At first The Awakening and Death of a Salesman seem to have nothing in common, but at a deeper insight one sees that both protagonists' are much more similar than thought to have been. Both Willy and Edna share one thing in common, their lives are full of success, failure, lies and rejection .These four elements become a dangerous mix when it drives each to consider suicide as escape from their problems.
             Willy and Edna's lives revolve around lies and deceit, but for very different reasons. Edna's deceitful life is unintentional while Willy's isn't. Edna's expectations as a wife are to perform her duties and care for the health and happiness of her family. Because of this she's restraint from becoming her true self and seeking the satisfaction she desires. Edna only lives in a lie because it's what been instilled in her, to be a good wife in order to fulfill her expectations from society. On the other hand, Willy's deceiving life is fabricated by him in order to mask the true horrible nature of it. For example, throughout the play Willy's mental health seems to be unstable. He goes in and out of a conscious state, but does not want to realize how bad his mental health has become. When his peers notice he lies and assures everyone that he is fine when the truth is just the opposite.
             Willy throughout the play never faces the awakening of knowing his true self unlike Edna. He never fully realizes or accepts that his family will never surmount to his high expectations. The Loman family is just regular and middle class with no true unique essence, but Willy cannot bear the truth of what he really is. Even when Biff confronts him with the concept that he will never be anything more than just a "low man," Willy can't seem to acquire the thought and rejects it. Edna, on the other hand, does awake from her innocent mentality when she discovers that s
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