Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern...

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Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern Theater -Guiding Questions

Transcript of Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern...

Page 1: Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern Theater -Guiding Questions.

Death of a Salesman

By Arthur Miller

Presentation will include information on: -Biography

-Modern Theater -Guiding Questions

Page 2: Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern Theater -Guiding Questions.

Biography: Arthur Miller

• Born in Manhattan (upscale Harlem) on Oct. 17, 1915.

• Parents were Jewish immigrants. His father worked in the garment/textile industry.

Page 3: Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern Theater -Guiding Questions.

• The 1920s was an age of prosperity, and the concept of the “American Dream” was born.

• American Dream=work hard to earn your riches. Famous businessmen who symbolized the American Dream: JP Morgan and Henry Ford.

• Entrepreneurship was the key to success. The “salesman” was invented.

Roaring Twenties

Page 4: Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern Theater -Guiding Questions.

• In 1928, his father’s business failed.

• After the stock market crash of 1929, the family moved to Brooklyn.

• His father withdrew from business ventures, and this affected Miller.

• Miller graduated from high school, but he had to work in order to save money for college.

Miller in the 1920s

Page 5: Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern Theater -Guiding Questions.

Miller in the Great Depression

• He attended the University of Michigan in 1934.

• College experience matured his writing style and skills as well as developed his ideas and involvement in social causes.

• Miller was greatly influenced by Henrik Ibsen (father of modern drama).

Page 6: Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller Presentation will include information on: -Biography -Modern Theater -Guiding Questions.

Miller in the Great Depression

• During the Great Depression, Miller watched rich people become poor overnight, and he grew cynical about the ideas of wealth and consumption.

• He wrote many plays that dealt with issues within the family structure. Miller also created characters who faced social inequities.

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Miller in the 1940s• The 1940s was an age of prosperity again.

Unlike the 1920s, the 1940s had a surplus of goods and federal income.

• Americans felts so secure in the economy that people borrowed and loaned money. Everything was bought with credit.

• The American Dream was redefined=material wealth defined success. Salesman was an ideal job for men who had little education.

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Miller in the 1950s

• McCarthyism (or Red Scare) took place in the 1950s.

• Miller wrote The Crucible, which discussed the paranoia of communism of the 1950s.

• This play brought him under the scrutiny of the House of Un-American Activities Committee (HUAAC), but his career survived this experience.

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Biography: Miller

• Miller was married three times, once to Marilyn Monroe.

• Continued to write plays and essays until his death in 2005.

• Daughter, Rebecca Miller, director/actress/writer. She was a consultant for the film version of The Crucible.

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Realism in Modern Theater

Death of a Salesman

• Time Period: Start of the 20th Century

• Realism: An attempt to reproduce faithfully the surface appearance of life, especially of ordinary people.

• Expressionism: distorting reality to create an emotional effect, especially emotional angst.

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Modern Theater continued…• Playwrights in the Modern Theater also

experimented with TIME to provide a more novelistic experience for audiences.– Miller bounces back and forth from 1931 to 1948.– Are these memories real or fabricated?

• Playwrights dealt with social issues– Miller explores the conflicts of man vs. society

(Willy Loman vs. American Dream), man vs. self (unsuccessful Willy Loman vs. ideal Willy Loman)

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Themes to Watch

• Old vs. Young Generations: Willy Loman’s values vs. his sons’ values. Explore how fatherhood affects boys’ development.

• Advancement of Technology: Willy’s battles with appliances and technology—is this symbolic of being “obsolete”?

• American Dream: is this concept futile? Is this how success and manhood are really measured? Is this concept at odds with a man’s psycho-social development?

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Guiding Questions• What is the American Dream? What are the

differences between the materialistic and the idealistic values that are associated with the American Dream?

• What comments is this play making on the idea of the American Dream and a man’s purpose in a modern world?