Name : Maula Akhadin
NIM : A 320080273
Class : H
The Death of Salesman
1. The Characters
NIM : A 320080273
Class : H
The Death of Salesman
1. The Characters
a. Willy Loman is an individual who craves attention and is governed by a desire for success and as an aging salesman.
b. Linda Loman Willy Loman's wife. She is Willy's champion and takes it upon herself to reconcile her family.
c. Biff Loman The Lomans' older son. Biff is the only member of the family who knows about Willy's affair, and he resents his father bitterly.
d. Happy Loman The Lomans' younger son. Happy is a womanizer driven by his sexuality.
e. Uncle Ben Willy's older brother. He made a fortune in the African jungle by the time he was 21 years old.
f. Charley A long-time acquaintance of the Lomans. Charlie is a true friend to Willy, even though Willy is jealous of him.
g. Bernard Charley's son. He is a successful lawyer.
h. The Woman Willy's former lover, with whom he had an affair many years ago in Boston.
I. Howard Wagner Willy's current boss. Howard is a businessman, unaffected by the facts that Willy worked for his father and named him as a child.
j. Jenny Charley's secretary.
k. Stanley A waiter.
l. Miss Forsythe and Letta Young prostitutes.
2. Plot
Most good stories start with a fundamental list of ingredients: the initial situation, conflict, complication, climax, suspense, denouement, and conclusion. Great writers sometimes shake up the recipe and add some spice.
3. Setting
Death of a Salesman takes place in New York and Boston, at a Manhattan restaurant.
4. Style
Tragedy
There is much discussion of whether Death of a Salesman can be considered a tragedy. ‘Tragedy’ as a form was defined by the Greek playwright Aristotle in 330 BCE. He defined a tragic character . Language , the use of language in Death of a Salesman is entirely Realistic. Miller’s dialogue is carefully constructed to follow the exact speech patterns of ordinary New Yorkers. It is very dense and fast, with repetitions, hesitations, and contradictions. The characters often use slang and clichés .
5. Theme/issue
Willy is deteriorating and suicidal, Biff is told to get serious.
Here comes the conflict, right on schedule. Willy’s mental wanderings are getting worse; he is preoccupied with Biff’s aimlessness and inability to find success in business. Linda informs her sons that Willy has been trying to commit suicide and tells Biff that his father’s life is in his hands. Biff needs to get a job and get serious or take the blame for his father’s actions.
6. Conclusion
Biff rejects his father’s misguided dream, but Happy runs with it.
At the conclusion of the play, it is totally clear that Willy was wrong about himself. Not that we ever thought otherwise, but practically no one comes to his funeral. Biff now realizes that his father didn’t know himself and picked the wrong path. He will certainly not follow in his father’s footsteps. Happy, on the other hand, defends his father’s misguided dreams and decides to take them on himself. MAN VS SOCIETY
c. Biff Loman The Lomans' older son. Biff is the only member of the family who knows about Willy's affair, and he resents his father bitterly.
d. Happy Loman The Lomans' younger son. Happy is a womanizer driven by his sexuality.
e. Uncle Ben Willy's older brother. He made a fortune in the African jungle by the time he was 21 years old.
f. Charley A long-time acquaintance of the Lomans. Charlie is a true friend to Willy, even though Willy is jealous of him.
g. Bernard Charley's son. He is a successful lawyer.
h. The Woman Willy's former lover, with whom he had an affair many years ago in Boston.
I. Howard Wagner Willy's current boss. Howard is a businessman, unaffected by the facts that Willy worked for his father and named him as a child.
j. Jenny Charley's secretary.
k. Stanley A waiter.
l. Miss Forsythe and Letta Young prostitutes.
2. Plot
Most good stories start with a fundamental list of ingredients: the initial situation, conflict, complication, climax, suspense, denouement, and conclusion. Great writers sometimes shake up the recipe and add some spice.
3. Setting
Death of a Salesman takes place in New York and Boston, at a Manhattan restaurant.
4. Style
Tragedy
There is much discussion of whether Death of a Salesman can be considered a tragedy. ‘Tragedy’ as a form was defined by the Greek playwright Aristotle in 330 BCE. He defined a tragic character . Language , the use of language in Death of a Salesman is entirely Realistic. Miller’s dialogue is carefully constructed to follow the exact speech patterns of ordinary New Yorkers. It is very dense and fast, with repetitions, hesitations, and contradictions. The characters often use slang and clichés .
5. Theme/issue
Willy is deteriorating and suicidal, Biff is told to get serious.
Here comes the conflict, right on schedule. Willy’s mental wanderings are getting worse; he is preoccupied with Biff’s aimlessness and inability to find success in business. Linda informs her sons that Willy has been trying to commit suicide and tells Biff that his father’s life is in his hands. Biff needs to get a job and get serious or take the blame for his father’s actions.
6. Conclusion
Biff rejects his father’s misguided dream, but Happy runs with it.
At the conclusion of the play, it is totally clear that Willy was wrong about himself. Not that we ever thought otherwise, but practically no one comes to his funeral. Biff now realizes that his father didn’t know himself and picked the wrong path. He will certainly not follow in his father’s footsteps. Happy, on the other hand, defends his father’s misguided dreams and decides to take them on himself. MAN VS SOCIETY
