“Death of a Salesman”: Arthur Miller's Play in the Light of Psychoanalysis

As the curtain rises, we see the small frame house, surrounded by towering apartment buildings. Willy Loman, the salesman, enters the house and drops his two large sample bags wearily on the floor. His wife, Linda, comes from the bedroom. It seems that Willy has been forced to turn his car back. He found himself driving off the road. He could not make his usual trip through New England. Upstairs, their two sons, Biff and Happy, are in their old room. Happy, the younger brother, has his own car and apartment. He works in a department store. The older boy, Biff, is 34 years old and has returned from the West. He has never been able to find a definite place for himself in the world. We are aware of the father's resentment that Biff has not made something of himself. It is also apparent that Biff carries a furious, partly repressed antagonism toward his father.

Willy seems to talk a good deal to himself. Apparently, he has wrecked his car before in attempts to destroy himself. He has also tampered with the gas connection in the cellar. Charley, his neighbor, comes in and offers to play cards with him. He is friendly and helpful, but Willy is gruff and distracted. He imagines he is talking to his older brother, Ben. The scene shifts to the past. Ben is leaving for Alaska, having made a fortune in Africa. He is hard and ruthless. Willy turns to him for advice and reassurance, but receives only empty platitudes. The two boys, Biff and Happy, are in high school. Biff is on the football team and a high school hero. Charley's son, Bernard, runs to warn them that Biff will have to study to avoid flunking math. Bernard is a thin, studious boy.

The action shifts back to the present. Biff decides to try to establish himself in business. He will ask his former employer, Bill Oliver, a sporting goods executive, for a $10,000 loan. The whole family becomes enthusiastic and optimistic over this decision. The act ends as they go to bed.

The second act begins the next morning. Biff and Ha