Willy's Final Meeting with Charlie Is the Most Important Aspect in Millers "Death of a Salesman"
Choose one episode from Death of a Salesman, which you feel contributes significantly to the plays overall tragic dimension. Identify how your chosen episode functions within the wider framework of the whole play. Discuss different interpretative possibilities offered by this episode.
Charley is the play’s saving grace, a beacon of hope in cruel capitalistic times, he is always offering Willy escape. My chosen episode is Willy’s final visit to Charley. Within this scene Miller not only brings home Willy’s failure as a salesman and father, but the devastating effect of capitalism on the common man. The comparison between Charley and Willy makes the play’s key moments sting even more with the realisation of their unfairness and inevitability.
Within this scene Miller plays with the parallels between the two men, brutally juxtaposing them by playing Willy’s desperate wish for Biff to continue his legacy against Charley’s success in Bernard (whom he has, apparently, given little interest to). The effect of Bernard’s success on Willy is devastating, I believe it immediately adds tragedy as Willy finally admits to himself that Biff won’t succeed, and one could argue that this truly breaks Willy’s heart. Miller turns the audience from sympathy to frustration by alluding to the events in Boston (which also has the effect of increasing tension). With Willy’s rejection of Charley’s job offers, I believe Miller is implying that capitalism has forced Willy to put his pride before his needs; he rejects this final chance of escape to satisfy his pride. One could argue that by doing this Miller is suggesting that there are no problems within the play which are not caused or increased by capitalism. On the other hand one could argue that Willy is ignoring the perfectly good escape routes that surround him, something suggested by Miller’s original title “The Inside of his Head” which implies the problems are of Willy’s own making. With Willy’s rejection of this escape route
Charley is the play’s saving grace, a beacon of hope in cruel capitalistic times, he is always offering Willy escape. My chosen episode is Willy’s final visit to Charley. Within this scene Miller not only brings home Willy’s failure as a salesman and father, but the devastating effect of capitalism on the common man. The comparison between Charley and Willy makes the play’s key moments sting even more with the realisation of their unfairness and inevitability.
Within this scene Miller plays with the parallels between the two men, brutally juxtaposing them by playing Willy’s desperate wish for Biff to continue his legacy against Charley’s success in Bernard (whom he has, apparently, given little interest to). The effect of Bernard’s success on Willy is devastating, I believe it immediately adds tragedy as Willy finally admits to himself that Biff won’t succeed, and one could argue that this truly breaks Willy’s heart. Miller turns the audience from sympathy to frustration by alluding to the events in Boston (which also has the effect of increasing tension). With Willy’s rejection of Charley’s job offers, I believe Miller is implying that capitalism has forced Willy to put his pride before his needs; he rejects this final chance of escape to satisfy his pride. One could argue that by doing this Miller is suggesting that there are no problems within the play which are not caused or increased by capitalism. On the other hand one could argue that Willy is ignoring the perfectly good escape routes that surround him, something suggested by Miller’s original title “The Inside of his Head” which implies the problems are of Willy’s own making. With Willy’s rejection of this escape route
Bibliography: Miller Shorts Death of a Salesman Tragedy and the Common Man. http://shakespeare.nuvvo.com/lesson/4435-elements-of-a-tragic-hero-in-literature Word Count = 1,535