Account for the continuing popularity of ‘Death of a Salesman’ as a stage play.

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Account for the continuing popularity of ‘Death of a Salesman’ as a stage play.

‘Death of a Salesman’ is a play that has come to redefine the concept of modern tragedy, whilst simultaneously enrapturing audiences around the globe. A challenge to Philip Sydney’s judgement that ‘tragedy concerneth a high fellow’, ‘Death of a Salesman’ is the tragedy of the common man, tragedy of Willy low man. ‘One of the major texts in our time’, ‘Death of a Salesman’ does not follow the traditional Aristotelian definition of a tragedy. This has ignited passionate debate among critics as to whether it is a tragedy at all, whilst ensuring its position and popularity as the epitome of what has been dubbed ‘modern tragedy’. It is not the fall of a great man through a predestined flaw (hamartia), and it has been argued that Willy even lacks the self-knowledge to be a true tragic hero. Willy is a man of ‘massive dreams’, not high stature, although Biff calls him a ‘prince’, drawing comparison with Hamlet. His self-knowledge is present, countering those who claim to the contrary. It is clearly contained in the lines ‘I’m fat. I’m very – foolish’ (of himself) and ‘I’m always in a race with the junk yard’ (of payment of manufactured goods). His flaw lies in his determination to see material wealth as the only path to success. He is swallowed by ‘the corporate dream machine’.

           The idea of the common man being belittled in this way is able to connect with audiences to an even greater extent now, as capitalism and consumerism advance across the globe, than it could 50 or so years ago. ‘A critique of capitalism’s penchant for chewing people up and spitting them out’, the play seems ‘vacuum packed’  and prescient in its increased relevance in today’s society of ‘downsizing corporations’, as Arthur Miller called them, and its portrayal of stress caused by overwork. It remains timeless by its limited reference to outside events, notably the two World Wars and the depression.  As ‘a challenge to the American dream’, Willy’s failure in ‘the land of opportunity’ leads the play to connect well with American audiences who may have encountered the same experience. Conversely, the ability of the common man (Willy) to take on the role of hero (in a tragic sense) can be seen as a demonstration that those worth nothing can achieve anything, and therefore a realisation of the dream.

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           Despite its criticism of seemingly a solely American experience, the play can still be exported abroad due to the different ways other societies interpret it. In the UK it can almost take on the same significance due to export of American culture. In Arctic circle Norway (as the Daily Telegraph states) it is ‘a saga’ that ‘goes on forever’, whilst in China it arouses ‘contempt about a person who is dealing in money’ and bafflement over ‘romanticising of business’.

           Perhaps the most important ingredient of the enduring popularity, aside from its ability ...

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