Death of a Salesman has quite the array of themes, mostly due to the extremely complex character of Willy. The American Dream is very present in this play, shown, so far, by Ben and Willy. Ben perfectly embodies the American Dream; he walked into the jungle and came out a man. In other words, he conquered his own destiny and took control of his life. Willy, on the other hand, was unable to grasp his career and really succeed, just like Biff.
The theme of materialism or that a man's worth is determined by his paycheck or net worth also appears everal times in the play. The broken things around the house must be fixed, which costs money. Money that Willy does not have, ergo he cannot provide for his family so his worth is very low. Money certainly plays a role in the world, but its not the only thing. A person's personality is the most important factor in determining his or her worth as a person, not how much money they make.
Finally, the neverending hunt for true love is yet another theme in the play. Willy searches for it both in Linda and in his mysterious mistress, though I don't think he knows which he loves more. Linda loves Willy like he won't be there tomorrow, which becomes true by the end of the book. Happy yearns for a steady woman, but up to now hasn't been able to and shows no sign of improving. Overall, the love in the Loman family is scattered and unorganized, but its there.
ok, first I'll respond to what you wrote on my blog because you made a really good point:
ReplyDeleteI think that the reason willy is so complex is because we aren't supposed to be able to identify him. With this show, i think the only characters we should feel attatched to are linda, happy, and biff. I think we're supposed to be able to watch willy with a completely outside and unconnected eye, so we get an unbiased view of how hard it is to survive in the work world.
i like that you identified the search for love, i agree. I think that's another example of a task that seems to have been failed by willy and his family. Or, on the flip side, you could argue that the sort of broken-love motif is the only thing that bonds the family together. Something had to keep them somewhat together for this long.
It's obvious that Willy is unhappy that his worth is near to nothing because he has no job, and his wife has to work, but I wonder how his sons feel about their own state of unemployment. Yes there is the obvious answer of them being angry for being unemployed, but they don't show it like Willy does: Willy takes out his emotions on other people, whereas Biff does not.
ReplyDeleteI think that your comments on judging willy's worth through money is worth discussing. I think that it's part of a bigger picture. The idea that the different characters each have their own different ways of determining worth. That's why they all have different opinions about each other's value.
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