Death of a Salesman American Dream Aspect
In Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman is a salesman whom lives his life chasing the American Dream. ... Arthur Miller writes Willy Loman as a contradiction of the American dream. ... Willy cannot reach self-realization and would rather live in a false world than come to terms with the actuality that he is nobody, just another salesman. Willy Loman is a common man who lives inside his American dream, the thing that would later destroy him. There are many elements in Death of a Salesman that can easily mistake Willy Loman for being the typical “tragic hero. ... Willy Loman evokes these two emotions, thus making Death of a Salesman not entirely foreign to the reader. ... Bierman explains the reason that we can easily relate to Willy Loman being that, “we are Miller’s American contemporaries. ... Miller writes, this further explains the point that even though Willy lives in a dream world he is still a letdown to society and himself. ... Willy is a salesman and has sold himself on the idea that he is a great success. ... The admission of his failure and meek existence would ruin his sense of achievement, thus the walls of his false dream world would come crashing down. ... His job is to sell, he is a salesman, but has done a better job selling himself on a dream than he has in his business. The American dream destroyed Willy Loman. Willy was scared to believe that he was no different from any other salesman or human being. ... The dream of being a great man engulfed Willy. ... Willy Loman is a contradiction of the American dream. The, “the American dream has become distorted to the dream of business success” (Clurman 213). In the past the American dream was a vision of promise of a better life. Willy has bought into this new vision of the American dream. Willy’s dream killed him. Willy has failed to live up to his American dream. ... He literally lived within his dream, yet did not come close to accomplishment. ... To Willy his dream was indescribably cruel. Willy has affirmed that America is a nightmare, a cause death. ... Willy Loman dreamed of having “success” moreover the American dream was a delusion he lived in. Willy was desperate to hold onto his American dream and block out reality. ... He does not embody all the characteristics of a tragic hero, making Death of a Salesman the story of a common man. ... He claims that his father had a good dream, the only dream a man can have - to come out number one man.