Death of a Salesman context and critics Flashcards
When was DAOS written?
1948
What literary period was DAOS written in and what were the common features?
Social realism
became an important art movement during the great depression in the US in the 1930s.
It depicted the everyday realities of life.
What type of tragedy is it?
A domestic tragedy written about the ‘common man’.
What part does the great depression play?
The tragic villian.
How does Miller subvert Aristotle’s poetics?
The tragic hero is not noble but is a common man who falls due to not withholding a grip on the forces of life.
The tragic villain is a social concept (the american dream) rather than a scheming opponent
Role of women
During the great depression and the american dream, there was a strive for the nuclear family where the man would be the breadwinner and the wife would do the housework and take care of the children. This is replicated in DAOS
Eleanor Clarke
it is the brutal capitalist system that has beaten Willy
Arthur Miller
The common man is as apt for tragedy as the kings are
Dennis Welland
Willy’s repression of the past is a barrier to maturity and ego - development
Jessica L Tracy
Richard W Robins
Willy’s self esteem is highly dependent on feedback from his sons
Christopher Brigsby
if personal meaning lies in success, then failure must threaten identity itself.
