For THEAT 319 — Modern Theatre History — my class has just finished reading the play "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller.
While discussing the play, my professor mentioned, with an uneasy laugh, that it was ironic that Miller crafted the character Linda as an empathetic character, who resembled his late wife Marilyn Monroe when he certainly wasn't empathetic towards her.
It makes for quite an interesting puzzle.
One piece of the puzzle is Miller, one of America's most legendary playwrights who won the Pulitzer Price for Drama. The other piece of the puzzle is Monroe, ranked as the sixth greatest star of all times by American Film Institute and one of the most famous women of the 20th century. The two pieces individually stood as two separate beautiful, thriving, inspiring, colorful pieces.
The Miller piece was from New York City. He was born during the Great Depression, which resulted in a great financial loss for his father who lost his company. Adding to that loss was the suicide of his uncle, who was a salesman.
The Monroe piece, born in California, was working on an assembly line for the Radio Plane Munitions factory when photographer David Conover noticed her and hired her as a model. In the course of two years, she became a well-known model and had starring appearances in trendy magazines.
The puzzles pieces didn't fit together, but that wasn't for lack of trying.
Monroe sacrificed many things in her life to make her marriage to Miller work. She converted to Judaism for Miller and had a Jewish wedding in 1956, which was held in secret so the press wouldn't find out.
Whenever Miller didn't have enough money or was unemployed, she would be the provider for the family. And Miller wasn't the kindest soul when it came to finances. Perhaps this was due to being raised during the Great Depression, when society learned to be frugal.
According to the BBC, when Miller was found guilty for not revealing names during the Communism scare, it was Monroe who risked her career to speak on his behalf in Washington.
The relationship between Monroe and Miller's character, Linda Loman from "Death of a Salesman," are very similar.
The play revolves around Willy Loman, a failed traveling salesman. His wife, Linda, consoles him and tells him to go to his boss, Howard, and ask for an office position so he won't have to continue traveling.
Linda continues to support her husband and tells her sons, Biff and Happy, that their father has attempted suicide. Reading between the lines, we can see that Linda is extremely considerate toward her husband, thinks the world of him and will do anything to try and keep him happy. The audience finds out that Willy has had a continued affair during his marriage to Linda.
Willy goes into Howard's office, asking for an office job, only to have Howard tell him there is no place for him at the office. Willy, pleading, tells him he has worked as salesman for over 34 years and used to earn $170 a week. Howard could care less about the time and commitment Willy has given him and fires him, without caring about the family and bills Willy must support.
At the end of the play, Willy commits suicide and at the funeral Linda asks Willy for forgiveness.
It's shocking that Miller wrote Linda as this woman who takes care of the family non-stop while her husband is busy, as a woman who would do anything for her husband and as a woman who provides such support and strength to her husband through the thick and thin.
"They are both archetypical submissive females who are not fully rendered people. The thing about Monroe and Linda they are both stereotypical versions of women — passive and to be looked upon rather than to take action," Tyler Smith, assistant professor of theater, said.
Monroe portrays all these qualities that Linda possess and Miller must have been blinded if he couldn't make the connection between the inspirations for one of his most famous characters and his former wife. Yet Miller still had an affair and the couple divorced.
Arthur Miller may have been a brilliant playwright, but he should have paid respect to his other puzzle piece that didn't quite fit.
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