Willy Loman Tragic Hero Analysis

As the play progresses, one begins to feel sorry for Willy and his problem, but at the same time angry and frustrated with him for his foolish pride. With this trait, it prevented him from accepting a job from Charlie, something that could have saved his life. Also, it is with this false pride that has been sparking the family flame for years, the fact that the Loman name was well known and well-liked. The family lie that was amongst themselves is revealed during the climax of the play. One example is the way in which Willy led Biff to believe that he is a salesman for Oliver, which at the end left Biff disappointed. The reason for this estimation of the truth may be because of Willy’s idea that he has not raised Biff and Happy the right way.

In conclusion, Willy's inability to accept and differentiate between what is happening in reality and what is happening in his mind is his downfall. The misguided pride he has in himself made Willy think that he was well-liked. But in reality a he was nothing. The realization that he was nothing is what made Willy end is life."Funny, y'know? After all the highways, and the trains, and

To begin, Willy could be described as having a case of misguided life goals paired with self-deception. Willy was unable to admit to his faults. His pride was so boisterous that he would lie to his own family, borrowing money every week from his neighbor, Charley, and claiming that it was his salary. Due to extreme insecurities, Willy compulsively lied to himself and his family in effort of making himself feel better about who he really is, disguising his self doubt and inner anxiety with profound arrogance. Willy raised his sons to believe that in order to be successful, one must be well liked. “Be liked and you will never want.” (1.3) He often lied to them and exaggerated his success, which led them to believe that everything was as good as he claimed them to be. Willy even encouraged deceit in his oldest son by urging him to steal things and cheat on tests. In Willy’s own delusional world, he is a largely successful and well liked salesman with sons destined for greatness, taking every opportunity to brag about these false perceptions. He lied about almost everything, even the quality of

he is now no longer able to experience and enjoy that freedom with Linda. It is immensely tragic that at the time when Willy and Linda should be happy, Willy chooses to kill himself. Willy spent his entire life trying to be successful, but he always viewed himself as a failure. However, at the end of the play, they had all of their house payments paid off. He actually was successful and did not know it.After working for so many years in a job that he was never suited for, Willy has finally paid of his mortgage. The irony is that now that he and Linda

In the end Willy ends up killing himself. Because Willy did not change for his overall good of

Willy continued to think that he was this big salesman that everyone knew and loved even though many people tried to show him that he was not the great salesman that he believed he was. Willy proved this that he when he said, “My God! Remember how they used to follow him around in high school? When he smiled at one of them their faces lit up” (16). This proves the point that Willy lies to make him feel like his son is this important person making him the great person he wants to be. Then later in the play Willy continued to make things up to allow himself to accept not who he was but who he wanted himself to be. This was proven when he says, “It’s true, Ben. All he has to do is go into any city, pick up the phone, and he’s making a living and you know why” (86)? Willy continues to lie to himself by talking to himself and Ben even though ben is not there because he is dead. Willy constantly lied to himself to make himself the person who he wanted so he could accept who he was as a person. Willy never was able to accept who he was as a person which eventually led to him taking his own life because he was unhappy with who he was.

Willy Loman is a man who often embellishes the truth and lies to make himself and those around him seem better than they are. One such lie is in a flashback when Willy informs Linda that he made twelve hundred dollars total on his last business trip when he actually only made two hundred dollars. Furthermore, Willy committed adultery when he was younger and often on the road for work. This was perhaps Willy’s greatest mistake because it caused a riff to form between him and Biff. Yet, because he has an affair, Willy becomes more relatable with those who are not considered heroes. The definition of a tragic hero includes having foibles, and Willy Loman has many flaws, his tendency to lie and his affair being only

Throughout the story Willy makes important discoveries, which is important to be Anagnorisis; This is another example of why he is a tragic hero. A way Willy shows this trait is when he is talking to Bernard about how successful Bernard is, “I’m going to Washington… Oh, just a case I’ve got there, Willy” (91). Bernard is a lawyer and has a case to work up in Washington. Willy made an important discovery because earlier in the play when Bernard was younger, Willy thought he was not well liked by anyone due to the fact he studied too much; and would not be the successful man like he is today. Willy made a bigger discovery when he finally realized in himself, “I’m very –foolish to look at…. But they do laugh at me. I know that” (37). Willy knew he lost his touch in the game of selling. He discovered this about himself when he goes out to see clients and they don’t buy anything and make fun of

Later in a flashback, Willy and Biff are on their way to Ebbets Field for a football game when Charley appears and beings a conversation with Willy. Merely joking around, Charley makes a few comments which Willy takes great offense too and beings insulting Charley and telling him to put his hands up as if to fight. Willy's arrogance shows it's face once again when Willy is talking to Biff about his meeting with Oliver. Completly ignoring what Biff is saying, Willy goes on about how good of a kid Biff is and how impressive he is. Though not directly insulting, Willy ignores what his son has to say and goes off on his own tangents, losing the respect of the reader. Willy then ends up in another flashback in the bathroom of the restauraunt where he met Happy and Biff for dinner. The most disgusting part of Willy is revealed here. Biff walks in on Willy and his woman friend whom hes had a secret relationship with. Willy attempts to cover it up and when that doesnt work he orders Biff around and shows how bad of a person he can be.

In Arthur Miller’s novel, Death of a Salesman, he writes about a salesman and his relations with his family, friends, and his job. Miller argues that Willy Loman is a tragic hero, for he failed to make friends, be a successful businessman, and a good husband/father due to his appalling attitude toward others and his hubris, or excessive self-pride. He interacts with people in the present, along with having flashbacks and talking to himself, trying to interact with the ones that are in his flashback. He sees himself as a well-known and a hardworking salesman, but in reality, he is uncharismatic, contradicting, and an overall failure of a man.

This is what Willy has been trying to emulate his entire life. Willy's need to feel well-liked is so strong that he often makes up lies about his popularity and success. At times, Willy even believes these lies himself. At one point in the play, Willy tells his family of how well-liked he is in all of his towns and how vital he is to New England. Later, however, he tells Linda that no one remembers him and that the people laugh at him behind his back. As this demonstrates, Willy's need to feel well-liked also causes him to become intensely paranoid. When his son, Biff, for example, is trying to explain why he cannot become successful, Willy believes that Biff is just trying to spite him. Unfortunately, Willy never realizes that his values are flawed. As Biff points out at the end of the play, "he had the wrong dreams."

Willy Loman was a man who gradually destroyed himself with false hopes and beliefs. Throughout his entire life Willy believed that he would die a rich and successful man. It was inevitable for him to come crumbling down after years of disillusions. We can look at Willy’s life by examining some of his character traits that brought him down.

Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman was written in 1949. Based on the play, we must determine if the main character, Willy Loman, is considered a tragic hero. Aristotle defines a tragedy as “the imitation of an action that is serious and also, as having magnitude, complete in itself;” Based on this definition, Death of a Salesman portrays a tragedy through the death of Willy Loman and his downfall as a salesman and a father. A tragic hero is a character in a tragedy who is destined for downfall, suffering, or defeat. Arthur Miller believes the common man makes the best tragic hero because he portrays all the characteristics of a tragic hero, just without the royalty trait. Men go through emotional situations similar to those of a king. I believe Willy Loman is a tragic hero. Although he does not fit the classical definition of a tragic hero, due to lack of royalty, he does fit three Aristotelian characteristics based on the modern day definition. Willy Loman is a tragic hero because he a reversal of fortune takes place due to an error in judgement, shows excessive pride, and the discovery or recognition that the reversal was brought about by the hero's own actions.

Willy’s obsession with success leads to the start of him living in his own fantasy world. He lives in the past, for there was hope for him then, but now he is completely subject to failure. Willy’s demise could have been avoided had he changed his dream, and had he not conformed to society. In the end his dream did not pay off, and he ultimately fell victim to the American Dream, and the deceitful ideals of freedom that factored into the

Willy had a poor moral compass. He knew right from wrong yet he always acted on the wrong decision. For 32 years Linda and Willy were married and Willy still cheated on her. When in a marriage cheating is one of the worst deeds a person could do. Considering that a marriage binds the bond of love between 2 people until the death. Cheating in a relationship can happen in many types of forms. Willy cheated in a physical way. “She’s nothing to me, Biff I was lonely, I was terribly lonely” (Miller 95) When Willy used to go on business trips in Boston he acquired a mistress. He thought that no one would find out. When Biff knew that he wasn’t going to graduate high school because he failed a math test he wanted to tell Willy in person. Biff surprised Willy at the hotel he was staying in. Unfortunately, Willy was with the mistress at the time and Biff saw