Higher level essay

English A: Language and Literature

Line of inquiry: How does Arthur Miller represent morality in a capitalistic society in his

play Death of a Salesman, to portray the fall of human values?

Concept: Representation

Convocatory: November 2023

Student code: Kqy877

Word Count: 1461

 While the transition to a postmodern society has ushered in significant economic,

technological, and social developments, the cost of these changes may produce a sense of

futility in an individual's life. Considering Miller's perspective in his play Death of a

Salesman, he represents the fall of human values ​and the transition from postmodern

ideologies in terms of moral dilemmas to stand out how the capitalist system has reduced

society to a mechanical and empty lifestyle, portraying the obsession with material success

and questioning the true meaning of happiness and self-acceptance.

Death of a Salesman is considered one of Miller's masterpieces, his inventive theatrical

elements allow the audience to entail over the harsh reality of a society that often neglects to

recognize the intrinsic value of individuals beyond their economic worth. Even though it was

written in a 20th-century American capitalism context, it still speaks powerfully to audiences

today remarking on the uncertainty of the future and the feeling of constant failure. This

powerful portrayal of a timeless human dilemma (Centola, 1993) makes the audience find

multiple critiques of an individual's reality, beginning from a psychological, sociological, and

even philosophical point of view. This leads me to address the capitalist minimization of

individual's lifestyles from the culture and ideologies of American society perspective, in

which I will explore the moral consequences of following a relentless pursuit of material

wealth and societal validation through the use of theatrical elements in Arthur Miller play

Death of a Salesman.

It is essential to recognize how the use of stage directions during the play reveals the

transformation of a merchandised society. At the beginning of the first act, Miller presents a

precise setting description of how Willy's house is saturated by the city, using the term:

fragile-seeming home (pg.4), highlighting how the surrounding apartments have emerged to

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cover the house. This symbol of urban encroachment and overwhelming industrialization

through the home exemplifies the decline of the natural sense and the increasing

individualization of humans in a relentless pursuit of material success. Furthermore, Willy

feels that he has been boxed with bricks and windows, and as Miller himself mentions: Willy

is seeking a kind of ecstasy in life which the machine civilization deprives people of (Miller,

1975). Leading us to comprehend how he struggles against a world driven by consumerism

and social pressures that he has always wanted to be a part of. This loss of Willy's natural

lifestyle invites the audience to reflect on the consequences of a capitalized system and the

significant search for happiness and freedom.

Miller explores the consequences of pursuing a life of material success, by establishing

a space between realism and expressionism to navigate between Willy's tangible reality as a

failed salesman and the symbolic dimensions of his psyche. Through the use of analepsis, the

chronological sequence of the play is altered by the character's memories of the past. Willy

sticks to these delusions to escape from his reality and inability to achieve a higher status,

since it is the only way to fulfill the expectations of a postmodern society. Additionally, when

he submerged himself through time, Miller uses expressionist elements such as bright colors,

nature, and the vivid representation of feelings. His disconnection with reality portrays the

struggle to find the meaning of a successful life in a world that constantly strips him of his

dignity. This stylistic choice conveys the complexity of Willy's inner and physical world,

thanks to a Nonlinear-plot that represents the dangers of idealizing material success.

The music in Death of a Salesman has an oneiric and symbolic implication to represent

morality in terms of a postmodern lifestyle. During the scenes, the sound of the flute as a

motif is used as a reminder of Willy's father, who was a flute salesman highlighting the limit

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of his freedom in contrast to that of his father, who did fulfill his dreams. Willy's obsession

with the commercial world of the city has submerged him in an unpleasant reality that does

not allow him to be like his father, free. On the other hand, music also appears when Willy

enters a delusional state. This signal as a change of scene shows us how Willy tries to connect

with his past to find answers and understand the mistake he made. The problem departs from

Willy's version of success, which assumes that success will come by itself from appearances

and being well-liked by others. Therefore, the music evokes specific emotions in the play as

nostalgia and melancholy, where the audience can reflect on the expectations of empty

dreams without human values.

Throughout the characters' dialogue, the play presents the realization and development

of Biff's character as a symbol of transformation. For example, in the first act, Biff mentions:

Because we don't belong in this nuthouse of a city! We should be mixing cement on some

open plain or carpenters. A carpenter is allowed to whistle! (pg.43). In a capitalist system,

standards have been established for how to behave in society. Biff does not want his freedom

and identity to be taken away by these standards. Therefore, the audience can reflect on their

values within society through Biff's struggle to shed the mask of being a salesman and live up

to his father's expectations. Critic Irving Jacobson points out that: Willy habitually deflects

consciousness of his sons, he cannot accept Biff’s way of life in the West on its terms but

tries to reabsorb him into a business-oriented culture. As a result, we see how the dialogues

allow an experience of emotions through the characters and argue the message. Miller wants

to convey the moral dilemma of following the expectations of others and how they limit

self-acceptance and the true pursuit of happiness.

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 Biff's character is a clear example of the reduction of society to a mechanical and

empty lifestyle. Miller uses a monologue as an introspective tool that allows an intense

connection with the character's inferiority and psychology. “I stopped in the middle of that

building and I saw — the sky. I saw the things that I love in this world. The work and the

food and time to sit and smoke” (pg.98). Biff realizes that he has been happy working on

farms, out in the open, and how the simplicity of natural things gives meaning to his life.

Biff's monologue allows the audience to question the value of nature and its connection with

the human being. In addition, Biff also questions himself, “Why am I trying to become what

I don’t want to be? What am I doing in an office, making a contemptuous, begging fool of

myself, when all I want is out there” (pg.98). Giving the powerful reminder of the necessity

of reevaluating our priorities in the face of an ever-changing society, which shows the

transformation of Biff's character and realization of being trapped in a world that does not

offer him full happiness, but rather a superficial and contaminating lifestyle.

The fear of prejudice and the false pride that Miller points out in Willy’s character

make him form an irony with his death. Willy becomes a tragic hero when he thinks that the

insurance money from his death would allow Biff to fulfill the American dream. Unlike Biff,

Willy never comprehended the true meaning of happiness because he believed that success

would magically come to him, regardless of his efforts or ambitions. Willy thought that the

sacrifice of his suicide would be seen as a heroic decision for his family, although his death

stills being ironic since his actual intention was to escape from the trap he had created for

himself. Through the course of the play, the term “Well-liked” highlights the unrealistic

expectations of success that Willy always tried to follow, which according to Field (1972)

“He lives in a morally incoherent universe” given by the social pressure that led him to lose

his identity. As Biff mentions: He had the wrong dreams (pg.103): which caused him to seek

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social validation, leaving aside his morals as a husband and father since he only focused on

empty goals. Willy's obsession with the commercial world trapped him in an unpleasant

reality, leading him to make cowardly decisions and lose his sense of human values.

To conclude, we can see how the theatrical elements used by Miller helped the

audience to build an image and testify to the fall of modern society. As well as consolidates

skillful storytelling which unifies main themes such as the American dream, social criticism,

and psychological study, which allowed a representation of morality based on commercialism

and superficiality, highlighting the negative effects of the capitalistic system on human values

and challenging the audience to question the true meaning of happiness and self-acceptance

in the context of postmodern ideology. Overall, the use of dramatic devices, such as a

monologue, stage directions, style, dialogue, etc. provides a powerful critique of the morality

of a system that measures success by its material possessions and external validation.

Bibliographical references:

● Centola, S. R. (1993). FAMILY VALUES IN “DEATH OF A SALESMAN.” CLA

Journal, 37(1), 29–41. http://www.jstor.org/stable/44329526

● Field, B. S. (1972). Hamartia in Death of a Salesman. Twentieth Century Literature,

18(1), 19–24. https://doi.org/10.2307/440691

● Jacobson, I. (1975). Family Dreams in Death of a Salesman. American Literature,

47(2), 247–258. https://doi.org/10.2307/2925484

● Martin, R. A. (1996). The Nature of Tragedy in Arthur Miller’s “Death of a

Salesman.” South Atlantic Review, 61(4), 97–106. https://doi.org/10.2307/3201170

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● Miller, Arthur. (1996). Death of a salesman. New York: Penguin Books.

● Miller, A., & Gelb, P. (1958). Morality and Modern Drama. Educational Theatre

Journal, 10(3), 190–202. https://doi.org/10.2307/3216759