Posted on 05/03/2026 3:36:41 PM PDT by CondoleezzaProtege
Death of a Salesman follows two days in the life of the Loman family, who live in Brooklyn and have, at long last, very nearly paid off their mortgage. But they have perhaps never felt more insecure. Bills are piling up. Willy’s job as a traveling salesman has stopped paying him a salary. In his 60s, he is beginning to feel his age, and as he works for scant commissions, he’s started to exhibit a faltering grasp on reality, and an increasingly vigorous drive toward self-destruction. His wife Linda — senses terrible possibilities just around the corner.
Meanwhile, adult sons Biff and Happy are in the midst of the sort of drawn-out coming-of-age crisis that each generation seems to invent anew. They don’t know who they are. They can’t see a way toward making enough money. They’re unwilling to commit to anything or anyone. They yearn for big American lives — cattle ranches, an endless stream of available women, the dream of finally pulling one over on the boss — and are only just beginning to question whether that yearning has anything to do with the big American emptiness they feel.
The pressure created by the family’s unfulfilled dreams — of financial security, a sense of purpose, a bit of rest — turns most explosive between Willy and Biff. Willy yearns for his eldest son, once a promising boy who idolized his father, to become the business bigshot he never quite managed to become himself.
But, at 34, Biff no longer seems able to stand anything about his father — up to and including the flashy American brilliance Willy sees himself as bequeathing. The tension between the father with a dream, and the son who refuses to fulfill it, comes to tragedy…
(Excerpt) Read more at forward.com ...
|
Click here: to donate by Credit Card Or here: to donate by PayPal Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794 Thank you very much and God bless you. |
As presented by SCTV…
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jjqVJwqd0zc&pp=ygUYc2N0diBkZWF0aCBvZiBhIHNhbGVzbWFu&ra=m
~7min.
Ping
That's a keeper. Captures Carlin, Hamilton, Belushi, and Montalban perfectly! Totally funny.
Moranis’ Carlin impersonation was spot on.
Glengarry Glen Ross was DOAS, with F-bombs.
They want other people to make all decisions for them, that way they do not have to take any responsibility. They are just doing what they are told.
Which is fine and their choice.
The problem is that they are not content with that, they want to force everybody else into their stifling little cage so they can feel better about their weaknesses.
Alec Baldwin playing himself, ha ha. The only thing he’s good at.
I’m partial to Dave Thomas’ DeForest “Bones” Kelley! 😀
I see this kind of literature as the first wave of Soviet propaganda: “You feel empty! The American Dream is an illusion! Capitalism doesn’t work!”
There was a lot of propaganda packaged in with the entertainment then as well as now.
In 1956, Death of a Salesman playwright Arthur Miller was subpoenaed by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), where he refused to name six people as communists, resulting in a contempt of Congress conviction. Miller, who was seeking a passport to marry Marilyn Monroe, spoke about his own activities but refused to inform on others.
How it could be considered “entertainment,” I don’t know. It’ relentlessly depressing. All those American alienation stories are.
Arthur Miller clearly had reservations about the American experiece.He mocked Willy Loman for his quest for success and his lack of insight. Yet within ten years it was clear that at his core he was not much different than Willy as he pursued and bedded Marilyn Monroe.
LOL! You’re right! They were all perfect!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.