How Is Willy Loman A Tragic Hero - 727 Words

The tragic hero referenced throughout the essay Tragedy and a Common Man is Willy Loman from Death of a Salesman. What Arthur Miller means by tragic hero is a protagonist in a play or a different form of filmography who is a subject for tragedy in its highest sense. The essay refers to a character who is ready to lay down his life to secure his personal dignity. The next reference to this character is society the struggle to gain a rightful position. The last proof of this is how Miller talks about a tragic hero needing to have a life of cause and effect in order to have tragedy. Because of these reasons, Tragedy and the Common Man was used to create the characters in Death of a Salesman. The first proof that Willy Loman is the tragic†¦show more content†¦The flaw or crack in Willy is his dreams being too big and unachievable. This is not really a problem at first, but he feels he must become a famous salesman in order to achieve his rightful status in society. Finally, Miller refers to Loman as the tragic hero by stating a tragic hero needs to have causes and effects in their life. He writes â€Å"tragedy requires the finest appreciation by the writer of cause and effect†. This reveals that for a character to be tragic, they need to have a life of making choices and having an effect from that decision. Examples of this from Willy’s life are his choice to spend a night with another woman, and turn down the job with Charley. By staying at the hotel in Boston with The Woman, Willy ruins Biff’s life. Ever since Biff walked in on his father with a new woman, his life just continued in a downward spiral. He never took summer school for flunking math so he never passed high school and so could never land a job anywhere. Even when he got a job, he would just steal something and get fired. By passing up the job with Charley, Willy doesn’t have any way to earn for his family and so he suicides to get insurance for his f amily. In both cases, if a different choice was made, his life, and the lives around him could be different. In conclusion, Willy Loman from Death of a Salesman is the tragic hero from Arthur Miller’s Tragedy andShow MoreRelated Modern Tragic Hero Essay1304 Words   |  6 Pagesfeatures the life of Willy Loman, a delusional salesman with a grandiose plan to live the American dream. As a result to the tragic events of Willy Loman’s life starting with his father’s abandonment, and ending with his suicide, Willy Loman never lives the life he has always dreamed. Although, arguably discredited as a tragic hero, Willy Loman attains the qualities essential to credit him as a tragic hero of modern times. Whether or not Willy Loman is a tragic hero in Death of a Salesman’sRead MoreEssay about The American Dream in Death of a Salesman1371 Words   |  6 Pagesview of Willy Loman as a tragic hero because he is convinced that the way to achieve a better life is by living the American Dream. 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The hero will eventually fall due to their tragic flaw, and will come to a tragic realization of the error of their ways during this process. Death of A Salesman by Arthur Miller is indeed an American Tragedy, but the question is, is Willy Loman a tragic hero? First of all, Willy Loman is notRead MoreWilly Loman Tragic Hero Analysis971 Words   |  4 Pagesor affair; disaster†. The main character, Willy Loman, shows how one dream can become a disaster through his impractical dreams and failing at achieving these goals. Not only does he fail at his dreams, he participates in an affair that is against morals. The idea of a tragic hero is defined as â€Å"a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is destined for downfall, suffering, or defeat†. Miller believes that the common man is the best tragic hero because it shows that the average, everydayRead MoreWilly Loman Tragic Hero Analysis956 Words   |  4 Pagesis revolved around the concept of tragedy and a tragic hero. Aristotle defines tragedy as â€Å"the consequence of a man’s total compulsion to evaluate himself justly†. A tragic hero is defined as â€Å"a literary character who makes a judgement error that inevitably leads to his/her own dest ruction†. These two concepts apply to the play in the sense that Willy Loman is a man of good intentions, but there is often an undesirable outcome of them. Also, Willy is a victim of himself and his own beliefs. Arthur