Masculinity In Death Of A Salesman

This essay will explore the link between masculinity and capitalism and how it is represented and internalized by the character of Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman, and argue that capitalism would likely be incomplete without patriarchal values, however discriminatory that may be. In Contradictions of Capital and Care, Nancy Fraser says that social reproduction is the work of females while a man’s role is financial; if a man cannot be a provider-such is the case with Willy-then by definition of capitalism, he is not a man. Miller wrote the play in 1949, and it is set in the hyper patriarchal society of the mid twentieth century in which masculinity was a necessity, and any man who did not meet its criteria (including financial independence,

Willy Loman has filled that role relatively adequately his whole life, though in his old age he is less successful than he was in his prime, and is eventually fired. Before losing his job he is shown to be insecure about his ability as a salesman, but employs false confidence to overcompensate and hide it. This exemplifies the classic stereotype of men as stoic, which has become a staple of masculinity, contrasting the role of women, who must allow themselves to be emotional in order to be conducive to social reproduction. It is evident from this bravado that Willy has understands the link between success in the workplace and masculinity, and has internalized the idea that he must achieve them in order to be a worthwhile person. Of course, we later learn that he has decided his attempts to do so were failures, as his commits suicide in the final act of the

In it, she states that women have an “inability to detach themselves from personal ties, especially from their responsibilities to children. They were not able to devalue these attachments such as men”. This ties back into the concept of social reproduction as the job of females, as opposed to the comparative freedom of men. Benjamin comments on this, as well; “men could heroically struggle for transcendence, for the personal glory that comes with the male idealization of individual transcendence and sacrifice over personal responsibilities as equal to abstract ones”. In relation to Death of a Salesman, we can clearly see that Willy is living out these exact quotes- he is arguably unconcerned with the actual well being of his family (only focusing on their image, likeability, etc. This is most evident in his interactions with his son Biff, though he acts similarly to his wife Linda and other son Happy), meaning he has largely devalued his attachment to them, and is instead focusing on his career and personal success (or “individual transcendence”) as a