Rating: 
Summary: Lore. Lies. Dreams.
Review: At the beginning of the play, Arthur Miller establishes Willy Loman as a troubled and misguided man, at heart a salesman and a dreamer with a preoccupation with success. However, Miller makes equally apparent that Willy Loman is no successful man. Although in his sixties, he is still a traveling salesman bereft of any stable location or occupation, and clings only to his dreams and ideals. There is a strong core of resentment within Willy Loman, whose actions assume a more glorious and idealized past. Willy sentimentalizes the neighborhood as it was years ago, and mourns the days working for Frank Wagner, while his son Howard Wagner fails to appreciate him. Miller presents Willy as a strong and boisterous man with great bravado but little energy to support that impression of vitality. He is perpetually weary and exhibits signs of dementia, contradicting himself within his conversations and showing some memory loss. Linda, in contrast, displays little of the boisterous intensity of Willy. Rather, she is dependable and kind, perpetually attempting to smooth out conflicts that Willy might encounter. Linda has a similar longing for an idealized past, but has learned to suppress her dreams and her dissatisfaction with her husband and sons. Miller indicates that she is a woman with deep regrets about her life; she must continually reconcile her husband with her sons, and support a man who has failed in his life's endeavor without any hope for pursuing whatever dreams she may have had. Linda exists only in the context of her family relationships as a mother to Biff and Happy and a husband to Willy, and must depend on them for whatever success she can grasp. The major conflict in Death of a Salesman resides between Biff Loman and his father. Even before Biff appears on stage, Linda indicates that Biff and Willy are perpetually at odds with one another because of Biff's inability to live up to his father's expectations. As Linda says, Biff is a man who has not yet Œfound himself,' thus using a euphemism to describe his string of perpetual failures. At thirty-four years old, Biff remains to some degree an adolescent, as demonstrated by his inability to keep a job. He and Happy are even at home in their old bunk beds; for Linda this is a reminder of better times, yet this is also a sign that neither of the sons has matured. A major theme of the play is the lost opportunities that each of the characters face. Linda Loman, reminiscing about the days when her sons were not yet grown and had a less contentious relationship with their father, regrets the state of disarray into which her family has fallen. Willy Loman believes that if Frank Wagner had survived, he would have been given greater respect and power within his company. And Willy also regrets the opportunities that have passed for Biff, whom he believes to have the capability to be a great man, despite his repeated failures. Miller uses the first segment of the play to foreshadow many of the significant plot developments. Willy worries about having trouble driving and expresses dissatisfaction with his situation at work, while Linda foreshadows later conflict between Willy and his sons. Each of these will become important in driving the plot and the resolution of the play.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: I first fell in love with the work of Arthur Miller while I was doing my undergraduate studies several years ago. "Death of a Salesman" was among the assigned readings. I instantly fell in love with the story and wrote a paper about it. When I recently saw a used copy of "Death of a Salesman" for fifty cents, I seized the opportunity to enjoy this work again. The main character, Willy Loman faces a hopeless situation. He receives no sense of fulfillment from his job, his sons are disappointments, and he is haunted my the missed opportunities of his life. The only opportunity to save Willy from his demise seems to be the poteantial of his sons to become successful. While their failure seems eminent, Willy sees hope in their attempts. When the sons attempts at success prove futile, it leads to Willy's demise. Any person who feels underappreciated in life can empathize with Willy Loman. Statements that Arthur Miller made about the American landscape then are still applicable today. Some people would rather not succeed in life as long as they can enjoy themselves. Our missed opprtunities can haunt us for the rest of our lives. But Miller's loudest statement is that in spite of your work and dedication to others, it is possible that nobody will go your funeral. A sad but true statement about a fast paced society.
Rating:
Summary: Everyman's dream...
Review: Willy Lohman, read Low Man...which is true for all of Willy's dream he remains low in the eyes of other men but more importantly his sons. Like most men rather most people Willy's dreams are big, he wants to be somebody and he wants his sons to be somebody. Unfortunately, his sons don't care to be 'big' nor do their dreams match their father's. Willy comes to the realization that his dreams/fantasies will never come true, that he has in fact failed at everything he has done. He isn't a great career man he has lead his family to believe he once was nor is he a great family man. Death of a Salesman is a sad story, Willy's American Dream is never fulfilled...yet, perhaps with the reading of Miller's play someone else's will.
Rating:
Summary: It's a play.
Review: Death of a Salesman could never make it as a Hollywood movie. It does not kowtow to the romantic idealism of the American Dream of the 40's and 50's, and it certainly doesn't fit the mold of a successful movie in the present day. But that doesn't mean it's no good. Quite the contrary. The idea that it's "depressing," or that you might not "like" the characters, and that should be cause not to read or see it, misses the point entirely. Death of a Salesman is a "Great American Play" precisely because it is unrelentingly honest about the failure of American ideals. Willy's dream, that being well-liked is the key to success, and that what is good in life can be summed up in a house, a yard, a Chevy, and a refrigerator, is ultimately a flawed one. It ruins him, and it ruins his sons. The gritty way it depicts the lives of middle Americans is its power. If it's too real for you, go find some lighter reading. But don't pan it in a review. And, while it may come in a paperback, it isn't really a "book." It's a play. It is meant to be performed, and has to be read accordingly.
Rating:
Summary: Great Great Great
Review: I performed this play and didn't even think of how great it was until I recently re-read it. It is honestly one of the best plays written by the the greatest playwright of our century. READ IT AND LOVE IT! I can't rave enough.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Book
Review: A classic, although depressing. Not a pick me up type of book!
Rating: 
Summary: This play is too sad to be enjoyed.
Review: "Death of A Salesman" by Arthur Miller confirmed my disliking for Arthur Miller. After reading "The Crucible," I thought perhaps I didn't care for Miller's take on history, but this play showed that I just don't care for him as a playwright. I found the characters in both plays strikingly similar in their attitudes. I've also come to the conclusion that Miller was truly a sad soul who couldn't put joy into his plays. I could not feel for any of the characters and by the end of the play, I felt empty and confused. I usually can visualize a play in my mind while reading it - but this time, nothing came to mind. Just blankness and blandness. I do not recommend.
Rating: 
Summary: "All juniors will write a critical review..."
Review: I am a junior in high school, and we read 'Death of a Salesman' in our English class. I am torn between liking the story, overall, and hating the book because it is SO depressing. Part of my thesis for my review will probably have to do with Miller's central intent trying to show how an everyday person can be a tragic hero. I do not like Willy Loaman, I can say that much. It says that at the end of the book that he had the wrong dreams... I wonder how much happier they all would have been if Willy would have realized that selling was not for him, it was the physical work. Besides that, people who can't change to go with the system will get run down. Telling Howard (his boss) that he named him will not keep him his job. Where did he learn to be so unflexable? Biff I liked best at the end, when he realized what liers his entire family had been. I just feel a little sorry for Linda, she never got those stockings, but she never stood up for herself. Happy is a little lying jerk, and would probably turn out just like Willy. 'Death of a Salesman' was an extremely well-written play, but it was just so depressing (if you like that kind of stuff, then this book is for you!).
Rating:
Summary: You would have never guessed the ending by the title ...
Review: It is a very short play, but it really does provide a number of interesting characters, which are left up to you to decipher. This is by far a dysfunctional family and it can be blamed on poverty, (not the other way around). As far as a book to read, I'd say it is fairly good ... more than fairly good considering it was an in-class novel we read, (that tends to kill the actual joy of the book).
Rating:
Summary: Death of a Salesman; A good read
Review: Remember those television shows that displayed the perfect American families?
Like, The Brady Bunch, Leave it to Beaver, or Seventh Heaven. All these shows displayed
the perfect American families: happy, secure, no problems or conflicts, and all these
dreams that came true. These types of shows were composed of illusions. These shows
were far from reality. These illusions are a lot like the ones Willy Loman from Death of a Salesman, by Arthur
Miller,experiences. Throughout the whole play Willy seems to have a hard time distinguishing these
two. The author does a good job at describing the journey of Willy and his problem
dealing with these two concepts.
The play starts out when Willy returns home from a failed sales trip. Finding out
his son Biff is home he criticizes him for not living up to his full potential. After feeling
really depressed he immerses himself in a flashback. These flashbacks happen quite
frequently throughout the play and are very confusing. On the contrary, the author's
placement of these flashbacks help represent the theme. His flashbacks are examples of
his illusions. Willy looks back on better times when his life becomes unsatisfactory to
him. He surrounds himself in these illusions so he does not have to face reality.
His flashbacks are only one of his types of illusions. Another illusion of Willy's
deals with his definition of a good salesman. He thinks that if there is a 'man who makes
an appearance in the business world, [a] man who creates personal interest, is [a] man
who gets ahead' (33).Willy feels that success in the business world is based on looks and
response from others around them. Hard work has no merit at all. This is an illusion as
well. This illusion replaced the little reality that Willy had left in his mind. It was this
illusion that explained the affair he had. He felt that if he was well liked and attractive
someone would want to have an affair with him. After this point Willy's mind only falls
deeper and deeper into his illusions.
By the end of the play Willy's sense of reality was so far gone he ended up
committing suicide. He could not handle what was really going on in his life. His inability
to distinguish reality from illusion is what led to his downfall. This was the point that
Arthur Miller expressed exquisitely.
This play is excellent at showing the affects of a life surrounded by illusion. It was
clearly stated that a life immersed in illusion leads a person to their ultimate downfall.
This play gives a dramatic look at this concept. It was probably very easy for Arthur
Miller to write this play because he said that he relates and understands, '[Willy
Loman's] longing for immortality, Willy's writing his name in a cake of ice on a hot day,
but he wishes he were writing in stone'(Miller). He understands the reason for Willy's
illusions. It is this understanding that helps the play be the masterpiece it is. These
illusions that Willy experiences are similar to the ones that television watchers can have
everyday. The television families that they thought were real were a lot like Willy's
flashbacks. Miller's play taps into that concept through a dramatic and tragic drama. A
drama that is good for anyone and everyone to read.
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