Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman shows the dangers of capitalism to the
common man, the lie that is the American Dream, and how the only right way to
conduct a society is that of the Marxist regime. The story centers on Willy
Loman, a common businessman who begins to run out of money because he loses his
salary from his job. Willy’s son Biff, a football prodigy, cannot find a
prosperous job because of flunking a math exam, and turns to stealing to make a
living. These characters struggle to make a living due to the unfairness of
society and the oppression on them by those who are rich. For example, when
Willy asks his boss to put him back on salary, his boss declines. This is due
to the boss not wanting to have to take money out of his pocket to pay the old
man. In addition, Biff, who also is looking for a job, is declined by his boss.
Both of these characters, who have very little to their name, were declined by
the greedy bosses of their society.
Also, Willy’s American Dream, which is shown in his
flashbacks and his dreams, does not come to fruition, as shown by his family’s
failure. For example, when Willy flashes back to a conversation about Biff’s
classmate Bernard, Willy says that Bernard, despite being a math whiz, will not
be able to make it into the business world because he is not nearly as interesting
as Biff (Act I). In actuality, Biff fails his father, and the American Dream
turns into a very difficult lifestyle for Biff.
In the end of the story, Willy’s
suicide shows the consequences of the stress that work in capitalist society
causes. Willy, after receiving reassurance that his family is still alive,
decides to kill himself, because he feels that the insurance money they will receive
from his suicide is far greater than the wealth they can receive from his life.
Ironically, before this event, Linda, Willy’s wife, reveals that they will not receive
insurance money because they know that Willy’s “accidents” are not really
accidents (Act II). The plight of the American Dream causes Willy to think
irrationally, and make a poor decision financially and mentally for his family.
Overall
this story proves that Capitalism is a terrible form of economy. Had Marxism
been in this society, Willy would not have lost his base salary. Also, Biff
would have received a job, whether he had flunked out of math or not. Miller
wrote this story to show how capitalism and the false hope of the American
Dream caused the Death of a Salesman.
