Death of a Salesman - Mille feuilles

Paperback

English language

Published March 25, 1998 by Penguin Books.

ISBN:: 978-0-14-118097-7
OCLC Number:: 605898329

(1 review)

Willy Loman, the protagonist of Death of a Salesman, has spent his life following the American way, living out his belief in salesmanship as a way to reinvent himself. But somehow the riches and respect he covets have eluded him. At age sixty-three, he searches for the moment his life took a wrong turn, the moment of betrayal that undermined his relationship with his wife and destroyed his relationship with Biff, the son in whom he invested his faith.

Miller's masterpiece has steadily seen productions all ove rthe world since its 1949 debut. As the noted Miller scholar Christopher Bigsby states in his Introduction, "if Willy's is an American dream, it is also a dream shared by all those who are aware of the gap between what they might have been and waht they are." (back cover)

44 editions

Maia@bookwyrm.social reviewed Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

3 stars

A fairly powerful comment on the destructive powers of American dream, on consumerism and the relationship between a father and his sons. In parts a confusing play to read, as large sections are composed of memories and hallucinations that are signposted only by stage instructions, meaning it would be simpler to understand the play in action rather than on paper. Indeed I would like to see the play on stage as the set design and use of different elements (such as characters walking through walls during hallucinations and memories) is quite unusual! I am not an American, or remotely involved in the "travelling salesman" industry, so I can't really judge how accurately this play represents the lived experience in America. I can only see how the same emotions run through the minds of many who do not know which of the paths in life to follow: passions, dollars, expectations, or …

A fairly powerful comment on the destructive powers of American dream, on consumerism and the relationship between a father and his sons. In parts a confusing play to read, as large sections are composed of memories and hallucinations that are signposted only by stage instructions, meaning it would be simpler to understand the play in action rather than on paper. Indeed I would like to see the play on stage as the set design and use of different elements (such as characters walking through walls during hallucinations and memories) is quite unusual! I am not an American, or remotely involved in the "travelling salesman" industry, so I can't really judge how accurately this play represents the lived experience in America. I can only see how the same emotions run through the minds of many who do not know which of the paths in life to follow: passions, dollars, expectations, or a combination of the above. This play comes to a fairly singular conclusion as to which path you should follow (no prizes for guessing which!), and so it seems a well-worn tale in this theme of literature.