Perfect Play: Miller's "Death of a Salesman"

I'm going to do something a little different with this post. Instead of focusing on my TOP 10 reasons why I think that Miller's "Death of a Salesman" could be considered the perfect play, I'm going to focus mostly on my TOP 1 aspect of this play I truly feel is perfectly executed and which I feel perfectly connects everything else into perfection: Miller's use of musical cues.

First, I must admit that I love the theme of this play... I can’t think of a theme more timeless in the US than that of the "Struggle for the American Dream". For those who need a refresher: Miller uses Willy Loman as his vehicle to show how the American Dream is no longer viewed as something that needs to be earned (like back in his fathers generation), but as something that is now thought to be intrinsic; that can be achieved through external materialism. He does not see the value of accomplishment through what his hands have created, but how many people approve of his physical presentation and personality. This becomes his tragic flaw, so to speak.

However, a great many plays use this theme and, even if Miller were the first to use it (which I doubt he was), that doesn't inherently grant this as a perfect play. So, onto my TOP 1 reason why I feel the musical cues combine with this classic theme to make "Death of a Salesman" a perfect play:

(1) Miller's uses symbolic musical cues to offer his audience a tragic glimpse into the superficial expectations, as well as the overall sense of confusion, caused by the modern blurred concept of the American Dream. Miller begins the play with the sound of a flute to establish the nostalgic fantasies of the Dream, describing it as "small and fine, telling of grass and trees on the horizon". This colorful "horizon" represents the most important aspect of what the American Dream stands for: hope of a better tomorrow. This also becomes the "theme" for the plays lead character, Willy Loman.

Like Willy, many characters in the play have their own theme song. There is "gay and bright music" for the boys and an "idyllic" tune for the recurrences of Ben’s character. Like a television commercial jingle, these themes are meant to create different moods that, as the patterns are established for each characters musical cue, subliminally indoctrinate the audience into certain expectations within the plays action. Soon after the play begins, the audience becomes aware that the music either indicates a shift in time or prefaces the re-emergence of a character. These expectations create a complacent attitude within the audience that works toward establishing a mindset similar to that of Willy Loman. Without having to think or worry about what is going to happen next, the audience gets a full taste of Willy’s tragic flaw.

As more and more music permeates the action, a sense of confusion is created about what is real and what isn’t. For example, early in the play, the music is spaced out between long passages of action and dialogue; but as Willy’s equilibrium becomes less stable, more music is added, steadily increasing in rapidity from its "slow and fine" introduction and ultimately building to moments like "a single trumpet note [that] jars the ear". In addition, the character themes are interspersed with "raucous music" and songs that often rise "to a mocking frenzy". These eventually spread an insecure, uncomfortable feeling throughout the audience as upbeat musical directions coincide with the tragic drama occurring on stage. This eclectic use of music blends and swirls together in a soup that fogs the mind, similar to the blurred ideals of Willy Loman’s character.

As the play reaches the final moments, reality has spiraled so far out of reach for Willy that he actually begins to react physically to the to the plays musical cues: "Suddenly music, faint and high, stops him". It is at this moment, where the spatial barrier between audience and stage vanishes, that the audience is finally able to connect in thought with Willy, neither being able to tell the difference from reality and fantasy. Like a pressure cooker comprised of Willy’s lost hopes and dreams, those in attendance experience Willy’s boiled over feelings of powerlessness as the music "rises in intensity, almost to an unbearable scream". As Willy exits the stage and drives off in his car, the music "crashes down in a frenzy", signaling the death of the salesman. As the family stands over Willy’s grave in the requiem, the "music of the flute" resonates, an indication that Willy has perhaps brought more hope to their lives in death than he could in life.

That ended up being longer than I thought it would... but hopefully I made my point.