Willy presents himself as old fashioned, seemingly interested in making a living and bringing his children up the best he knows how. Willy truly hangs on to the past, where "there was respect, and comradeship, and gratitude in..." the business world (pg 1591). He longs for friends who respect him and know him by name. But Willy takes offense in the fact that "today it's all cut and dried, and there's no chance for bringing friendship to bear- or personality." He believes that the ideal salesman dies doing what he loves, with hundreds of co-workers and clients at his funeral.
To connect the theme, Arthur Miller illustrates through this play the true death of a salesman: a man who has been controlled and defined by the work he has done and number of acquaintances. By the foil characters present in the play, the audience becomes aware of the fact that being well-known and popular only gets one so far in life. Miller tries to persuade the audience that the present society grows too close to their job and reputation and misses out on true importance: defining family, friends, and home.
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