Circumstance of a Common Traveler
In the play Death of a Salesman, written by Arthur Miller, there are several
repeating ideas or lines that hint at a deeper meaning of the play. These ideas are often
represented by symbols, the most striking being the motif of transportation. Arthur
Miller uses lifeless transportation, a boat, train, and car, to describe the convoluted lives
of and personalities of various characters throughout the play.
Transportation is a multi-layered motif. While Linda is conversing with Biff over
the telephone, she compares Willy to a “lonely little boat looking for a harbor”. Though
Willy believed he had found his dream job, he continued to pursue a life that appears to
be almost unattainable, the life that the common man seems to pursue tirelessly, the
American Dream. Much like a little boat Willy is lost in a sea of a capitalistic America,
tossed about and losing sight of his course as society rapidly advances, leaving Willy
confused and disheveled in its wake. Near the beginning of Act II Willy tried to
convince Howard to allow him to work in the city, and by the time he walked out of
Howard’s office, he was jobless due to the fact that he was falling behind in business
world and was unable to carry out the expected
task. According to Howard he was unable to
“pull his own weight,” curtailing his ability to
find his course to bring him to his harbor, his
family and dream job. Willy was lost and unable
to get to his harbor, and through Linda’s subtle comment, Arthur Miller was able to
evoke catharsis in the reader, transforming the play into a modern tragedy.
Willy’s tragedy progresses through Arthur Miller’s use of motifs. The train that
was carrying Willy’s brother, Ben, away in and out of his recollections, carried Ben to
success and wealth, whereas Willy was simply a common man who tried in vain to attain
the American Dream. Every time Ben was about to leave in Willy’s flash backs, he
invited Willy to join him on his adventure to achievement, but every time, Willy turned
him down composedly, believing that his life was much better than anything or anywhere
that the train could take him to. This train was Willy’s missed opportunity. Each time
Willy ignored Ben’s invitation, he missed an opportunity that he often regretted passing
up. This single motif and its underlying meaning evokes sympathy in the reader because
they can relate to Willy’s unfortunate situation, but there is also an aura of fear due to the
reality of Willy’s situation, that this simple man missed a moment of opportunity, and by
doing so, had to live with the unmet expectations that he had for himself.
Because of the fact that Willy was unable to experience the American Dream, he
drove himself to a severely unstable mental state where in his mind, everything is perfect
and he is a huge success and of great importance. This near insanity is so cleverly
reflected in the red Chevrolet that is mentioned so often throughout the play. In Act I,
Willy mentions how the “Chevrolet…is the greatest car ever
built.” Willy’s view of his car is very similar to his usual view
of himself, strong, flourishing, and very popular and well liked.
Unfortunately, a short time after his remark of about the car, Willy changes his mind,
saying “that goddamn Chevrolet, they ought to prohibit
the manufacture of that car!” The harsh attitude shown
in this scene is very similar to Willy’s attitude when he
is confronted by reality and has to acknowledge and accept the fact that he is not the
same man as Dave Singleman, a very successful salesman. Throughout the play, the car
was continually breaking down, very similar to Willy’s deteriorating mental state,
continuously convincing him to believe that he was who he wanted to be, and needs to do
what he wants to, even though previous efforts to accomplish these feats resulted in
failure. Willy’s car is a symbol that Willy uses to show his material wealth, hoping that
this will result in him being favored in the eyes
of everyone else. Lastly his car is used as a
tool in his suicide; the annihilation of his car is
also the ending to Willy’s life as well and as
the car would have been regarded and remember by very few, the same occurred with
Willy; the number of guest attending his funeral remained in the single digits. Instead of
the funeral being Willy’s final triumph, it was his final humiliation.
Through the use of specifically chosen motifs, Death of a Salesman relates certain
means of transportation to the protagonist, Willy Loman. Arthur Miller uses this last
event to skillfully end this modern day tragedy of a common man.
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