Arthur Millers Death of a Salesman - Essay Example

Linda Loman and the Cult of Domesti In Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman Arthur Miller's play, Death of a Salesman, depicts a family unit tightly bound by the constraints of patriarchal dynamics. The dominant focus of the males' roles and relationships contrast sharply with the masculine assumption (as well as the mother's submissiveness to) the common household stereotypes of "the cult of domesticity," which provide the predominant guidelines for women in this era. These parameters establish a married woman firmly within the household rather than in the surrounding community or society; her concerns must be focused strictly on her obligations as wife and mother, and social and economic constraints reinforce this confinement. Miller's archetypal portrayal of Linda Loman therefore represents both a general example and a figurehead for her social status: lower middle class suburban white domestics. Alienated from her husband Willy, Linda tries to accommodate his role of the head of household, despite the fact that she must see to the actual running and repair of the home. She accepts a subordinate role and lives vicariously through his dreams: as Miller describes her "she admires him his massive dreams and little cruelties (are) reminders of the turbulent longings within him which she shares but lacks the temperament to utter and follow" (Miller 12). With her dreams confined to the house and her life defined by what her husband can provide, it is no surprise that Linda constantly seeks to support Willy self-image and delusions while attempting to create a level of harmony between him and their two children. Paradoxically, these same restraints of patriarchy and cult of domesticity drive Willy's motivations as well, for he is obliged to both be the provider and secure a sheltered reality for Linda safe from the outside world. Thus, Linda's fate is completely entwined with Willy's. She ultimately symbolizes the model of many domestic ideals yet at the same time provides a warning to women everywhere of the dangers inherent in being sheltered from the rest of society. To fully understand the extent with which Linda's psychology has been entrapped, one must first examine both the tenets of the cult of domesticity (COD) and then the methods with which these qualities were reinforced by society. The COD is framed by four main elements: domesticity, submissiveness, purity, and piety. While this last element in not overtly present in the play (given that the general religion of America is regarded as Protestant Christianity), it is present through the concept of faith, through Willy's faith in the Business World, Linda's faith in her husband, and the faith of both in the established order of the family unit. It is the slow erosion of these faiths' that bring about the psychological crises in the plot. Linda is generally regarded by family members as 'pure' in sexual experience and fidelity, as exhibited by the boys using her for a model of their ideal wives and by Willy's concern in providing for her (her faithfulness constantly provoking guilt over his own infidelity). Likewise, while other female characters in the play are strong and independent depictions, they are suspicious in that they have broken away from the traditional domestic role. As such, they are morally questionable, with an aura of promiscuity about them illustrated all the more by Willy's affair and by the boys frequent conquests. Linda completely fulfills the qualification of submissiveness, through such examples as removing Willy's shoes for him in the very first scene, to pandering to his ego by calling him "the handsomest man in the world.." (Miller 37). The COD has instilled women with the notion that they need a "protector;" it is therefore Linda's role to not only see to her husband's every comfort while at home, but she must also bolster him mentally and emotionally so that he can go out and face the world. As far as domestic rule, Linda is revealed to be in charge of the actual operation of the house through her handling of the household budget. She is not only sees to the maintenance and repair of the household appliances, but must keep careful track of the payment schedule, informing Willy of the monthly totals when he is at home. As Willy himself cannot be bothered to do so, Linda also handles estimating the commission figures from his sales based solely. These elements combined indicate that not only a master in her adherence to the values of the cult of domesticity, but she is truly enslaved to it. The Cult of Domesticity, also known as the "Cult of True Womanhood," became a social construct perpetuated by both popular media and culture, whose roots spanned more than a century but which came into sharp focus through the first half of the twentieth century. Marion Chase Baker's 1921 article entitled "Mothercraft" advocates classes in which young females are taught proper etiquette, the benefits of a tidy household, and the proper care for an infant in the home. Likewise, advertisements of the day also aim at this mentality, as seen in the 1920 advertisement in Literary Digest for Congoleum Rugs, claiming that a waterproof rug in the kitchen prompts women to find "excuses for staying in the kitchen." while offering a direct comparison to the floor grandmothers once had to clean (thereby establishing a woman's place in the kitchen as both traditional and generational). In this way, women are constantly barraged with information to maintain the status quo. Linda Loman, as a representative for this cross-section of the population, has no doubt been subjected to this propaganda as much as anyone else. Her subservience therefore is not surprising, for it has been the lifestyle for which she has been trained. The campaign for women's suffrage, therefore, has been such an alien concept to American society that it took more than a century to establish it. Similarly, the industrial work force only accepts women labor after it has been early crippled by the mass enlistments of male soldiers during World War II. While most women only realize the full implications of the freedom to work outside the home in this period, some females have been working for decades in the only jobs available to them: secretarial jobs, nursing positions, and so forth. It is during these decades that "Death of a Salesman" is set. Women in these occupations are forced to bear the full brunt of cultural disapproval, for they have gone directly against the accepted standard of the COD. Not only must they find work that is modeled after the home environment (in that they are constantly subordinate to a male authority) but they are automatically suspect for having left the household. Naturally, many of these women are perceptive enough to resent the prevailing atmosphere - the very description of the Cult of Domesticity as a 'cult' carries a derogatory connotation - but these women are a decided minority. As such, it is very hard to get their voices heard. Not so with the proponents for the status quo, who find it all too easy to spout out any mindless chatter, so long as it an affirmation of the majority. This is illustrated in the example of Ethel Wadsworth Cartland's article in the magazine Outlook. Her opinion is established very early, for while she rails against the vapidity of cover girl models, she laments them solely because no one is praising the fortitude of the average housewife in all of her labor. Without any sense of irony, Cartland warns that literature and popular culture will brainwash women into idyllic notions of freedom only to result in their own pain. Her direst prediction is based off of two examples she lists: one in which a mother does all of the housework to allow her daughter to 'enjoy' herself, the second in which a mother is constantly pushing her daughter to ascend the social ladder. Cartland claims that the first girl has been handicapped from learning the responsibilities she is most suited to handle while the latter girl will become, if not outright wicked, then certainly shallow. Her decree is that such girls, when grown, "will accept no responsibility. They are parasites, as their mothers trained them to be." (Cartland 158). This cultural analysis serves to analyze Linda Loman's basic attitudes in relation to her place in the household. She has been trained to stay at home, raise children, and be both dependent upon and subservient to her husband Willy. For Willy, the clich of "a man's home is his castle" is a reality born from his obvious lack of success in the outside world. He has become a failure in business; he has been ultimately rejected by both his father and his brother. His relationship with his two sons is likewise very poor. Willy's home is the only realm left to him in which his ideals come close to reality, and it is for this reason that he continually reminds his wife of her place... By essentially vebally abusing her. This manifests in what Kay Stanton, in her discussion of the role of women in the play, recognizes as why he "habitually patronizes, demeans, and expresses irritation (with) her" (Stanton 133). While Linda may have tolerated such pettiness in the past out of compliance, she now has a new fear: the possibility of Willy's suicide. Linda has found a length of tubing in the basement near the gas main, and has had corroborating accounts from the insurance agent that her husband's recent automobile accidents are not really accidents. The threat of Willy's death is a threat to Linda's entire reality for - no matter that the final mortgage payment is at hand - she has based her entire life around being dependent upon her husband. His absence would create a central void in her own life. It is this threat to her security that has made Linda so cautious about her sons' treatment of their father. What begins as a mild rebuke to Biff near the beginning of the play, when Linda says, "he's your father and you pay him that respect, or else you're not to come here." (Miller 55) becomes, by the end of the play, a command to her eldest, declaring, "You're not going near him. Get out of this house!" (Miller 125). Linda understands that the discord between Biff and Willy threatens the harmony of her entire household, and she is correct. She allows Biff to speak to Willy only in the vain hope that they might make some amends before Biff leaves. This works, to some extent, but unfortunately is the final push Willy needs to commit to his plan of suicide. With the loss of his job and his sons having no real prospects, Willy has decided the only way he can still provide for his wife is through life insurance money. The final irony is that he provides for her while simultaneously removing himself, the only thing reason she has equated for her existence. Ultimately, the Lomans' faith in the Cult of Domesticity results in them both being victimized by it. Linda's strength of character , as well as her subconscious helplessness in the face of the COD, is revealed in three particular scenes. The first of these finds Linda defending Willy to the two boys. Here Linda observes "I don't say he's a great man he's not the finest characterbut he's a human being so attention must be paid. A small man can be just as exhausted as a great man." (Miller 56). With these statements, Linda sums up the very essence of he play: that any man can become exhausted to the breaking point a little man most especially. There is a unique parallel in this dynamic structure, for although Willy is just a little man, Linda has tied her life to his and is subservient to him. But while this then could be connected as an observation of herself (peculiarly in terms of being exasperated by the constraints of her domestic existence), she at least as the security of this arrangement, which allows her the luxury of empathizing with her husband. It is unfortunate that, in Willy's attempt to maintain Linda's security, he actually removes it. The second instance of Linda's secret inner strength is revealed in her condemnation of the boys leaving their father alone at the restaurant. While Linda observes that the boys would be that rude and cruel to a stranger, she continues by trying to make them leave the house. The threat to her security forces this impasse, for she declares, "I don't want you tormenting him anymore" followed by the more interesting comment, "Pick up this stuff (the flowers), I'm not your maid anymore." (Miller 124). These statements are particularly indicative of her psychological state, for she first reveals her main concern (Willy's state of mind) then threatens her children with the only weapon in her arsenal - a ceasing of domestic duties. This threat is tantamount to a revolution for Linda. But while her primary interest is in removing the source of stress (Biff) to her husband, she passively allows Biff to exchange some final words with his father. While on the surface, this seems to make Willy happy, in that he finally realizes that Biff loves him, it proves to be a fatal moment: in Willy's mind, making peace with his eldest son is the final closure needed before committing suicide. At the beginning f the play, Willy observes that "You're my foundation and support, Linda." (Miller 18). This is undoubtedly true, both in that Linda's support has been his motivating force and that her existence has been representational of the foundation of household stability he believes he needed, based on the model of the Cult of Domesticity. Yet if Linda is the foundation for Willy, he then has been her shelter. Thus, Linda's final speech, a eulogy at her husband's grave represents both her grief at losing him and her fear of her newfound freedom. Her final speech is then replete with significance, saying, " I can't cry I can't understand it I made the last payment on the house today We're free and clear We're free." (Miller 139). Willy is indeed free, free from the weight of burden and obligation that has slowly crushed him. Linda, too is free: she has paid the last payment on the house mortgage and has symbolically paid the last obeisance to the shelter provided by her husband. Her future will be brighter without Willy's shade, but Linda will also now be exposed to the elements. While Willy's fate can be regarded as the main lesson of the play, Linda's fate plays a secondary, but no less important, lesson. The Cult of Domesticity serves a purpose in its layers of psychological bondage, yet ultimately affects both the men and women convinced of this household order. However, the female sublimation not only makes the women dependent upon the man, it makes her incapable of being self-sufficient when forced to be so. In this way, the Death of a Salesman serves as an alarm announcing the necessity of social and household reform, for more elements than a small man and his small dreams are exterminated through the course of this play. Works Cited "Advertisement for Congoleum Rugs." Understanding Death of a Salesman. Ed. Brenda Murphy and Susan C. W. Abbotson. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1999. 161. Baker, Marion Chase. "Mothercraft." Understanding Death of a Salesman. Ed. Brenda Murphy and Susan C. W. Abbotson. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1999. 135-136. Cartland, Edith Wadsworth. "Wanted: Motives for Motherhood." Understanding Death of a Salesman. Ed. Brenda Murphy and Susan C. W. Abbotson. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1999. 157-158. "Cult of Domesticity." Wikipedia. 5 May 2006. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 5 May 2006. "From Domestic Goddesses to Suffragists: The Story of Women Told on Bookbindings, 1820-1920" The Art of Books. 2005. The University of Alabama. 5 May 2006. Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. New York: Penguin Books, 1976. Stanton, Kay. "Women in Death of a Salesman." Readings on Death of a Salesman. Ed. Thomas Siebold. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1999. 130-137. Read More