Rating: 
Summary: An American Classic
Review: Visiting this play again for a class was about the last thing I wanted to do. But doing so is like visiting an old friend.Forget the daring of showing a family man who's lost his importance. Take a look at the anger in Linda Loman at her sons. Read this again and consider the denial of everyone about their role in Willy's downfall. It's a major triumph.
Rating:
Summary: Timeless
Review: A truly timeless piece that gives you something new each time you read it. You only have to say "Willy Loman" and everyone instantly envisions a loser. But there is so much more to the story - the pain of disappointing those you love, having to face your own failure to succeed, the broken promise of youthful enthusiasm and optimism gone awry are all covered in painful detail.
This is not a happy ending story - don't read it if you aren't feeling good about yourself!!
Rating:
Summary: What a surprise!
Review: I read Arthur Miller's The Crucible when I was in high school. While I didn't hate it, as many of my classmates at the time did, I really could live the rest of my life happily without ever reading it again. So why, one might ask, did I pick up The Death of a Salesman in a used bookstore? I don't know, but I'm so glad that I did! I was totally surprised to find that I loved this play! I have seen the play and liked it well enough, but reading makes it so powerful! The Death of a Salesman, as many of you know, is the story of Willy Loman, a professional salesman. The play actively shows his breakdown of his mental facilities, but also the breakdown of his spirit. What happens when a man cannot face his failure? What happens when a man has worked incredibly hard, simply for respect, only to be tossed out like refuse? When your reality becomes the one thing that you cannot tolerate, what do you do? What does your family do? Those are the questions explored in The Death of a Salesman. Arthur Miller's writing style is active and powerful. Because The Death of a Salesman is a play, there is no narration, you are hit with the actions of the characters head on. The Death of a Salesman is most powerful because eventually we will all face Willy Loman's position. Perhaps not because we have failed, but simply because the tides of time go on, and our society treats people like a throw-away commodity. Willy was once a powerful salesman for his company, yet in the end, he was shown the door. If my review has not been glowing enough to stress that I believe everyone should read this play (which can easily be read in a few short hours), let me finish with a thought on space. I don't have any. That is, my home is tiny, and therefore almost all of the fiction books that I read are passed on to someone else, because I don't have room to store them. The Death of a Salesman will not be passed on. It will stay with me forever.
Rating:
Summary: Death of a dream
Review: I must say that this play is probably one of the best looks at human life. ...this play is about the death of the American Dream. It is not just about a man that goes crazy and cheats on his wife. It is about how Americans have turned the pursuit of happiness into the pursuit of money. If anyone reads this play, look at what Willy is going to do to help his family, he is doing it all for money because he thinks that will make everything okay.
Rating: 
Summary: classic - but depressing
Review: Willy Loman is the everyman who works his life away in sales. He has a wife and two grown sons, who are looking for a way out of the cycle of misery perpetuated by their mom. The play centers on the last day of Willy's life and the interaction between the family members. The play also fills you with depair as you examine if you live up to what your own parents want from you -- no matter how old you are -- and if they indeed know best.
Rating: 
Summary: A Cruel Punishment To Students Everywhere
Review: Don't read it if you don't have to! Just because junk is old doesn't mean it's not junk. If a modern writer rolled out this garbage I doubt I would have been required to read it. I gave this book a one star rating because I don't think it's possible to rate a book no star... is it? There were so many things I disliked about this book, I wish I still had the book report to pinpoint them more clearly. I had to read this book in High School. I don't know why. I can't for the life of me see any educational value. And I don't just hate it because it's a bit of a snore...(which it was), but because if a teacher makes you read something you ought to come a way from it with some knowledge, a slightly greater understanding of the world or somesuch. No such luck! The story didn't have much of a point either. I just kept thinking "What is the point?" "What is the goal of this plot (if you can call it that)?" It was like watching a dead animal decompose only slower, not as interesting and most importantly COMPLETELY POINTLESS. There is also no likeable character to root for. The main character Is a lowdown good-for-nuthing who cheats on his wife, goes crazy (not out of guilt or anything) and can't stop feeling sorry for his pathetic self until he dies which would have been doing the world a greater favor had he completed the task on page one. His sons though still in control of they're mental facilities aren't much better. They're pigs in fact. I was especially fond of the part where they remember the girl who one of them lost his virginity to. The bother who had sex with her doesn't remember much except that she was fat and that the other brother "got him in there". *gag* The wife and mother in this family sickens me as well, but she is so deserving of pity how can I judge her. The more of a pathetic, low-down, cry baby slug her husband is the more she loves him, sad little doormat that she is. I think I remember her doing a lot of laundry too. Anyone who can put up with a life like that and still wash her stalkings without wrapping them securely around her husband's neck deserves one star I guess. In conclusion the only things I gained from this paltry little work are a numb behind, glazed over eyes, a slight pang of nausea and lastly the realisation that I had completey wasted several hours of my young life that can never be recaptured just to right a book report.
Rating: 
Summary: everybody's got to read this
Review: Although this wasn't one of my all-time favorites, Death of a Salesman is one of those books everyone has to read once. The tale of 60 year old Willy Loman, a furniture salesman for over 40 years is just getting too tired to keep going. Between traveling up and down New England and dealing with his son, Biff, who was supposed to be the gem of the family, Willy is not doing so well. But instead of feeling bad for him, he manages to do a whole lot of terrible things to make you just about hate him. So read it and find out how he ruins his own life and the lives of the people he loves. This is a book for all Americans, you just got to read it.
Rating:
Summary: just gotta read it
Review: Although Death of a Salesman wasn't one of my favorites, I'm glad to have read it. It's one of those books that everyone has to read once. It is a classic tale of Willy Loman, a man who has worked his whole life as a traveling salesman, whose hopes and dreams are just out of reach. But instead of making you feel bad for him, he manages to do a whole lot of rotten things to make you just about hate him. When he realizes his own life has been a failure he depends on his son, Biff, to become a success. But instead of encouraging him to do well in school, he tells him his looks and personality will bring him straight to the top. Needless to say, this is not the case. Stupid, pathetic Willy manages to ruin his own life and the lives of those around him. So read it and find out, its one of those you've just gotta read.
Rating:
Summary: More meaningful now then ever.
Review: In an era where most of us start our adult lives with a car loan, mortgage and credit card debt this book is more meaningful then ever. It tells the story of Willy Loman and his family. Willy has been selling furniture for a company for 35 years but is having trouble going on the road any longer because he's not getting any younger. Willy engages in a desperate struggle where he tries to provide for his family while keeping alive his dignity and in the end, realizes that he's worth more dead than alive (life insurance). For most of us, this book speaks volumes about our lives. By the time we're finally ahead, its all over. Willy's interaction, or lack of it, with his son Biff is also interesting from a father-son aspect. Willy wants Biff to achieve at goals that Willy isn't going to be able to attain. Biff is too much like his father to ever attain those goals. Willy and Biff get along famously while Biff is in high school but their relationship changes dramaticaly when Biff catches Willy in a disgraceful situation. This book is a must-read for just about anyone. As a matter of fact, it should be required reading for every person in this nation.
Rating:
Summary: depressing but all the same intriguing.
Review: This is a really great show, no matter how many times I had to read it to understand it. I think we can all relate to the "American dream" thing, wanting a secure, happy and successful family. It's wonderfully written, and, for lack of a better word, it's deep. Just don't start reading it expecting an "and they all lived happily ever after" ending (like I did), because it'll be a let-down.
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