Willy Loman and John Proctor as Arthur Miller's Tragic Heroe
Arthur Miller is a talented and well-known playwright. Over the years, he has produced many plays; each addressing different issues, time periods, and historical events. Two of his most well known works are Death of a Salesman and The Crucible. Miller states in his essay "Tragedy and the Common Man" that "the feeling is evoked in us when we are in his life, if need be, to secure one thing - his sense of personal dignity." He goes on to say that "the underlying struggle is that of the individual attempting to gain his "rightful" position in his society." This is Miller's personal definition of a tragic hero. Although set in different centuries, and societies, what allows these two plays to be similar is the presentation of a character who is ready to do just that, lay down their life in pursuit of personal dignity. Both Will Loman, in The Death of a Salesman and John Proctor of The Crucible are willing to sacrifice their lives for the sole reason of dignity, and self-righteousness. This, in itself, provides an explanation of them as tragic heroes. In order to decipher and define Will Loman and John Proctor, one must first truly understand a brief description of each story. The Crucible is set in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692. T
Willy describes Dave's life intricately proving how much he truly focused on self worth as materials, acceptance, belongings, and quantity of "life" rather than values, personality, and quality of life. It is evident by his demeanor throughout the play that he doesn't care what people say or do to him, because only he needs to know the truth. He pondered and agonized over the idea of how he could on and show his face among the top of the city, no one would like him anymore, no one would accept him anymore. This pride, and self-righteousness, their pursuit and attempt to save there own personal dignity eventually leads to their tragic downfall. His value and persistence of the truth is evident in Act IV,3"It is my name! I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How many I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!"Proctor values his integrity and what he believes is the truth so much that he would sacrifice it all, his life, his soul, everything to save his self-dignity and disgrace to his name, truly tragic. The morning of his death, he was asked to sign a paper admitting to the accusations in exchange for his life. This value of honesty, to some, could be considered hi tragic flaw. he town is rampaged by accusations of witchcraft among the townspeople. When accusations and lies run through the town, Proctor does not follow the talk of witchcraft. Willy Loman lives his life looking for the "right" place, living a lie. Willy's ides of life and society is twisted. "If I had forty dollars a week - that's all I need (Act II). Elizabeth tries to protect and save John, while he does the same for her. His major downfall came when he was fired and could no longer afford insurance.
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