“Characters shape the context and plot of the novel according to the individual roles that they assume, whether the characters are main or secondary. No matter how many times a character appears in a novel, each of them hold a specific significance and meaning to the story.” Within the novel of Death of a Salesman, all of the characters have a significant role in the context of the novel.
Willy Loman one of the main characters within this novel who was a traveling salesman suffered from his insecurities and misleading perceptions on life. Willy is a father of two boys and a husband. The dramatic significance of this character is to demonstrate how one can be destroyed by their own lifestyle, perceptions and actions if their thoughts are not properly constructed in a reasonable manner. One can see in the case of Willy that he made a false premise of the American dream. He thought if one is well liked, wealthy and has many woman they can attain the American dream. However, one can see that this ideology was not successful; rather it will false, since these perceptions could not let someone truly gain the American dream. Therefore, one can see that individuals ought to be careful about the dreams they pursue, since it may be detrimental to their own life and health.
Linda was another character in this novel, she was the wife of Willy Loman and a mother of two as well. Linda’s dramatic significance within the play is that love and affection, to her husband and her children. Linda was also significant for the support she gave her husband during her troubling times. Her love was shown at the first instance of the novel when she assumed Willy was in a car accident and kept asking him his present condition; this indeed showed her significant role as a loving mother and wife. Moreover, even when Willy cheated on her she still stayed with him by his side.
In addition, Charley is another character found in the novel Death of a Salesman. Charley is a successful business owner and a neighbor to the Loman’s family. His significance within the play was that of a problem solver or a guardian angel. This is so because he always offered to help Willy financially when he lost his, Also, he stayed loyal to him although may not have been entirely appreciative of him. His role as a character was to merely offer good friendship to Willy as he could possibly can.
Ben another character was the older brother of Willy Loman, who left during their childhood. Willy regards Ben as a symbol of the success that he so desperately craves for himself and his sons. Ben is symbolic to the American dream within the mind of Willy Loman.
Another character in the play was The Woman, whom Willy cheated on Linda with. She was seen to be significant within the play because it showed the predicament of Willy understanding of the American dream sine he believed one must have more women if they would achieve this dream. Therefore, even breaking loyalty with his wife to get this dream was an option. The Woman significance also shows deceitfulness, bad and betrayal since Willy was cheating on his wife.
Biff another character in the play Willy’s son was seen to have the same traits of his father. Biff followed the expectations of his father, rather than his own and lived in life in accordance to his father, which was not a successful life. The significance of this character is that it shows that children can be the exact reflection of their parents, whether positive or negative. Therefore, one ought to ensure that children should have only positive reflections rather than the opposite like Biff.
Finally, Happy another character with this novel was Willy’s son also. He = turned out the opposite of his father and brother Biff to an extent. This is so because he was more successful with a job and aimed for higher heights. However, he was still similar to Willy because he has never allowed himself to turn his face toward defeat and also pretended to be more than he really is.
In conclusion, one can see that all characters whether the protagonist or not all play a vital role in allowing a story to be unfold via the writing style of the author.
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