A Study Of Family Problems In Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman

Arthur Miller is one of the most important playwrights of the modern American theater circle. He is also a marvelous critic, who has written a lot of essays concerning dramatic theory. Miller is deeply influenced by the form and theme of Ancient Greek tragedies as well as the realism tradition of 19th century European drama. All this makes his plays outstanding in theme and style.During the thirty years since All My Sons first performed, Arthur Miller's reputation as a writer of great talent has increased steadily with the appear of every of his plays, books, and films. His masterpiece Death of a Salesman has won him the 1948-1949 Pulitzer Prize. It also received the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award as well as general critical praise. Through the past five decades, lots of the critics have discussed this play in different aspects. There are lots of essays explore theme of the play, the American Dream as well as Miller's unusual skill in arranging the stage. However, there is little attention that paid in Miller's constant concern on the family in drama. He discusses different families with similar or different problems. He also thinks highly of the function of a family in drama. According to Miller, it is familial elements which draw together every aspects of a drama together.Back to 1956, Arthur Miller has expressed his opinion of how family issues affect modern drama in the essay The Family in Modern Drama. Miller believes that, family play deals with the traditional family figures, the father, the mother, brother sister. At the same time, it uses the family as a prism through which reflected the author's basic idea. They are draw as forces to enliven the author's symbolic vision and his theme. Family itself as a timeless and stable element also makes it possible for a play to surpass its own time.This thesis divided into five parts, apart from the introduction and conclusion part, there are three chapters.The first chapter introduces the influence of the ancient Greek tragedy on Miller. The family in Ibsen's drama has also inspires Miller a lot. This chapter also compares the difference between Miller's play and his forefathers.The second chapter focuses on the family problems in Lomans. The whole family struggles deep in the familial crisis caused by the Great Depression. The whole family is filled with lies, mutual-alienation and wrong dreams. The family relationship is terrible and despairing. At the end of the play, Willy Loman commit suicide with the hope that this very action could earn back his sons'love and respect for him. However, even this hope proves to be impossible. The elder son Biff has no ambition to accomplish his dream and another one Happy, just like Willy, with wrong dream and can not really carry on his father's dream of being successful in business world.The third chapter explores Miller's opinion of family as a dramatist. Secondly, it also discusses Miller's criticism on several problems of Modern American society. Miller put his thoughts of social problems into average American family with skill. This chapter also studies Miller's other play of family, which makes it more clearly for readers to study Miller's opinion of family.All in all, Miller's opinion of family has embodied in his plays in different aspects. Death of a Salesman is a family tragedy as well as a social one. Miller's criticism on American society is all implied in his description of ordinary family life.