The Role Of Dreams In Death Of A Salesman
To be able to understand the importance of the role of dreams in the play, we should first look into Arthur Miller's intentions in writing it. From reading the play we can see that it is an attack on capitalism and the American way of life. The capitalist system undoubtedly reaps its rewards, but the play shows its downfalls through Willy Loman and his family. Willy has run his course in the business world and been as much use to the system as he can be; despite his loyalties he is then cast aside by the ruthlessness of a system that is now alien to him. Willy is a failed businessman, and lifts a veil of deceit over this fact to try and hide it from himself as well as those around him.Arthur Miller himself was a victim of the capitalist way of life, as in 1956 he was found guilty of communism and trying to undermine the American way of life. The play, however, is not about capitalism or communism as such but more about a tragic character, whose lack of self-knowledge and sudden realisation that time has taken away his dreams and success, leads to his inevitable downfall.There are three dreams or ideals at work within the play. The first is the 'American Dream'. This dream was and is still a popular one in America; it is a
And I know that's just what I would do. Still, any amount of success would never be enough for him. Because the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets ahead. We see these talents are ripe for using with his household maintenance; he puts up a ceiling in the living room of his house - which Charley is genuinely impressed by. You finally own it, and there's nobody to live in it. However, his beliefs were faulty as well as trite, as we all saw when Bernard, who wasn't very "well liked," achieved the American dream. He became so obsessed with living the dream that he was unable to be content with his talents in carpentry and with his family. Both Willy and Happy strive to follow this dream, and in the play we see Willy fall foul of it and Happy following his lead. Willy believes the key to life and achieving the American dream is being well liked. First the American Dream and its false values, which are highlighted by Miller due to his resentment of them, then the Dream of the Great Outdoors, though not something that Miller is known of liking or disliking, he shows it as the better alternative for the Loman family.
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