Death of a Salesman
by Arthur Miller
139 pages
Penguin Plays
no stars

There is no real story in Arthur Miller's 1949 stage play "Death of a Salesman." The play takes place over the last stretch of a nervous breakdown of the lead character, Willy Loman, a tired salesman. What is more important in the play is what Miller does not write about the historical period, e.g., the recent proliferation of television and post-war America. It is not clear what Loman sells, though he travels with samples. It is not clear why he sells -- whatever it is, it seems that it is non-essential; the customer could just a likely do without it. Loman is an unlikely salesman, an aspirant, and not very successful as far as salesmanship goes. He manages to care for his family financially, but he fails as a father and husband. This many years later, the play is a bit cliched, a contemporary audience will have to garner an emotional response to the interpretation of the script rather than what was written, but Miller anticipated that with key choices in scene dressing and the barest use of poetic language. These placed the play directly in their time and space in lieu of referring the era in the language. Although the play is considered a classic tragedy, unlike a Greek tragedy, the period the play references is important to appreciating the play. Without it, the play has no anchor. In that sense the play is more a cautionary tale than a tragedy.

The play opens in Loman's house with his wife, Linda. The house is surrounded by apartment buildings, an apparent change in the neighborhood. Over the course of the play, Miller accentuates the encroachment of this progress with different lighting. The house has two bedrooms, one for the senior Lomans and another for the strapping, grown sons: Biff and Happy. Willy and Linda are both distracted from the children, as are the children from their own lives. Willy's brother, Charley, lives nearby, with his family, including his son Bernard who turns out to be the future of the family. Biff, a high school footballer, competes with and relies on Bernard, but ultimately is a disappointment. Happy attempts to keep the flame of salemanship, but lacks focus. Late in life, Willy starts to lose his compunction about the state of his family, his excuses are as ready as his pointless stories. He is not sure what to value, having had nothing of value in his life but his traveling samples. The play has many unsettling moments, but is tied up handily for American audiences unequipped for a true tragedy. "Salesman," therefore, is perfect for a televised version. As far as theater, the characters are too drab and depressed. While the ability to raise a family on one income is an American dream, and Miller aims to poke holes in it, by choosing to make Loman successful at fulfilling his financial obligation but unsuccessful at family, Miller hallucinates the gravitas of his writing. Loman is a weak man who made poor choices, and managed a life beyond his reach. Why, beyond self-gratification, did Miller write a play about fear of insignificance? Though I do not think it was Miller's purpose, "Salesman" is a metaphor for American theater. Miller is Loman. His character's last act of poetry -- his death -- is misunderstood by his wife, but Miller, having given her the last words, champions her spirit, as if, in the end, Loman was right about something after all.

"Death of a Salesman" is being restaged by Mike Nichols in New York City next month. Why is the play important now? Arthur Miller is celebrated, in my opinion, because his career fell during the death of theater and the rise of television and film. For those unable to make the transition, Miller is commiserative. "Salesman" is a "classic" by virtue of the fact that Miller's characters are tightly drawn enough to become archetypes. But, the "journey" is too taut to be meaningful. It is emotionally manipulative and the author is suspicious of raw talent.      

Takeaway: read The Crucible