Do we have the ability to control our destiny - Death of Salesman.

Do we have the ability to control our destiny? The truth is this, one can set their goals and try to attain them and one can dreams their dreams and try to live them but the difference must be known. The character Willy Loman, in the play Death of A Salesman, seems to be a person who is not aware of the difference in reality and dreams. Willy's choices throughout his life undeniably lead to his own demise. Willy Loman is a tragic hero. His fear is that he wants to be viewed as a good, decent human being. He wants to believe that he's a well-liked, decent person who doesn't make mistakes. The truth is that he makes mistakes, many that haunt him, and that he is human. Willy does not consider this normal and severely regrets such failures such as raising his children poorly, as he sees it, not doing well in business, though he wishes he were, and cheating on his wife Linda, showing her to be a commodity of which he takes advantage. Linda has a true, pure love for her husband. Linda stands behind him through it all, through his dreams and broken promises, she still believes in him. The quality in such plays that does shake us... derives from the underlying fear of being displaced, the disaster inherent in being torn away from our chosen image of what and who we are in the world (Miller, Tragedy...). Willy's underlying fear of being displaced is the real tragedy. He wants to do

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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The Significance of a Line From Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman

The Significance of a Line From Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman Neelum Raza, Junior "Isn't that remarkable." This single, brief statement may appear to be a trite cliché, yet in Death of a Salesman this favorite exclamation of Willy Loman takes on a much broader meaning. In the early part of the play, however, when Willy makes this remark, the reason is not particularly remarkable, or, if so, only in Willy's terms. Yet, during the course of the action the line develops into a comment on Willy's prosaic and confused mind. To start with, the remarkable aspect of the quote is that Willy Loman utters it when he is faced with an epiphany, a sudden realization. To demonstrate, this line takes on significance in the scene where Willy goes to borrow money from Charley. Willy always thought of Charley as the epitome of what Willie thought he detested. Yet, when Willy realizes that this man whom he had disparaged over the years was, indeed, his only friend, he says in utter amazement, "Isn't that a remarkable thing." As with other utterances, the realization is not remarkable, except that Willy had never been able to see reality long enough to recognize Charley's importance. This single line, then, demonstrates how Willy may finally begin to realize, too late, just how much he is liked. Another realization occurs between Willy and his son, Biff. After an emotional scene in

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Arthur Miller’s Death Of A Salesman

Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman At the beginning of the play, Arthur Miller establishes Willy Loman as a troubled and misguided man, at heart a salesman and a dreamer with a preoccupation with success. However, Miller makes equally apparent that Willy Loman is no successful man. Although in his sixties, he is still a travelling salesman bereft of any stable location or occupation, and clings only to his dreams and ideals. There is a strong core of resentment within Willy Loman, whose actions assumes a more glorious and idealised past. Willy sentimentalises the neighbourhood as it was years ago, and mourns the days working for Frank Wagner, while his son Howard Wagner fails to appreciate him. Miller presents Willy as a strong and boisterous man with great audacity but little energy to support that impression of vitality. He is perpetually weary and exhibits signs of dementia, contradicting himself within his conversations and showing some memory loss. Linda, in contrast, displays little of the boisterous intensity of Willy. Rather, she is dependable and kind, perpetually attempting to smooth out conflicts that Willy might encounter. Linda has a similar longing for an idealised past, but has learned to suppress her dreams and her dissatisfaction with her husband and sons. Miller indicates that she is a woman with deep regrets about her life; she must continually reconcile

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  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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The Crucible - character study of Reverend John Hale.

When we first meet or are introduced to Reverend John Hale, we are told that he, Hale is a scholar from Beverly and feels pride in the work he does. He comes to Salem on Reverend Parris' request to investigate the possibility that supernatural causes are causing Betty Parris' suspicious illness. Hale approaches the situation precisely and intellectually, believing that he can find the cause to her illness. Despite his early enthusiasm for finding the presence of witchcraft in Salem, Hale soon grows disillusioned with the witchcraft accusations and then starts encouraging people to testify so that they would not be hung. In Act II, Reverend Hale starts showing sympathy towards the men and women who have been accused of witchery, for it was he who signed their death warrants. He undergoes an internal crisis, feeling guilty that he might be responsible for all of the accusations. Even though this is the case at the end, at the beginning we found that he enjoyed being called to Salem to fix things. It made him proud that his expertise was finally in demand, (obviously in his mind they were not being fully appreciated). However, he was surprised at hearing about Rebecca and Elizabeth's arrest, which reveals that Hale is no longer in control of the predicament. Throughout the play there are many accusers and defenders for the witch trials. There is one man, Reverend John Hale,

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Aristotle and Tragedy

Aristotle and Tragedy A tragedy is loosely defined as an event which ends in calamity or distress. However, Aristotle's Poetics provided us with a more detailed set of guide lines with which to define the genre of Tragedy. He stated that the real pathos is effected by our awareness of some wasted, admirable quality/ies in the protagonist, the realization of which is invariably obstructed by the pride of that character. Thus the final fall, and subsequent death, of the protagonist is also a form of catharsis, the nemesis which counters the character's misplaced pride. In Greek tragedy and even later imitations the plot would generally revolve around the aristocracy, royalty or important members of state. As a result the impact of the fall would be emphasized. In English literature some of our most poignant tragedies of course come from Shakespeare, and his tragedies too move in these same spheres; King Lear, Macbeth, Hamlet and so on. Shakespeare's use of soliloquy was an integral part in his creation of tragic pathos because it was in soliloquy that we were made privy to the private aspirations and emotions of the central character, ones which would often clash with the public picture we had of these men. For example, Hamlet's mental torment is piercingly transcribed in his soliloquies. As a result we see clearly that his public duty to avenge his father's murder and to

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller

Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller TABLE OF CONTENTS A. Background Information . Biographical about Arthur Miller 2. Description of USA at the time Miller wrote this play - social, political and economic conditions. B. Staging . Music, lighting and non-realistic staging are all important in the play. Discuss how they are used and what effect. 2. How does Arthur Miller achieve the blending of present reality with dreams of the past and with what success? C. Summary . Write a plot summary for Act I 2. Write a plot summary for Act II D. Character Description . Willy Loman 2. Linda 3. Biff 4. Happy 5. Bernard 6. Charley 7. Uncle Ben 8. Howard Wagner E. Essays . All the principle character in the play are trying to understand what is driving Willy to suicide. What is your understanding of this? 2. How far would apportion the blame for Willy's suicide between Willy's own character and the society in which he lived in? A. Background Information Biographical information about Arthur Miller Arthur Ash Miller was born in New York City on the 17th of October 1915 as the son of a clothing company owner. During the Depression his family lost the business. He visited the University of Michigan where he started his career as a playwright. In 1947 he had his first great success with All My sons. Only two years later he produced his most important piece, Death of

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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HOW WELL DOES A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE FIT INTO THE TRAGEDY GENRE?

HOW WELL DOES A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE FIT INTO THE TRAGEDY GENRE? A view from the bridge is a marvelous tragedy that was written by Arthur Miller in 1956 following some of the guidelines of Greek tragedy. In this piece of coursework I will be examining how well the play fits into the tragedy genre, by looking closely at the character of Eddie as a tragic hero and the role of Alfieri as the chorus. I will also comment on the type of language Miller uses throughout the play. Since Eddie is the central character in this play, and while the story is weaved around him using his own actions and feelings as its threads; I am going to start my essay by analysing his nature as a tragic hero and the different flaws that ended with his distressing downfall. The ancient Greek tragedies and those of Shakespeare are about kings, dukes or great generals e.g. King Lear. However, Eddie is not a king or illustrious figure. This is because in their day, these individuals were thought to represent the whole people. Nowadays, we do not see even kings in this way. And so when writers want to show a person who represents a nation or class, they typically invent an "ordinary" person. In Eddie Carbone, Miller creates exactly that type. He is a very ordinary man, decent, hard-working and generous, a man no one could dislike and moreover, he is the head of his family; this means he has control over

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Death of a salesman - What are the dramatical devices that miller uses to show the disintegration of wily Loman?

Death of a salesman What are the dramatical devices that miller uses to show the disintegration of wily Loman? Death of a sales man is a satire about the "American dream" and it's flaws and prejudice nature to the people who have surpassed their point of usefulness to the American system. The people who have passed their sell by date. Wily Loman is an image of the failures of the American dream as he is not a success and yet he has lived his life by the rules of it. Miller shows Willy's disintegration in numerous ways using sound and most of the other dramatical devices. 'The American Dream' is based on the 'Declaration of Independence': 'We believe that all men are born with these inalienable rights - life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.' (Thomas Jefferson, 1776). This 'dream' consists of a genuine and determined belief that in America, all things are possible to all men, regardless of birth or wealth; you work hard enough you will achieve anything. However, Miller says people have been 'ultimately misguided'. The origins of the American Dream seem to have been rooted in the pioneering mentality of the 18th and 19th century immigrants, most of whom came to America because of a promise of a new and better life. In particular, the opportunity to own one's land. Nevertheless, land 'ran out' and so cities developed and massive variations arose in wealth, which meant

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Critically discuss Michel Foucault's concept of knowledge/power with reference to Arthur Miller's film "The Crucible."

In "The Order of Things" (1973) Michel Foucault describes an episteme as the combination of institutions, discourses, knowledges and practices that organise the way we do things, making some actions acceptable and others unthinkable. He also says these processes of organisation in society are generally invisible. Critically discuss Michel Foucault's concept of knowledge/power with reference to Arthur Miller's film "The Crucible." Michel Foucault's is a theorist who demonstrates a modernist way of thinking. Based on one of David Morley's definitions of the postmodern phenomenon being "a form of cultural sensibility and a mode of thought, particularly appropriate to analyzing the period" (Morley: 1996, p.50), Foucault could be considered a postmodernist and a poststructuralist. However, some may consider his earlier works, like The Order of Things, to be structuralist as it may have possibly reflected a lack of distinction at the time it was written and received. Rather than narrating the nature of reality, Foucault intended to give descriptions of a variety of structures of knowledge also referred to as episteme. Arthur Miller's film "The Crucible" explores issues that are parallel to Foucault's thoughts of power and knowledge, however, Miller uses actual historical events as the background for his modernist ideas. The concept of knowledge and power explored in Foucault's

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Arthur Miller said that his first title for “Death of a salesman” was “The inside of his head”. Why do you think Miller considered using this as a title and how can a production of the play convey to an audience that it is about Willy

The Perse school for girls English Literature Centre number: 22135 Twentieth Century Drama Michelle Cheung November 2001 Arthur Miller said that his first title for "Death of a salesman" was "The inside of his head". Why do you think Miller considered using this as a title and how can a production of the play convey to an audience that it is about Willy Loman's way of mind. "The image was of an enormous face the height of the proscenium arch which would appear and then open up, and we would see the inside of a man's head . . . it was conceived half in laughter, for the inside of his head was a mass of contradictions." - Arthur Miller Miller of course, did not use this 'arch' in any way in his play, but he did use a number of things to show what was going on inside Willy Loman's head. He not only showed the audience reality the way Willy Loman did, but at the same time show what was real. There are three levels of understanding: Willy's perception of reality, Willy's memories of his past, and the audience's perception of reality in the present. Past and present are used to show the audience what Willy Loman's past was like and how the present is linked

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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