Ask the Expert Tutor: Arthur Miller’s Death of A Salesman
In this week’s ‘Ask the Expert Tutor’, we have Laura, our Senior English & Humanities tutor, discussing Arthur Miller’s Death of A Salesman.
Miller & the thematic significance of ‘Salesman’
Few have conveyed the failings of modern American society as well as Miller consistently did, with works like Death of a Salesman and A View from the Bridge. The conventions of tragedy and theme of disillusionment in the ‘American Dream’ is common to many of his works, and in Salesman Miller communicates this by dramatising the psyche of the tragic ‘everyman’ Willy Loman. A ‘low’-man, Willy is a travelling salesman, obsessed with the American ideals of success and popularity, but has not achieved these goals himself. His physical and mental deterioration is hinted at from the outset, and Miller departs from a rigid realist form to show this throughout.
IB English sample response
Consider this IB English past paper question and a sample response:
“It is primarily through speech that a dramatic reveals who his characters are.” Comparing at least two of the plays you have studied, consider how, and to what extent, dramatists use speech in this way.
Both playwrights use the form of Greek tragedy to highlight a particular flaw in their respective protagonists, which leads to their downfalls. This device is more powerful than speech as it employs pathos. Furthermore, such hamartia has been used by dramatists since classical times, and is contrived and designed to structure a convincing tragedy. Shakespeare presents Macbeth as a man who is easily manipulated. This can be observed in Act I Scene III, where after the witches tell him he will be king, he says, “Stay, you imperfect speakers, tell me more.” Unlike Banquo’s immediate recognition of a clearly malign force, Macbeth begs to know more. Shakespeare’s use of the tragic form shows Macbeth’s weaknesses, but also serves to evoke pity and sadness in regard to Macbeth’s downfall. Similarly, Miller presents Willy’s tragic flaw as his unconditional belief in the American Dream and his popularity as a salesman is maintained even when all evidence points to the contrary. This is seen when he tells Linda that “Chevrolet, [...] is the greatest car ever built.” He takes immense pride in his material wealth, and derives self worth from it. Similar behaviour is seen further in the exchange, when Linda points out the irony in the fact that the washing machine which has “got the biggest ads of any of them” is broken. Willy simply responds, “It’s a fine machine, what else?”. Willy believes material possessions are an indicator of social status, and as a result is willing to ignore anything that may disrupt this vision of the American Dream. His hamartia sees its ultimate realisation in his suicide, so that his family can collect the life insurance money. Even in death he pursues material gain. Miller’s use of tragedy shows the downfall of the everyman and cautions the America of the late 1940s of the spiritual emptiness of the burgeoning age of mass high consumption. Both dramatists use aspects of the Greek tragic form which appeals to human emotion, and thus allows them to better communicate their message, and characterise their protagonists.
Is this a strong or weak IB English response?
What can we say about this response? First things first: it’s too long. Whether this is a comparative commentary set as homework or an exam response, the IB student tries to include too many points in one breath. However, other than this the response has obvious merits: it has a clear topic sentence, answers the ‘to what extent’ question by considering other alternatives, and contrasts form through Shakespearean and Greek conventions of tragedy. Additionally, the in-text quotations are relevant and developed as part of the argument, with high-level analyses that draw in-depth reference to context. However, the difference between the tragedy as a form and the speech used to convey these tragic insights is not sufficiently treated.
Paying attention to form
When I tutor this play, it is usually at IB level, and in the context of comparative writing (usually taught alongside Shakespeare’s Macbeth). With my IB students, I make sure to tutor the context of the play and its form as a starting point. Tragedy is a classical form of literature, which at its core contemplates the nature of human suffering and destiny in relation to the universe. Arthur Miller inherits his form clearly from this tradition. Rather than the typical Shakespearean tragedy however, which places more emphasis on the individual as the ultimate source of their tragic downfall, Miller’s Salesman is more reminiscent of a Greek tragedy, which portrays helplessness and insignificance in the face of a colossal power that controls (and destroys) human life. This fatalistic view, along with dramatic conventions such as the presence of a chorus (Willy’s neighbours) and absence of the deus ex machina, therefore makes Salesman more of a conventional Greek tragedy, and speaks to Miller’s critique of American society as a vengeful, apathetic god of Fate.
Teaching ‘Salesman’ to IB English students
IB drama exam questions typically involve thematic or character analysis, and with tragedies in particular the tragic hero is the primary point of analysis. That’s why when I tutor Salesman to my IB students, I start by breaking down the character of Willy Loman. Willy Loman is characterised as a modern “everyman”, and in varying degrees through him and his family Miller indicates the spiritually devoid nature of postwar American society, in which material wealth and idealism are destructive arbiters of value and meaning. When I tutor Salesman from a comparative angle, usually with Macbeth, it ultimately revolves around how playwrights employ conventions of form and character to convey their purpose.
For individualised support on Salesman or IB English in general, contact a BartyED IB tutor today!