In Arthur Miller’s play, entitled Death of a Salesman, Miller utilizes symbols and motifs to explore the manner in which the common man displays qualities of a tragic hero. In Death of a Salesman, Miller intricately examines American life and consumerism. In creating Willy Loman – the protagonist of the play – Miller wrote a destructively insecure anti-hero. Willy is often shown to be obsessed with the concept of the “American Dream,” a recurring motif in the play. This concept is something that
If one were to ask, “define the ‘American Dream’ ”, not one definition can sum up this traditionalistic belief. Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman”, depicts conflicts within the Loman family, while addressing larger affairs regarding American culture, more specifically Willy Loman’s blind view of the American Dream. Miller not only broadcasts the cost of blind belief in the American Dream but places ‘charges’ on America with a false advertisement to its people, that which is constructed around
In Arthur Miller’s play, Death of a Salesman, many motifs and symbols were embedded within the text to convey deeper meaning beyond what is literally happening. The most important motif is using foreign lands, like Alaska, Africa and the American West, to portray missed opportunity. It calls to question the benefits of living a “typical” American lifestyle like the Lomans’ live. Willy Loman’s father became rich off of living in Alaska, an adventurous lifestyle, the exact opposite of what Willy was