Literary Analysis Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” â€...

What is man’s focus in life? What is man’s purpose in life? Is it materialism and/or the prospect of how others may view him? Should man put their trust in God’s Word the Bible or leave it up to himself? In â€Å"Death of a Salesman† by Arthur Miller, but is it correct to define this theatric drama as a tragedy. According to Klaas Tindemans, â€Å"Aristotle’s concept of tragedy has been perceived as both a descriptive and a normative concept: a description of a practice as it should be continued† therefore, Aristotle’s definition of tragedy could be considered complex. On the other hand, according to Tony Hunt in â€Å"The Tragedy of Roland†, â€Å"in the Poetics Aristotle is particularly concerned with capturing the essence of tragedy and its†¦show more content†¦By all accounts, â€Å"Death of a Salesman† reflects on our society as a whole. Some individuals are wealthy and living the American dream, some a re just trying the make ends meet, while others are living above their means. From cars to houses, everything is purchased using credit cards. However, what happens when the money dries up and/or the person loses his or her job, the person has no way of paying their bills. This is indeed a tragic state of affairs, but is it a tragedy as depicted by Aristotle? According to the text, Aristotle wrote that a tragedy â€Å"is the imitation in dramatic form of an action that is serious and complete, with incidents arousing pity and fear wherewith it effects a catharsis of such emotions†(1220). In other words, the characters portrayal in the drama brings about some intense emotions of pity or fear from the audience. According to Encarta.com, catharsis is defined as â€Å"emotional purification through Greek tragedy: according to Aristotle, a purifying of the emotions that is brought about in the audience of a tragic drama through the evocation of intense fear and pity†. Therefore, after reading â€Å"Death of a Salesman†, it indeed has brought about some intense feelings of pity and fear. The text goes on to define Aristotle definition of a tragic hero in six sections. The text states that the â€Å"chief characters are noble personages† (1220) with noble actions or â€Å"a man ofShow MoreRelatedWilly Loman, the Modern Hero in Arthur Millers Death of a Salesman1739 Words   |  7 Pages In Arthur Miller’s essay â€Å"Tragedy and the Common Man†, a picture is painted of a â€Å"flaw-full† man, known as the modern hero of tragedies. Miller describes what characteristics the modern tragic hero possesses and how he differs from the heroes depicted by classic Greek playwrights such as Sophocles and Aristotle. In order to understand how drastically the modern hero has evolved, one must first understand the basic characteristics that the heroes created by Sophocles and Aristotle encompass. TheRead MoreFailure Of The American Dream In The Writings Of F. Scott Fitzgerald, Zora Neale Hurston, And August Wilson1418 Words   |  6 PagesThis literary study will define the failure of the †American Dream† in the writings of F. Scott Fitzgerald, Arthur Miller, Zora Neale Hurston, and August Wilson. Fitzgerald’s account of the Jay Gatsby s rise to fame in the 1920s defines the failure of financial success as part of the American Dream. Gatsb y will eventually die due to his excessive greed, which is not unlike the emotional death of Willy Loman as he fails to become a successful salesman in Author Miller’s Death of a Salesman. MoreRead MoreArthur Miller s Death Of A Salesman1027 Words   |  5 PagesAn Analysis of Tragic Heroism of Biff Loman in Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller This literary study will define the tragic heroism of Biff Loman in Arthur Miller’s play The Death of a Salesman. Biff is initially a victim of Willy’s continual harassment to make more money and find a better career. In this family unit, Biff must endure the unrealistic and fantasy-based elusions of his father in his fanatical pursuit of the American Dream. However, Biff soon learns of Willy’s extra-marital betrayalRead MoreQuest For Literary Form : The Greeks Believed That The Tragedy1742 Words   |  7 PagesQuest for literary form The Greeks believed that the tragedy was the greatest form of drama, and Aristotle’s concept of tragedy followed this belief. In the modern times, there has been a change in this view with various authors abandoning the classical form to follow more liberal forms of literacy. (Kennedy Gioia, Pp. 1203) Aristotle s Concept of Tragedy The analysis of Aristotle on tragedy formed the guideline for later poets in the Western civilizationRead MoreDeath of a Salesman Analysis Essay2107 Words   |  9 Pageshowever, there has been much debate over whether or not the American dream is still obtainable in modern society. One piece of American literature that substantiates the fact that the American Dream can not be gotten is Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman which describes the tragedy of the average person in America. A number of other writers also draw the inability to capture the American Dream. John Steinbeck demonstrates in his highly acclaimed novel The Grapes of Wrath how hard economic times canRead MoreThe Changing Relationship Between Individual and Society in Modern Drama3272 Words   |  14 Pagesnonentity without rights outside the role of motherhood or marriage; In the 1930s and 40s, German-born writer Bertolt Brecht, produced a series of plays following ideologies common of Nih ilist and later Marxist values; Following the second world war, Arthur Miller wrote to American audiences that individuals and their society are equally damning forces on one another. By following Ibsen, Brecht and Miller, three authors from three different countries, backgrounds and time frames, it is possible to witness