· Symbolism in Death of a Salesman Essay. September 29, by Essay Writer. “Death of a Salesman” is a play written in by an American playwright, Arthur Miller. The play is based on both Miller’s personal experiences and the theatrical traditions in which he was instructed in. “Death of a salesman” revolves around the Loman family with Willy Loman, the father, who also works as a Estimated Reading Time: 8 mins Death of A Salesman is a play which reflects Willy Loman, an aging salesman who was pretty much happy and used to get satisfaction from his two sons at one time. Miller uses symbolism, which reflects his conflicting personality. Biff Loman and Happy · We will write a custom Essay on Symbolism in Death of a Salesman specifically for you. for only $ $11/page. certified writers online. Learn More. Willy Loman has indulged himself in a myth of being well-liked and being attractive to succeed in the business world
Symbolism In Death Of A Salesman By Arthur Miller: [Essay Example], words GradesFixer
Willy Loman has indulged himself in a myth of being well-liked and being attractive to succeed in the business world. He believes that personal talent is not as important and actually uses this myth against his neighbors and friends, Charley and Bernard, who he does not consider to be physically attractive. Due to this belief implanted in them, the Lomans lead an unpleasant and unfulfilled life while their neighbors enjoyed success. Willy is also in a delusional mental state and is caught in between the past and the present in which he keeps having hallucinations and reveries.
He lives in a flimsy fantasy world which is full of excuses death of a salesman symbolism essay daydreams as he desperately attempts to make sense of himself, his hopes and the world that once held so much promise. He acts as a representation of the ordinary man leading a fruitless life in a flourishing nation. Somehow, Willy reflects the dilemma of the common man fighting for his survival and trying to pay his bills yet live like everyone else.
This is mainly observed when he is caught in a dilemma on how to pay his last mortgage payment. Besides, Charley, his neighbor constantly gives him money to take home to his wife as if it was his salary as his salesman job is fluttering around him and he does not earn enough from it.
In one of their conversations, he even tells Charley that a gentleman is valuable more when he is departed than when he is living. He tries to offer Willy a job several times and even after Willy is fired, but Willy turns down the offers as he regards it as an insult to his image.
This confuses Charley, and he decides to leave him alone as he does not understand what is going on. These leaves are a representation of the leaves from the two elm trees which were situated next to the house in the early days. This was before Willy cut them down to build a hammock for him to relax with his family.
The trees were also cut down to pave the way for the development of the apartment blocks around their neighborhood. When Willy first moved into the neighborhood, the air was clean and fresh and the atmosphere, serene and quiet. However, in the present day, death of a salesman symbolism essay, development and construction of new apartments death of a salesman symbolism essay taken over, and the atmosphere is no longer the same, it been over-exploited and polluted.
In parts of the flashbacks, Biff and Happy are dressed in high school football sweaters. This is a symbol of the hope they had and the success that seemed so close during that time. Biff was the star of his high school football team death of a salesman symbolism essay was even invited to attend three universities during his senior year, death of a salesman symbolism essay. Bernard even begs Biff if he could death of a salesman symbolism essay his helmet as he goes for the Ebbets Field game in his senior year.
The jungle, which is constantly mentioned in connection to Ben, is symbolic of life. And by twenty-one, I walked out. And by God, I was rich! He asked Willy to go with him at the time but he refused, and that became the cause for deep regret for the rest of his life.
In the same context, there is an appearance of diamonds which symbolize success, death of a salesman symbolism essay.
Willy keeps wishing that he had followed Ben to Alaska and then Africa, then he might have been just as rich. Stockings are another form of symbolism depicted in the play. Willy gives the stockings that his wife mends, to his mistress as gifts, death of a salesman symbolism essay. He immediately gets angry and starts shouting at his wife, Linda, death of a salesman symbolism essay Bernard.
He even orders Linda to throw out the stockings and reprimands her for mending them. His infidelity also costs him his relationship with his son when Biff accidentally found Willy with his mistress. Biff is dejected, and he loses all respect for his father. Consequently, the guilt Willy feels is the cause of his tense relations with Biff and his disconcerted behavior around his wife. The recorder is another form of symbolism that is used in the play. When Willy goes to his boss, Howard Wagner, to try and get him to relocate him to the New York office, Wagner does not give him time to talk.
This recorder and the voices in it symbolize the success that Willy has always dreamed of and wished he had. Willy goes on and tells Wagner that he would get a recorder as well, which is a symbol of his pride since there is no way he could afford to buy one, death of a salesman symbolism essay.
Eventually, his boss does not listen to him, turns down his plea and ends up firing him. In the play, tennis rackets have also been used as a form of symbolism. Bernard is seen going to take part in tennis with an associate of his, who owns a tennis court. This symbolism is seen as ironic because a glimpse from the past projected that the Loman brothers would be the ones to be successful in the sports department. From the first act, Bernard would continuously be seen trying to intervene in Biffs academic life, death of a salesman symbolism essay, which death of a salesman symbolism essay did not seem bothered with as he was busy concentrating on his football vocation.
In the end, due to neglecting his grades, Biff ends up losing football as well, whereas Bernard, who focused more on his books, becomes successful even in sports. The flutes and flute music have been used to symbolize the far gone and good times when Willy was a stable person. They bring nostalgia and memories of the old times when he was younger and with great hope for immense success in the business world, comes the future.
For instance, in one of the scenes where Willy goes into a reverie, he is talking with his brother Ben about his father, who used to manufacture and sell flutes.
Willy is therefore left wondering why the same fate did not befall him as he believes that his family is of a thriving heritage. In the last Act, as the play is about to come to an end, Willy is seen planting seedlings in the garden. He plants the seeds in the hope that the garden will one day grow into something substantial enough in contrast to his life which he considers a failure, death of a salesman symbolism essay.
In the end, this deal he is talking about ends up being his life insurance. Through this, the audience can empathize with them and their situation. Need a custom Essay sample written from scratch by professional specifically for you?
certified writers online. Select a citation style:. Symbolism in Death of a Salesman. Learn More. We will write a custom Essay on Symbolism in Death of a Salesman specifically for you! Not sure if you can write a paper on Symbolism in Death of a Salesman by yourself? This essay on Symbolism in Death of a Salesman was written and submitted by your fellow student.
You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. Removal Request. If you are the copyright owner of this paper and no longer wish to have your work published on IvyPanda. GET WRITING HELP. Cite This paper. Select a citation style: Copy to Clipboard Copied! APA-6 MLA-8 Chicago N-B Chicago A-D Harvard.
Reference IvyPanda. Work Cited "Symbolism in Death of a Salesman. Bibliography IvyPanda. References IvyPanda. Copy to Clipboard Copied! Check the price of your paper. Stuck with your assignment? Do you need an essay to be done? How many pages words do you need? Let's see if we can help you! Yes Other assignment. Research Paper Report Case Study Assessment Discussion Board Post Other.
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller - Symbols
, time: 3:10Death of a Salesman: Symbols Essay - Words
Death of A Salesman is a play which reflects Willy Loman, an aging salesman who was pretty much happy and used to get satisfaction from his two sons at one time. Miller uses symbolism, which reflects his conflicting personality. Biff Loman and Happy · Topics: Symbolism, KILL, Failure Pages: 3 ( words) Published: December 6, When coming across acts 1 and 2 in The Death of the Salesman we have read through many symbolic objects and patterns in the novel Research Paper (essay): "Death of a Salesman Symbolism". Pages: , Words: Free Download. Text: Arthur Miller is a well renowned playwright who can control
No comments:
Post a Comment