anything and he’s a complainer. Complainers get nowhere in life and he does nothing but just that. What’s so crazy and intriguing about this play is that he truly believes he is getting somewhere with his life and not just somewhere, but to great heights of status across all of New England. It’s all just a fantasy. If I had to call this play anything, it would be a “Realistic Fantasy”. Though that title could be taken as contradictory, it absolutely is what the play presents. It’s a play with realistic characters who reside realistically, but act dreams.
ReplyDeletePerhaps this play could be considered a tragedy if we were not going solely by this definition. If weren’t plotting downfalls, since there really aren’t many in my view, they play could be a tragedy because no one’s enjoying their lives. They’re all milling about constantly with the jobs and “trying” to get better ones, but never actually getting there. My point of view on a tragedy is when I would feel sorry for a character’s downfall or death. Because Willy never truly actually attempts to get a job or gives in to taking a job he doesn’t want, so he could make ends meat, which is what he needs, Willy is not passionately driven enough in my book. He doesn’t really go at anything, so I just don’t feel sorry for him. While this frustrates me as the reader, it would feed me extremely greatly as the actor.
Based on the definiton of tragedy, I would have to say that yes his lifetyle fits the description of being tradgic. Willy's dream was to become a successful, hardworking man that supported his family well. However, a dream can't be fufilled if there isn't a goal to go along with it, which is why Willy never got what he wanted. Since he was trying to figure out what he though the "American Dream" and failed, it certainly is considered a tradgedy.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the signigicance of his life, i don't believe that it matter that mcuh to him. The fact that he commited suicide at the end of the play shows that it didn't have that much importance to him. Because of this, him and his family were miserable and couldn't complete any of their own goals because they were so preoccupied with Willy's insanity.
-ashante
I believe that the life of Willy Loman was very sad, and with a disastrous ending. However, I am not sure if it was "the downfall of the leading character".Although he talked big, Willy was never an accomplished man. Somehow he had always lived in a dream, the "American dream", but in reality, he was a man fighting with bills and debts. He did have a chance to leave with Ben and be big, but he chose not to. The only thing through out his life that changed was his boys, espesially Biff, who was once a well respected high school leader that end up having nearly no futures. The reason why he had really high hopes for his boys was partly because he was not succesful,and he always dreamed about how Biff and Happy were going to become big stars. In my opinion the life of Willy Loman was indeed sorrowful, but through out his life, he started small and ended small, so to me, according to the definition, it doesn't really fit in the "Tragedy" category.
ReplyDeleteBy looking at the given definition, I'm going to have to agree that Willy's life is that of a tragedy. Throughout the whole play, we see things in his life deteriorate. Right from the start we learn of a tree that's been cut down, which for some reason really left an impactful effect on Willy. We even see the deterioration of his affair: going from something good/freeing to them fighting in the end. i think all of his relationships slowly burn and fade away. we can see all the people in his life getting further and further out of his reach.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if we can say its willies fault, though. I don't think there is one thing we can single out and point to that explains it all. In fact, I think it is just perhaps the fault of society and a luck of the draw. We are all given a deck of cards; some people end up with nothing good in it. I hate to say it like this, but i really do think that some people are made to suffer. Its like when we ask the question, "why do bad things happen to good people?" The truth is, we'll never know.
I would like to start off my blog by telling everyone that i personally do not find this play to represent a tragedy. It is true that Willy Loman struggled to achieve the american dream and was constantly lying to cover up his failures. And some of you may argue that his biggest tragedy was not listening. But you have to realize that Willy Loman was only one man, among thousands people in the middle class during this time period who struggled with achieving their goals and making something of their lives. In the end, this time period is well known as being the period of shattered dreams. Should Willy Loman be recognized for dealing with the everyday struggles that millions of other Americans also struggled with? I find the true heroes people like Martin Luther King, Malcolm X who spent their entire lives fighting change in the American system, and were eventually assassinated for their beliefs. This story is not a tragedy. It is the story of a 60 year old pathological liar who could not accept the fact that he was a failure. He never made an impact in the world, and nobody would remember him after he died.
ReplyDeleteMatthew Sinno
According to the definition of tragedy, I think Willy's life can be considered as a tragedy. The definition of 'tragedy' describes it as the depiction of the "downfall" of the character's life. Even though some may argue that Willy had other good things happen in his life(past), his life definitely had a downfall compared to his past. He attemps to commits suicide for many times, his sons' lives are unsuccessful, he gets fired, and finally dies.
ReplyDeleteHe had big, fine dreams that he wanted to achieve in his life. He was confident about those dreams and goals that he had and he believed that they will finally come true someday in his life. However, his reality didn't have enough time and money for him to make them come true.
What makes his life a tragedy is: in the play, he achieved almost nothing that he lived for and ended his life, leaving no more time or opportunities for himself to make his dreams come true. Also, his "tragic life" has a significance in that it represents the lives of many people today, whose ideal lives and the reality that they dream of are not able to be combined together.
After reading the definition of tragedy, I do think that Willy Lomans life is one. It definitely depicts the downfall of the main character Willy, but also pretty much every other character in the book. Going along with what Kevin said, I also agree that the failure in Willy Lomans life isn't so much what he failed to achieve (the American Dream), but rather the disaster and failure of Willy as a person. His attitude towards everything involved in his life and the way he chooses to look at things. His pride and the way he treats other people. He feels superiority and power, even though he is not more powerful or superior to really anyone. This is what depicts the tragedy in Willy Lomans life.
ReplyDeleteTo me, this passage revealed Willy to the full extent:
ReplyDeleteWilly: "What're you talking about? With Scholarships to three universities they're gonna flunk him?"
Bernard: "But I heard Mr. Birnbaum say--"
Willy: "Don't be a pest Bernard! ..." (20).
There is a reason why we learn not to imitate others, especially as artists. When we see or hear a performance, we have our natural tendency to imitate, which in a certain view, is necessary or unavoidable. But the reason why one imitates is because the performance is beautiful. Human beings want beauty in their lives; everyone does. Willy, when he sees his brother Ben or other successful businessmen, attempts to imitate them, because he wants to live their lifestyle--in fact, he wants it so desperately, you can see that in the front cover picture of the play; he's simply pouring his heart out to cry. There is a problem however, when imitation happens--when one imitates, one imitates a product. A product is a product of effort, time, patience, growth, inspiration, understanding, etc. Willy, when seeing the lives of others, wants to imitate that "product of success" or an outer-being in which he thinks represents success, not conscious of the process and the way of living it took for Bernard and Charley for example to carry out their successes. Willy skips the vital step. They represent patience, care, virtues of the way of living Willy does not realize.
The play shows Willy continuing his faults to his children as well, something we can at least relate to the realm of tragedy.
Willy Loman chased the “American Dream” while he simultaneously lived in his own fantasy. He refused to believe in reality and often dreamt of being a leader praised by everybody. Willy Loman brought his own downfall when he continued to live in a lie; he rejected his true self and Biff’s dream as well. Willy Loman’s story does not fit into the definition of tragedy because Willy never realizes that he believed in his own lies. From the beginning of the play, we read flashbacks when Willy was playing with Biff and Happy. Willy praises Biff about being the coach’s favorite and how he could get away with “borrowing” a ball. We also see that Willy tells himself that he is wanted from many towns but when he asks himself how he did not made any more profits, he seeks help. When Willy seeks help from Charlie, for example, his ego gets the best of him and he never gets the help he wanted from Charlie. In the end of the play, Biff tells Willy the truth but Willy refuses to believe it. He cries out, “ I am not a dime of dozen! I am Willy Loman, and you are Biff Loman! ….. Isn’t that – isn’t that remarkable? Biff – he likes me!” (106). Willy calls names to Biff when Biff refuses to see Willy’s world. This situation happened before. He repeats the same mistake but when Willy “sees” that Biff adulated him, he dies in a car crash. It seems to me that he thought he achieved his “dream” – to be adored back.
ReplyDeleteThough this play is certainly tragic, I personally don't think it fits the entirety of the description. It does fit the beginning part of the quote, considering Willy Loman's finally few days can only be described as some sort of down-fall, but where I reach a problem is the finally few words of the description: "...whose life, its disastrous end notwithstanding, represents something significant." Though Willy may have willed it infinitely hard, his life was not significant. Often people (especially his sons) treated him as gently as possible and typically ignored his few comments. In the scene where Willy tries to be promoted, his boss is almost lackadaisical while, for Willy, this is such an important moment. He never had much impact on anyone, which is only proved further when virtually no one shows up to his funeral. This moment in the play holds a certain amount of irony because Willy ultimately took his life to prove his worth and "significance," but it just ended up proving the exact opposite.
ReplyDeleteIt's even more tragic if compared to present day.
ReplyDeletePerhaps because we live here, in the complete epicenter for young artists, not fulfilling our dreams is an even more challenging endeavor. The play, as the vehicle of Willy's life, makes the story bearable somehow. But failed pipe-dreams and miserable times in worlds of utter normalcy are my biggest fears. Why is it that I am ready to accept the circumstance? Miller is allowing for experience, shared experience, and yet if this were to be something I was seeing everyday- there would be zero acceptance on my part.
Maybe what's tragic about Willy's life, for me at least, it's that it's completely normal. There's insanity in normalcy, I think.
To be chasing after dreams is an affair of everyday; not only that but, it's everyone's affair. I'd like to argue that this play is NOT about the pursuit of dreams impossible, but the lack of perseverance. A lack of self-respect.
I believe that this text “ the death of a salesman doesn’t fit’s the model of a tragedy. Willy is a regular man with a wife and kid but he is fighting to be something different, he is striving to fit what he believes to be the societal norms. At the beginning of the play we are shown the beginning of the decline of Willy Lowman, because according to Willy he was quite the hotshot in his day. My reasoning why I believe that this is not a tragedy is because like much of this text the characters talk themselves into believing what they believe they should believe; i.e. : Willy Lowman was a successful sales man and well liked , when in fact this is not entirely true. They are still struggling to pay the bills and even to get by from day to day, we even see willy lying trying to impress Lynda with his amount of sales. But I believe that with the attitude that willy has had for all these years he was doomed to failure and thus it isn’t a tragedy. To me a tragedy incompletes something that came out of the blue and was slightly unexpected ; however in willy Lowman’s case even he himself knew he was never deemed for greatness.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Keith in that the play "Death of a Salesman" is not a tragedy, because Willy Loman does not fully fulfill the definition of the word tragedy. It states that a tragedy is defined by the death of the leading character whose life represented something significant, but Willy's life was not significant in the sense of the American Dream, as well as Willy's failure to achieve it.
ReplyDeleteSure, his life/role is significant in the context of the play since he is the protagonist and pretty much everything is centred around him, but I think that his failure to achieve the American Dream is not the tragedy. It is, however, a tragedy that he died, but looking at the play as a whole and the dictionary definition of tragedy it isn't quite so suitable.
Theater, through time/nation/language/context, has been enthused with stories that invoke a sense of tragedy. In some regards that is the purpose of theater; to invoke an emotional response to another persons misery - be it in the classic 'tragic' sense of Romeo and Juliet (as Chang aptly pointed to) or in more comedic ventures such as those of the Three Stooges. As Todd pointed out, all events of life are quintessentially 'significant' (an evident requirement of classifying a piece as a 'tragedy'), thus Willy's similarly are.
ReplyDeleteSo, by process of definition, The Death of a Salesman is indeed a tragedy.
Yet, who can classify the failure of an old man, rotting through American ideals, drowning in self-pity, lying alone in cracked, brown, New York garden, as an equal to the death of Caesar?!
Who can say that he is a tragedy, when millions of people die worse deaths every day, when massacres such as the holocaust or Katrina occur?
Are all failures in life, and all are significant to the individual that it destroys, worthy of 'tragedy'?
They are inevitable. They are, the majority at least, impossible to stop. Without them, the great times wouldn't even be recognizable.
Personally I enjoy life. Even during the times of greatest duress, yes I am a young boy in a very priviliged life-style, however as Willy's own American consumerism says "Life is Good". And for that I can not concur that Willy's life is a tragedy. He is merely another victim. He did, for vast swaths of his life, enjoy life. His death may be disappointing. It was not a tragedy.
I don't believe "Death of a Salesman" is a tragic story. However Willy had a miserable life financially which reflected his concept of successful life and led to him to commit suicide later, but he finally found a clue that his first child who had been in big fight with him for a long time likes him when Biff broke down into tears like a little child on Willy's last day. It was hard for me to understand exacly what made Willy think "He likes me!" (106) first, but I would think the same way if I was not loved and blamed from people tacitly and finally saw a person crying and holding on to me even though it could be a little thing to find out that someone loves you as a person for us.
ReplyDeleteIt seems Willy's life was tragic, but overall, he ended his life happily. He escaped from the societal pressure, he could earn enoght money to support his family for a while by suiside and he could find "love" from his son who he was waiting and longing for a long time before he died...
-Joy
The short answer: NO. Willy Loman's death is not a tragedy. The definition of tragedy defines that in tragedy the character's life should be something significant. Does it? I don't think so. In Willy Loman's life, there were two values that was significant. One is 'the American Dream' of the 20th century, something everybody but Willy admired of, which is being a successful salesman in a fast-growing city where selling became one of the new significance, that people can get incredibly rich quickly. The other value was being a wild man that Willy admired for his entire life, who also gets incredibly rich but in a different way, being a frontier. Willy's life could be tragedy if he was close to either of these values then died, but in fact he never made any of it. He never was a successful salesman and a good father, neither a macho hunter who was rich from the diamonds he found in the jungle. Of course, the entire play focus on his conflicts of mind so closely, thus making them feel so significant, but if we take a look in the view of 'somebody else' around him, like Bernard or Charlie, then Willy is only a screwed-up-trouble-minded-loser who even got fired from his friend's son's company. Moreover even his death, it isn't any different from his entire life. During his entire life he was lying about everything and using the money that he can't even pay back, and at his death he, again, gained money by lying. To be accurate the play doesn't even say if his family received the insurance money or not. Even if they did, we all know that the accident is actually Willy's suicide, thus a lie.
ReplyDeleteTherefore, to me there are no tragedy, significance, or notwithstanding death in Willy's life. All I see is a loser's life full of big fat lies.
I believe the play is a tragedy because the story most definitely fits the definition of the term "tragedy". The play tells the story of the leading character Willy Loman whose life is disastrous and notwithstanding through out the story as his life progressively spirals into a downfall with each occurring event in his life: losing his job, his son's trust, and his motivation to live and try in life. The significance of the tragedy in the play was neither Willy's death nor the things he lost when he was alive but it was HOW he lived his life. It is true that there was a series of unfortunate events that happened in the play, and although people may question if it was possible to avoid these events at all, I believe Willy could have at least tried to make something out of all the mistakes in his life and actually learn from them. Willy, however, never tried to learn from his mistakes because he was very selfish and conscious about his social position that he would always refuse to appear "weak" in any way. This was obvious because he was constantly creating stories to make himself look better to cover up his actual lifeless life. He even remained selfish up until his death when he killed himself without considering the feelings of his family and friends. The significance of the tragedy even gave the American Dream a bad representation: a father who ended up giving up on his life and left his family for his own selfish reasons instead of taking care of his family and learning from his mistakes. Not only did Willy symbolize a negative representation of the American Dream but it also tells the audience how far people will go just to strive for the perfect American Dream, when it will only lead to a nightmare.
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