Setting

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Introduction to the Setting

The play is a domestic tragedy set in the Loman family home in Brooklyn, New York.

The Loman house

Miller’s lengthy opening stage direction describes the Loman house as “small” and “fragile” against the encroaching blocks and skyscrapers represented by the “towering, angular shapes” and “angry glow of orange” which surround it.

Old America

Willy complains that there isn’t “a breath of fresh air in the neighbourhood” and the claustrophobic, almost suffocating, atmosphere created by Miller helps to intensify the drama and illustrate a major theme of the play: the loss of an older, more traditional America rooted in its farmlands and wild frontier.

Use of staging techniques

The play also has different time settings, represented by different spaces on stage.
The forestage is used to dramatise Willy’s increasingly desperate and painful recreations of past memories and other imaginings.
During Willy’s psychological collapse, particularly in Act 2, past and present collide uncontrollably, creating an increasingly unsettling spectacle for audiences.

1Introduction

1.1Introductions

1.1.1Author

1.1.2Historical Context

1.1.3Setting

1.1.4Social Issues

2Act One

2.1Key Events

2.1.1Staging

2.1.2Key Events 1&2

2.1.3Key Events 3&4

2.1.4Key Events 5&6

2.1.5Key Events 7&8

2.1.6Key Events 9&10

2.1.7Key Events 11&12

2.2Key Themes & Links

2.2.1Foreshadowing & Inevitability

2.2.2Time

2.2.3Settings

2.2.4Family

2.2.5Reality v Fantasy

3Act Two

3.1Key Events

3.1.1Key Events 1&2

3.1.2Key Events 3&4

3.1.3Key Events 5&6

3.1.4Key Events 7&8

3.1.5Key Events 9&10

3.2Key Themes & Links

3.2.1Pride

3.2.2Metaphor

3.2.3Self-Realisation

4Extended Passage Analysis

4.1Act One

4.1.1Staging

4.1.2The Woman

4.2Act Two

4.2.1In Howard’s Office

4.2.2The Final Confrontation

4.2.3The Requiem

5Character Profiles

5.1Willy & Linda Loman

5.1.1Willy Loman

5.1.2Linda Loman

5.2Biff & Happy Loman

5.2.1Biff Loman

5.2.2Biff's Relationship with Willy

5.2.3Happy Loman

5.3Other Characters

5.3.1Uncle Ben

5.3.2Charley

5.3.3Bernard

6Key Themes

6.1Concepts

6.1.1The American Dream

6.1.2Fathers & Sons

6.1.3Nature & the City

6.1.4Success

6.1.5Men & Women

7Writing Techniques

7.1Structure

7.1.1Act One

7.1.2Act Two

7.2Realism

7.2.1Introduction

7.2.2Staging

7.2.3Language

7.3Expressionism

7.3.1Introduction

7.3.2Staging

7.3.3Music

7.4Symbolism

7.4.1The Garden / Seeds

7.4.2Diamonds

7.4.3Alaska & Africa

7.5Motifs

7.5.1Introduction

7.5.2Cars

7.5.3Silk Stockings

7.5.4Money

7.5.5Mythological Figures

8Historical Context

8.1Historical Context

8.1.1Miller’s Family & The Great Depression

8.1.2America’s Recovery

9Literary Context

9.1Tragedy

9.1.1Introduction

9.2Applying Tragic Concepts

9.2.1The Tragic Hero

9.2.2The Tragic Flaw

9.2.3Recognition

9.2.4Emotional Release

9.2.5Chaos & Disorder

9.2.6Revenge

9.2.7Inevitability

10Critical Debates

10.1Introduction

10.1.1Introduction

10.2The Marxist Reading

10.2.1Marxist Analysis

10.2.2The Marxist Reading

10.3The Feminist Reading

10.3.1Feminist Analysis

10.3.2The Feminist Reading

10.4The Eco-Critical Reading

10.4.1Eco-Critical Analysis

10.4.2The Eco-Critical Reading

10.4.3Post-pastoral

10.5Other Debates

10.5.1The Play as Tragedy

10.5.2The Critics

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