Death of a Salesman
By
Arthur Miller
It was the recipient of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize
for Drama and Tony Award for
Best Play. The play
premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742
performances, and has been revived on Broadway four times,[1] winning three Tony Awards for
Best Revival.
Characters
William "Willy" Loman: The
salesman. He is 63 years old and very unstable, tending to imagine events from
the past as if they are real. He vacillates between different perceptions of
his life. Willy seems childlike and relies on others for support. His first
name, Willy, reflects this childlike aspect as well as sounding like the
question "Will he?" His last name gives the feel of Willy's being a
"low man," someone low on the social ladder and unlikely to succeed;
however, this popular interpretation of his last name has been dismissed by
Miller.
Linda Loman: Willy's wife. Linda is
passively supportive and docile when Willy talks unrealistically about hopes
for the future, although she seems to have a good knowledge of what is really
going on. She chides her sons, particularly Happy, for not helping Willy more,
and supports Willy lovingly, despite the fact that Willy sometimes treats her
poorly, ignoring her opinions over those of others. She is the first to realize
Willy is contemplating suicide at the beginning of the play, and urges Biff to
make something of himself, while expecting Happy to help Biff do so.
Biff Loman: Willy's older son. Biff was a football star with lots of
potential in high school, but failed math his senior year and dropped out of
summer school due to seeing Willy with another woman while visiting him in
Boston. He goes between going home to try to fulfill Willy's dream for him to
be a businessman and ignoring his father and going out West to be a farmhand
where he is happiest. He likes being outdoors and working with his hands yet
wants to do something worthwhile so Willy will be proud. Biff steals because he
wants evidence of success, even if it is false evidence, but overall Biff
remains a realist, and informs Willy that he is just a normal guy, and will not
be a great man.
Harold "Happy" Loman:
Willy's younger son. He's lived in the shadow of his older brother Biff most of
his life and seems to be almost ignored, but he still tries to be supportive
towards his family. He has a very restless lifestyle as a womanizer and dreams
of moving beyond his current job as an assistant to the assistant buyer at the
local store, but is unfortunately willing to cheat a little in order to do so,
by taking bribes. He is always looking for approval from his parents, but rarely
gets any, and he even goes as far as to make things up just for attention, such
as telling his parents he is going to get married. He tries often to keep his
family's perceptions of each other positive or "happy" by defending
each of them during their many arguments, but still has the most turbulent
relationship with Linda, who looks down on him for his lifestyle and apparent
cheapness, despite him giving them money.
Charley: Willy's wisecracking yet understanding neighbor. He pities Willy
and frequently lends him money and comes over to play cards with Willy,
although Willy often treats him poorly. Willy is jealous of him because his son
is more successful than Willy's. Charley offers Willy a job many times during
visits to his office, yet Willy declines every time, even after he loses his
job as a salesman.
Bernard: Charley's son. In Willy's flashbacks, he is a nerd, and Willy
forces him to give Biff test answers. He worships Biff and does anything for
him. Later, he is a very successful lawyer, married, and expecting a second
son. These successes are of the very kind that Willy wants for his sons, and in
particular, Biff, making him contemplate where he had gone wrong as a father.
Uncle Ben: Willy's older brother who became a diamond tycoon after a detour
to Africa. He is dead but Willy frequently speaks to him in his hallucinations
of the past. Ben frequently boasts, "when I was seventeen I walked into
the jungle, and when I was twenty-one I walked out. And by God I was
rich." He is Willy's role model, although he is much older and has no real
relationship with Willy, preferring to assert his superiority over his younger
brother. He represents Willy's idea of the American Dream success story, and is shown coming by
the Lomans' house while on business trips to share stories.
Ms. Francis: A woman with whom Willy
cheated on Linda.
Howard Wagner: Willy's boss. He was named
by Willy, and yet he sees Willy as a liability for the company and lets him go,
ignoring all the years that Willy has given to the company. Howard is extremely
proud of his wealth, which is manifested in his recording machine, and his
family.
Jenny: Charley's secretary.
Stanley: A waiter at the restaurant who seems to be friends or acquainted
with Happy.
Miss Forsythe: A call girl (prostitute) whom Happy
picks up at the restaurant. She is very pretty and claims she was on several
magazine covers. Happy lies to her, making himself and Biff look like they are
important and successful. (Happy claims that he attended West Point and that
Biff is a star football player.)
Letta: Miss Forsythe's friend; also a call girl.
A Farewell to Arms
By
Ernest Hemingway
A Farewell to Arms is a novel written by Ernest Hemingway set during the Italian campaign of World War I. The book,
published in 1929, is afirst-person
account of American
Frederic Henry, serving as a Lieutenant("Tenente")
in the ambulance corps of the Italian Army. The title
is taken from a poem by 16th-century English dramatist George Peele.[1]
A Farewell to Arms focuses on a romance between Henry and a British nurse,
Catherine Barkley, against the backdrop of World War I, cynical soldiers,
fighting and the displacement of populations. The publication of this,
Hemingway's bleakest novel, cemented his stature as a modern American writer,[2] became his first best-seller, and is
described by biographer Michael Reynolds as "the premier American war
novel from that debacle [World War I]".[3]
The novel was first adapted to
stage by Laurence
Stallings in 1930,[4] then to film in 1932, with a 1957 remake.[5]
Characters
Lieutenant Frederic Henry – An American who volunteers
for the Italian ambulance corps before the United States joins the war. Various
Italian characters also refer to him as “Tenente” (Lieutenant) or “Federico”
(Frederic). Henry is a classic Hemingway hero in that he is a stoic who does
his duty without complaint. Yet Henry also undergoes tremendous development
through the course of the novel. At the beginning of the novel, he has never
experienced true loss, believes that war is dreadful but necessary, has a lust
for adventure, drinking, and women, and sees Catherineas just another diversion. As the stakes of the
war intensify, however, he becomes deeply pessimistic about the war and
realizes that his love for Catherine is the only thing he is willing to commit
himself to.
Catherine Barkley – An English nurse in Italy,
she bears the spiritual scars of having lost her fiancé in the Battle of the
Somme. When she meets Henry,
she is ready to throw herself into a new relationship in order to escape the
loss of the old one, enlisting Henry to pretend that they are deeply in love
almost as soon as they meet. Emotionally damaged, she can never bring herself
to marry Henry, but wants to be with him in an idealized union apart from the
rest of the world. Through the constant understatements and deprecating humor
in her dialogue, even at moments of extreme danger such as the labor that goes
wrong, she reveals herself to be a stoic match for Henry, the female side of
the Hemingway hero, who does much and says little.
Rinaldi – A skilled surgeon, ladies’ man, and Henry’s best friend in the Italian
Army. His boastful rambunctious banter provides a counterpoint to Henry’s
reserved stoicism.
Helen Ferguson – An English nurse’s aide
and close friend to Catherine.
As Catherine and Henry’s
love affair becomes more consuming, Helen becomes concerned for her friend’s
emotional well-being. Though she is confident and competent, Helen is also
lonely.
The Priest – A military clergyman from
a peasant community in northern Italy. He endures endless jibes from the
soldiers about his celibacy, but with good humor. He and Henry have several
conversations about manhood, religion, and values.
The Major – Another officer serving in
the town of Gorizia, he delights in taunting the priest, who he thinks is pathetic
for not sleeping with women.
Count Greffi – A 94-year-old former
diplomat, he is a father figure to Henry.
He beats Henry at billiards and engages him in a philosophical conversation
about love and war.
Dr. Valentini – A capable, boisterous
doctor who operates on Henry’s
leg, providing a contrast with the timid trio of doctors who wanted to wait six
months before operating.
Ettore Moretti – A decorated
Italian-American war hero whom Henry finds
tedious.
The American Soldier – A fellow American serving
in the Italian army who purposely tries to magnify the severity of a hernia he
has in order to get out of combat.
Gordini, Passini, Manera, and Gavuzzi – Ambulance drivers under Henry‘scommand.
Mrs. Walker – An overly anxious nurse at
the hospital in Milan where Henry is
taken to recuperate from his injury.
Miss Gage – A young nurse at the
hospital in Milan who is fond of Henry.
Miss Van Campen – The head nurse of the
hospital. She and Henry dislike
each other.
The Porter – An underling at the
hospital. He works for tips.
The Barber – Hired by the Porter to shave Henry, he nearly ends up cutting
Henry’s throat because he thinks Henry is an Austrian.
Crowell Rodgers – A young American soldier
who has injured himself while trying to remove the cap of a trench mortar shell
to keep as a souvenir.
Mr. Meyers – A shady fixer of horse
races in Milan.
Gino – A patriotic Italian youth.
Bonello – A bloodthirsty ambulance driver who finishes off a man that Henryhas shot, and then jokes about
it.
Aymo – An ambulance driver who is killed by friendly fire from the
panicked Italian rear guard during a disastrous retreat.
Piani – Another ambulance driver.
The Sergeants – Given a lift by Bonello during the Italian
retreat, they refuse to help when the vehicles become stuck. Henry and Bonello shoot one of
them.
The Lieutenant-Colonel – A dignified officer who is
executed by military police, in front of Henry, for some imagined treachery or cowardice during
the retreat.
The Proprietor – A man who serves Henry wine and then offers to
let Henry, clearly a fugitive at that time, hide in his house.
Ralph Simmons – An American opera singer,
Simmons helps Henry after Henry deserts from the Italian army.
Emilio –
The bartender at the hotel in Stresa where Henry is reunited withCatherine. He helps Henry and Catherine escape the
military police.
Mr. and Mrs. Guttingen – The kind proprietors of
the chalet where Henry andCatherine live in Switzerland.