Critical Essay on Imagery in the Death of a Salesman

Introduction

Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman," is a significant play that major on the story's protagonist Willy Loman to highlight some of the American values. The play is a critique of the great American dream, in Miller uses Willy to criticize individuals' false values and dreams in life. The incorrect values are a representation of the American dream, which is also manifested in his son, Happy. The Hidayat States that "Willy forgets, or rather does not understand, the reality of the environment he lives in, and is deceived into clinging to fantasies and following what the author portrays as unachievable dreams, and is encouraged to do so by his wife Linda and his son Happy"(29). The author ridicules the American values through Willy who believed and told his children that success being famous and being liked by many people. Miller uses Willy view of success and the lost sense of self-respect to represent aspects of true value. This is informed by what Willy identifies as the American value by considering factors such as being popular as the measure of success. This paper, therefore, analyses the American dream, which is brought out in the imagery used by the author mainly through Willy Loman and other characters such as Biff among others.

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Willy Loman: The Representation of False American Values

Willy represents most American's living with the mindset that achieving is subject to recognition and with minimal consideration of their current situations. Willy does not accept who he is and feels that his reputation and physical competence are the ultimate abilities for achievement. Willy's perception makes his children chose different paths with his elder son Biff representing persons who do not care about false dreams, but they are mainly concerned with real things they are facing. The author distances himself from the ideology through characters such as Biff and Dave single man who become successful through dedication and work hard. As posited by Jacobson, Biff represents possibilities in life that woman had long for and could not achieve. Jacobson states that "Biff was surrounded by admiring classmates and the Ebbets field game by cheering crowds and brilliant sunlight" (249). The author also uses Ben, Willy's brother as a representation of values that most people have failed to achieve because they are embodied in false dreams which do not conform to the reality in within the society. The author states that "Ben was more capable of becoming at ease in the world than Loman..." (250). Therefore, through the above characters, the author portrays individuals who stick to values that are informed by certain societal believes and limits them from achieving the things that they desire.

Biff's Awakening: Recognizing the Illusion of Willy's Dream

Biff comes to learn that his father was disillusioned and guided by false dreams. Therefore, Biff represents the need to acknowledge the reality and stop being driven by wrong thoughts, which has landed his father into committing suicide. Biff realizes that there is more to life than being known and liked. Biff says, "He had the wrong dream, all, all wrong"(40). This comes after the vision that his father held for him is shuttered. He would have embarked on things that would have helped him achieve his dream, but because he had believed the words of his father, it did not work out for him. Miller uses this to highlight the effects of the American dream, guided by false values. Willy being the head of his house, had a lot of influence on what his family became. This is also true in the author's representation of Willy house, which symbolizes dreams that won't be fulfilled. Sometimes an idea is shuttered not because people fail to recognize what it takes to achieve them but due to the influence that of other people. Loman's children had a bright future which was contaminated by their father's false values, but learns early and were able to succeed.

A positive vision does not guide Willy's decision to become a salesman that through dedication and hard work, he could make it in his new venture, and as such Willy represent false beliefs. His conclusion is rather driven by the wrong belief, that following the footsteps of his father would guarantee him success. Willy Loman's father was a salesman who made it in life through the sale of handcrafted flutes. His dream about success is further strengthened by his brother, who describes their father, as a man who was a great inventor by made it through the sale of a single commodity. According to Diamond, Ben is the exact opposite of Willy he got encouraged by the conduct of their father, and he realizes that it through hard work that their father was able to make in life (108). Ben's illustration of their father is not understood by Willy who remains glued in the wrong perception that following his father's business venture and recognition then he would succeed, and it's not usually the case as seen in the story. People succeed in different ways, and it's usually not guaranteed that following what made one person succeed, then that would be the case with another person. It demands dedications of efforts towards seeing that what one invests his effort succeeds. Willy causes the downfall of his family because, as a father, he was behind what his family turned out to be.

The Role of Other Characters in Exposing False Dreams and Values

The author uses Loman and Dave Singleman to distinguish between two values. Dave singleman as an eight-year-old made it as a salesman and Willy failed because he felt that success is arrived at from nothing. Singleman does not seek recognition, but he dedicated his efforts in seeing that the business succeeds. Dave singleman image had absolute power in Willy's life, and Centola states that "the nature and extent of his prominence were succinctly was illustrated in his ability to sit in a hotel room and make his living by phone"(39). Willy considers how singleman conducts his business as the most significant venture ever. He does not consider other factors that might have contributed to Dave's success. He believed that his success was based on personality and respect. Dave singleman had, spent a lot with years with hard work and dedication to making as a salesman. Failure to contribute to Dave's success, he remains grounded on the belief that anyone who possesses the qualities will become successful. Willy regarded popularity over acceptance. Notably, correct values call for the appreciation reality aspects of life, and commonly, when people fail to recognize the certain values, they opt for things such as murder as way failing to get what they wanted.

The Delusion of Popularity and Possession in Willy's American Dream

The delusion of looking at popularity and possession of individual character as a tool for success is a false dream represented by Willy. He fails to understand why Biff, as a footballer is not successful despite his popularity, and this makes him together and his son to fail to be successful. He separates himself from reality and fails to recognize being prosperous calls for other aspects. Miller portrays the difference between Willy's perceived true values and what the actual true value should be. Diamond postulates that the author indicates what constitutes success, and it does not merely have certain qualities does not indicate that an individual is meant to be successful (108). Also, Miller criticizes the American dream of success, mainly implying material wealth. He is the reason why Biff failed to fulfill his football career. He leads his children to live a lie. That is, they grow up knowing that their father was a successful man. Consequently, they have a false dream that they will also be successful. The false dream led to Biff, not striving to achieve his best in what he was doing.

The author criticizes the American dream, which vests in the belief that one can succeed due to his or her personality with minimal regard for self-worth. Therefore, Willy represents the lack of self-worth because his beliefs he was meant to be rich because he is known by people who were successful in the United States and England. He fails to recognize that his future depended on various elements, and hence, to achieve whatever he wanted, he had to work hard. He does not encourage his children to work, but lures them in the false dreams that his fame would make it easier for the children to succeed. This is evident when he explains to his boys that American and Europe comprises of different towns and that he was well known in those areas (Jacobson 30). He does not acknowledge the reality that he was struggling and tries to lure his sons into the same struggle by giving them the false hope that his popularity would make their lives better. Biff regrets not achieving all that he wanted because he had been in his father's illusion, which made him despise orders from anyone and contemplates that it was the reason for the predicaments he was encountering. Also, the author uses loman to demonstrate the power of false dreams because Loman's illusion is what lands his son, Happy, thinking in the same way as his father which hinders him from achieving the things that he wanted.

The American Dream as a Limiting Factor in Success: Lessons from the Loman Family

Willy is a representation of the American dream that limits the success of his entire family. Although his son Biff chooses another path, this happens after his false father values have affected the attainment of the dreams that he wanted to realize. On the other hand, Biff symbolizes liberalism that most children in families are currently doing to achieve what they want by choosing their paths. However, this is not the case with the second born son who emulates the life of his father with the perception that he did not want his father's legacy to die. When talking to Biff, he says, "he fought it out there, and this is where I'm gonna win it for him."(130) Therefore, the two children play a role in the story because they distinguish between different beliefs and principles. For instance, Biff is concerned with living in reality, while Happy believes in his father's illusion of false dreams. The two children juxtapose two values. Loman firstborn son breaks from the false thinking and dedicates in leaving in reality. The story is typical of American values where children will mostly follow careers that their parents want. This happens because of minimal consideration of the children's aspiration. Here, such values imparted to children by the parents are sometimes not good and thus, limits the children capability to succeed.

Willy had the opportunity to venture into another business but simply decides to follow his father, who used to sale flutes. He believed that his father was successful because he used to move from one place to another. Willy withdrawal from reality is what creates the predicament that he lands into, the author states that "instead of approaching the profession in the manner of one who understands the demands of the business world...he convinces himself that his success or failure in business depends on his family perception of him" (33). He does consider the odds or the benefits that he was about to engage in. He extends his beliefs to his family, which ends up negatively impacting the lives of his two sons. When talking to Ben, he says he does not realize that ben lived in true dreams and was through hard work that he achieved all that he had earned. Living the American dream where individuals measure success by the amount of recognition made Loman consider people like Dave singleman as successful because he simply conducted his business through the phone because most people knew him.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the American dream brought forward miller is false values, which are symbolized by different characters and continues to drive American society. The author demonstrates how specific values affect families through the effects of Loman's false dreams on his two sons. Happy, Loman's second son decides to follow his father's dream and refuses to acknowledge that their father had lied to them that he was successful yet he was not.