One major symbol in “Death of a Salesman” which also enhances aspects of Willy’s character is the rubber hose. The presence of the rubber hose on stage serves to remind the audience of Willy’s distress and despair which continually lead him to attempt suicide. He has attempted suicide by inhaling gas which, ironically, is a substance which is essential for equipping his family home with heat. Willy struggles to afford even this most basic necessity, and his death by inhaling this gas reflects this struggle. The rubber hose may also be seen as a manifestation of Willy’s failure, as he is unsuccessful even at his attempts at suicide.
One other such symbol in “Death of a Salesman” is the tape recorder in Howard’s office. The tape recorder may be seen as a symbol of change and the advancement of technology – something Willy fails to keep up with. In his office, Howard demonstrates the tape recorder to Willy and appears to be more interested in the technology of the machine than Willy and his job woes. Willy fails to accept change and defiantly sticks to his old techniques of succeeding, and the insignificance and obsolescence of this in modern society is illustrated when Howard decides he no longer needs Willy’s services and dismisses him. This symbolism, like that of Brick’s crutch, exposes much about the protagonist’s characters to the audience.
Another role of symbolism in the two plays is to mirror the situation of the characters as a whole. One such symbol in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” is the console combination of a radio, liquor cabinet and TV set, a gift to Big Daddy and Big Mama from Mae and Gooper. As Williams notes, it serves as shrine to the “comforts and illusions” the characters in the play hide behind to avoid intimacy with each other – namely television and alcohol. This may be seen when Big Mama expresses her hatred for the television when Brick turns it on, as she is the one who likes to communicate with her family and detests anything which may threaten or interfere with this. At the beginning of Act 2 Big Daddy’s remark about wanting the hi-fi on so he won’t have to listen to Big Mama is another example of the console acting as an escape from intimacy. Lastly, Brick makes frequent trips to the liquor cabinet to live his life behind a veil of drunken detachment, the console providing him with a way to dodge confronting the truth he attempts to avoid.
CHARACTER, VICES, REVELATIONS…BUT ALSO SITUATION OF FAMILY
Another symbol in “Death of a Salesman” are the seeds Willy plants in an attempt to grow vegetables. These represent the ability to provide and nurture for his family, and Willy’s desperate attempts to cultivate them signify his shame at struggling to do so. He strives to achieve something which he will be able to leave behind so people will remember him yet soon realises that it may be too late to do so, in Act I remarking that “The grass don't grow anymore, you can't raise a carrot in the backyard”. Moreover, the surrounding buildings which have boxed in Willy’s “small, fragile” house now make it impossible for sufficient light to shine through to the garden and stimulate growth, the changing society making success impossible for those who do not keep up. Lastly, one of Willy’s last acts in life is another fruitless attempt at planting seeds. That the seeds will never germinate in the inhospitable conditions ultimately symbolise how Willy and his family have failed to grow to full maturity and comfort in the inhospitable society.
CHARACTER, FAILURE
