Death of a Sales man / the influence of the Female character

Death of a Salesman is widely regarded by many as one of the masterpiece play of 20th century. The impact the play has had on our society has been widespread that all forms of education and all walks have tried to interpret it's meaning. After reading this compelling play about a failed American dream of an ordinary man, a careful examination of characters reveals an aspect of the play that cannot be ignored. Miller's play reveals gender discrimination between female and male characters that is permeates palpably throughout the play.

In contrast to male characters of the play, female characters lack the vivid, multi-layered human quality that male characters seem to possess. They are flat, two dimensional, lifeless, stereotypical portrayals of such women as a devoted mother, a mistress, and a barfly. Given the complex and compelling traits of the male characters in Death of a Salesman, it is surprising that Miller chose to give so little attention to the female characters. In stereotypical fashion, Miller has conveniently concocted these female characters to serve the men in the play. Linda Loman, central male character's wife merely suffices as the acceptable notion of generic mother figure from its era. Loyal to her husband

In Death of a Salesman, woman are sharply divided into two categories: Linda and other. The men display a distinct Madonna/whore complex, as they are only able to classify their nurturing and virtuous mother against the other, easier women available (the woman with whom Willy has an affair and Miss Forsythe being two examples). The men curse themselves for being attracted to the whore-like women but is still drawn to them - and, in an Oedipal moment, Happy laments that he cannot find a woman like his mother. Women themselves are two-dimensional characters in this play. They remain firmly outside the male sphere of business, and seem to have no thoughts or desires other than those pertaining to men. Even Linda, the strongest female character, is only fixated on a reconciliation between her husband and her sons, selflessly subordinating herself to serve to assist them in their problems.

In the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, there are several female characters. Linda Loman is a loyal and nurturing wife and mother and is the person who holds the family together. The other women in the play are wanton and pull the Loman family apart. Both types of women in the play hold a position of power over the pitiful men, whether it is as a matriarch or a whore

Linda Loman The dutiful, obedient wife to Willy and mother of Biff and Happy, Linda Loman is the one person who supports Willy Loman, despite his often reprehensible treatment of her. She is a woman who has aged greatly because of her difficult life with her husband, whose hallucinations and erratic behavior she contends with alone. She is the moral center of the play, occasionally stern and not afraid to confront her sons about their poor treatment of their father.

– tries to share in Willy's ideals, and suffers great torment as she observes Willy's decline knowing that she is unable to help – Fails to understand what happens to Willy, and fails to fathom what has occurred between him and Biff, but still manages to retain a belief in the need to treat human beings properly – loyal and supportive – anger stems from her beliefs in the Loman family, and memories of happy times in the past – she is a woman struggling to come to terms with the city, her husband, and her sons – both given and received, the woman who suffers and endures, is "Linda, as the eternal wife and mother, the fixed point of affection in many ways, the earth mother value, love.

– But in the beautiful, ironic complexity of her creation, she is also Willy's and their sons' destroyer. In her love Linda has accepted Willy's Greatness and his dream, but while in her admiration for Willy her love is powerful and moving, in her admiration for his dreams, it is lethal. She encourages Willy's dream, yet she will not let him leave her for the New Continent, the only realm where the dream can be fulfilled. She want to reconcile father and son, but she attempts this in the con**** of Willy's false values. She cannot allow her sons to achieve that selfhood that involves denial of these values"

Linda Loman Linda is probably the most enigmatic and complex character in Death of a Salesman, or even in all of Miller’s work. Linda views freedom as an escape from debt, the reward of total ownership of the material goods that symbolize success and stability. Willy’s prolonged obsession with the American Dream seems, over the long years of his marriage, to have left Linda internally conflicted. Nevertheless, Linda, by far the toughest, most realistic, and most levelheaded character in the play, appears to have kept her emotional life intact. As such, she represents the emotional core of the drama. The Woman - Willy’s mistress when Happy and Biff were in high school. The Woman’s attention and admiration boost Willy’s fragile ego. When Biff catches Willy in his hotel room with The Woman, he loses faith in his father, and his dream of passing math and going to college dies. Miss Forsythe and Letta - Two young women whom Happy and Biff meet at Frank’s Chop House. It seems likely that Miss Forsythe and Letta are prostitutes, judging from Happy’s repeated comments about their moral character and the fact that they are “on call.”

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