A Character Analysis of Willie in Death of a Salesman - Essay Example

Willie in Death of a Salesman Willie Loman is a protagonist and a fictional character of a play ‘Death of a Salesman’ published in 1949 by Arthur Miller, an American playwright. Willie Loman, the main character of the play was a sixty three year old salesman who uses to live in Brooklyn. Willie Loman worked for the Wagner Company as a traveling salesman for about thirty four years of his life and had the lowest working position in the company. Willie earned a very little amount of income and had little belongings of his own.

Willie as a salesman was not much successful in his work. He had very old and used things in his life such as an old car, an old refrigerator and an old house but he was not willing to accept this truth of his life. He used to believe that the people of his company and the New England likes him a lot and that he will surely get a chance to earn more money. Willie Loman married a girl named Linda and had two sons by her, Biff and Happy. He was an average man who was unable to decide whether he was living in today’s or yesterday’s world and made his life pathetic by making several major level mistakes.

Willie was man living a life full of illusions that people like him. He wanted to live a life of others. These mistakes of willie led him to his downfall.Willie Loman had a dream for his life to be like Dave Singleman, a person who could do all his business by just doing phone calls and was the most popular person between his clients. Dave Singleman was so liked by the people that when he died his funeral was full of his customers. Willie thought himself as Singleman and committed a suicide in order to receive the same funeral response but noticed that there was not even a single person who attended his funeral which proved the philosophical error of Willie Loman.

He believed and kept his thinking for his complete life that if a person is liked by others and is attractive then each and everything in his surrounding would be perfect. Willie was a man who was living in the world of illusions. He believed that his elder son Happy would become a successful store manager soon. But in actual he was like his father i-e a loser living in own fantasies and illusions. Biff, another son of Willie failed to continue his education and was a thief but Willie refused to believe this truth and thought him as the most attractive and successful athlete.

He committed suicide so that Biff may utilize his life insurance money for his future.Willie was responsible for his own downfalls. He was fired from the company he use to work for due to his aggressive and non effective behavior. He refused to accept the truth about his sons. He even made his wife Linda to be totally dependent upon him. Linda supported his illusions in order to protect her family and herself. He lacked the ability to speak the truth and use to keep him busy in illogical thinking.

Overall, Willie Loman lived a life that was a lie. He was living a life of illusion, trying to be like others when he himself was a better man and he was person who was responsible for his own downfall. He lacked the ability to accept the truth in order to face the reality thus spent his complete life in illusions. He believed that he had made a great sacrifice by killing himself for his beloved family.Works CitedMiller, Arthur, and Gerald C. Weales. Death of a Salesman. New York: Penguin Books, 1996. Print.