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Death Of A Salesman Essay

825 Words4 Pages

The American Dream has been the ideology for many immigrants, and Americans ever since 1931. James Truslow was the hisotrian who coined the phrase, “The American Dream”. Ever since the American Dream has been something that people aspire to have. It can be different for many, but to many it is the outline of what they want to achieve. However, this American Dream is getting more difficult day by day to achieve. In the tragedy, Death of a Salesman, written by Arthur Miller, the death of the American Dream is apparent, especially when we are shown the economic status of salesman Willy Loman. In the tragedy, Willy Loman, is a potrayed as a failed salesman who struggles to pay his bills and get through his life. His life is a great portrayal …show more content…

in his old age…take his salary away” (56). Wily is no longer making sufficient money, or money at all anymore and this is causing a strain on the Loman finicals. It also doesn’t help that Biff can’t hold a job and that Happy over exaggerates his success in the business world. The Loman’s are struggling to make it in this world and this is the main example of how the American dream is dying. The American dream states that no matter their financial status and where they came from they are able to reach their success but that is just not true in this family's situation. The last name Loman has significant meaning in this play, it represents the “low man” status of the family and how they struggle everyday. Many Americans, “...now fear that they will never be finicially succesful. They have lost faith in the American Dream” (Mechele Dickerson, PBS). Americans are angry at many former presidents for causing this idea of the American Dream to no longer exist. The new dream now, “Upward mobility…” (Mechele Dickerson, PBS), in this new age of finances. This represents how the Loman’s feel because everyday the Loman’s struggle to pay their bills. They only had one major step that brought them closer to Willy’s American Dream and that was paying off their final mortgage. This is a hige step in the lives of many but it was significant enough to bring them where they envied

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