The Culture of Entitlement in Death of a Salesman
Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is an attack on the new American dream of achieving wealth without concern for principle or virtue. Miller illustrates the negative results of the culture of entitlement. Willy Loman is the protagonist in Death of a Salesman. Willy is a man who fails in his own life and whose children as a result, fail also in their lives. At a time when Willy should be retiring, he falls lower and lower on the ladder of success, first losing his salary and then losing his job. The cause of Willy’s failure is his dream of achieving success. Willy’s idea of an American dream is completely contrary to reality. Willy believes that happiness will be fed to him because of his personality, but in truth, the foundations of America are based in hard work and in a person earning their own American dream. Willy is a salesman with his own dream, to be liked and therefore successful, and he failed at life because of it. Because Willy believed that with his personality he could achieve success, “The product Willy was selling was himself” (Popkin).
Hard work, courage, and relentless determination are the virtues upon which the United States of America was founded. America’s first leaders and first citizens fought for every freedom and right that current citizens should hold dear. Not one single part of this country was handed to those founding fathers. They were after the unobtainable, but through their persistence they obtained it! After the Civil War, many Americans experienced hardships because of the changing economy. They found solace in the tales of Horatio Alger, whose characters overcame adversity through industry, perseverance, self-reliance, and self-discipline (Tebbel, 23). Anyone could succeed if they worked hard. This history is the base of the American dream. It is the belief held by many in the United States of America that through hard work, courage and...