Death of a Salesman (Magill’s Choice: American Ethnic Writers)
At a glance:
- Author: Arthur Miller
- First Published: 1949
- Genres: Social realism, Drama, Tragedy
- Subjects: New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Parents and children, Suicide, Twentieth century, New York City, 1940’s, Yards or backyards, American Dream, Fathers, Death or dying, Sales personnel, Selling
- Locales: Boston, MA, Brooklyn, NY
The Work
Death of a Salesman, widely regarded as Arthur Miller’s best and most important play, chronicles the downfall and suicide of Willy Loman, a ceaselessly struggling New England salesman driven by dreams of success far greater than he can achieve. Almost a classical tragedy in its form, Death of a Salesman has provoked much controversy due to the unheroic nature of its protagonist. Although the play, like its Greek forebears, conveys a sense of the inevitability of fate, Willy himself possesses no greatness in either achievement or status. Willy’s sheer...
[The entire page is 759 words long]
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