Topic > The Critique of American Patriarchal Society in 'Death of a Salesman'

Drama can be defined as a form of written literature intended for representation and often has the ability to examine human problems and behavior in a specific context social. A play that conforms to this is Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman." Published and set in this period, it follows the story of Willy Loman, an elderly Brooklyn salesman dissatisfied with his life, relentlessly seeking financial prosperity and success while dealing with other troubling aspects of his life; his deteriorated relationship with his eldest son, brought about by his infidelity, resulting in fluctuations in his emotional state and, ultimately, his downfall. When women were forced to abandon their wartime occupations and take on more domestic roles, many women felt disenfranchised as the late 1940s was identified as the height of gender inequality as women were denigrated and portrayed as "purely domestic creatures". It is values ​​as such that are represented in the patriarchal society portrayed in Miller's tragedy. This essay will analyze how the play explores the values ​​of a conventional post-World War II patriarchal American society and offers the idea that these values ​​are flawed, exposing their prejudicial nature and illustrating the injustices faced by women who adhere to the norms social issues, to the toxicity of dominant male ideals and implies that men who objectify women struggle with internal conflicts. It does this through the use of various generic conventions. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Miller's work serves as a critique of this ethic as she proposes that although traditional gender norms have been respected by many women, the roles these women take on prevent them from thriving. Miller highlights the restrictions placed on submissive women as he contrasts Linda's faithfulness, goodness, and care for her husband with the way he treats her. At the beginning of the first act, Willy states, "you are my foundation and my support, Linda", which is ironic since his betrayal is exposed through the visual theatrical representation of "a woman's laughter", with which he had an affair. Although Linda embodied the dutiful wife, Willy's actions regarded all her efforts as an object of ridicule and she did not have the support and admiration of her husband, which in such a moment was as important as having a trusted male figure it ensured her stability. in the Willy's company. The sense of injustice is also evoked by Linda's internal conflict arising from her inability to confront him about his suicide attempts, asking herself, "How can I insult him like that?". Her monologue offers a picture of herself as someone who conforms to many expectations of her time as a wife; submissive, but scenes like this emphasize her perceived lack of agency to change things, her inability to control her world because of those very roles. This makes us sympathize with Linda and brings us back to the larger argument that patriarchal norms hurt women because she was not treated with the respect she shows her husband. Later in the requiem, we learn that Linda is in anguish over Willy's death, not only through dialogue but also through the captions "the flute begins" as she "sobs softly." Willy believes that his suicide will solve the mess in his life while in reality it denies Linda a debt-free husband and because of this, another image of a woman is createdrendered helpless or suffering due to the actions of the men around her. once again as her sobs show her pain. His pain is again emphasized by the symbolic aspect of the flute as it recalls the path that Willy could have chosen, also creating a sense of remorse. In most of Linda's interactions, Miller's tragedy portrays the prejudice they are subjected to and the inability to thrive despite remaining obedient and respectful of traditional gender roles. Patriarchal society also operated according to customary masculine ideals which the play presents as toxic and with the capacity to oppress those who are unable to live up to them. The poem encourages us to sympathize with Willy Loman as he feels humiliated when he works on commission for a "man" to make a living. We learn that Willy is ultimately unable to maintain his successful façade as he constantly doubts himself by asking Ben, "am I right?", in his delusional state. These symbolic objects and the dialogue between the two characters reveal Willy's inability to realize the social idea of ​​a successful man, which in a capitalist society, equates to being financially stable and economically able to support his family, contributes to his tragic fall as he surrenders. the pressure of these ideals due to the fear of being judged, revealing not only the elusive nature of these archetypes but also their harmful impact. Loman's misconception of success, which breeds a fraudulent and dejected existence, is further accentuated by his relationship with Biff. Through the dramatic aspect of tension, we learn that Biffs has lost his sense of identity, brought to him through his proclamation to Willy: "I know who I am!". Why can't I say it? as he is on the verge of "attacking his father". The pressures of false desire fueled by Willy's deluded projections of hegemonic masculinity ultimately trigger Biff's implosion. Biff's breakdown, critical of Willy, is expressed in a criminatory manner and creates a sense of resentment towards Willy as he is the root cause of Biff's loss of individualism, revealing the harm that unrealistic standards of masculinity can generate. Willy's relationship with Happy is not as significant compared to Biff, but Happy is subject to the corollary of their relationship; he does everything to get the approval of Willy who is constantly on Biff. Happy's desire to get his father's attention and please him goes as far as promising to "get married." The constant repetition of this serves as comic relief and is ironic since we know that Happy is a womanizer who compulsively sleeps with women married to successful men due to his "overdeveloped sense of competition." His promiscuity exposes his (and other men in his position in a patriarchal American society) inability to succeed, prompting them to seek other methods of gaining power over men they envy (due to their superior positions in society), some of which are unethical. , overall highlighting the characteristic of unrealistic male values ​​as they have the potential to corrupt people's minds. ''Death of a Salesman' focuses largely on the male members of the Loman family, who belong to the middle class, but appear to suffer due to their inability to meet the standards of masculinity of the day to express the perniciousness of these standards. .In addition to the potentially catastrophic nature of male archetypes, a traditional patriarchal society encourages objection from women, yet the show implies that men who take advantage of this usually struggle with an internal conflict. As.