Although most do not commit suicide in the face of adversity, people connect with Willy because he is a man driven to extreme action. Willy's self-deprecation, sense of failure, and overwhelming regret are emotions that an audience can relate to because everyone has experienced them at one time or another. The play continues to affect audiences because it allows them to hold a mirror up to themselves. As the play progresses, Willy's life becomes more disordered, and he is forced to withdraw almost completely to the past, where order exists because he can reconstruct events or relive old memories. Willy loses the ability to distinguish reality from fantasy, and this behavior alienates him from others, thereby diminishing his ability to survive in the present. As Willy grows older, making sales is more difficult for him, so he attempts to draw on past success by reliving old memories. Once Biff discovers the affair, however, he loses respect for Willy as well as his own motivation to succeed. At one point, Willy was a moderately successful salesman opening new territory in New England, and Biff and Happy viewed him as a model father. Willy's despair results from his failure to achieve his American dream of success. Willy is an explorer - conqueror of the New England territory - and a dreamer, and this allows the audience to connect with him because everyone has aspirations, dreams, and goals. Rather than drawing the audience's attention to "what" Willy sells, Miller chooses to focus on the fact that Willy is a "salesman." As a result, Miller expands the import of Willy's situation.
It is noteworthy that Miller does not disclose what type of salesman Willy is. Miller saw his uncles as independent explorers, charting new territories across America. Miller based Willy's character on his uncles, Manny Newman and Lee Balsam, who were salesmen. For example, when Happy tells everyone that he is the assistant buyer, even though he is only the assistant to the assistant, he proves that he has incorporated Willy's practice of editing facts. Like Willy, he manipulates the truth to create a more favorable reality for himself. Happy is also a product of Willy's philosophy. As a result, Linda chooses to protect Willy's illusions by treating them as truth, even if she must ignore reality or alienate her children in doing so.
Linda is aware of Willy's habit of reconstructing reality however, she also recognizes that Willy may not be able to accept reality, as shown through his numerous suicide attempts prior to the beginning of the play. Linda and Happy are also drawn into the cycle of denial. Willy vacillates, sometimes criticizing Biff's laziness and ineptitude, other times praising his physical abilities and ambition. Willy wants Biff's affection and adoration as before, but instead the two constantly argue. He cannot remember what happened, so naturally he does not understand why his relationship with Biff has changed. Until the end of the play, Willy effectively blocks the affair out of his memory and commits himself to a life of denial. This is certainly the case within the Loman family. Instead, Miller demonstrates how one individual can create a self-perpetuating cycle that expands to include other individuals. Even so, it would be incorrect to state that Miller solely criticizes Willy. Hence, Willy fantasizes about lost opportunities for wealth, fame, and notoriety.
And he cannot acknowledge the fact that he is only marginally successful. Willy is not an invincible father or a loyal husband or a fantastically successful salesman like he wants everyone to believe. Biff realizes that Willy has created a false image of himself for his family, society, and even for himself. For example, prior to discovering the affair, Willy's son Biff adored Willy, believed all Willy's stories, and even subscribed to Willy's philosophy that anything is possible as long as a person is "well-liked." The realization that Willy is unfaithful to Linda forces Biff to reevaluate Willy and Willy's perception of the world. Willy had an affair over 15 years earlier than the real time within the play, and Miller focuses on the affair and its aftermath to reveal how individuals can be defined by a single event and their subsequent attempts to disguise or eradicate the event. Miller uses the Loman family - Willy, Linda, Biff, and Happy - to construct a self-perpetuating cycle of denial, contradiction, and order versus disorder. The play concludes with Willy's suicide and subsequent funeral.
The play is a montage of memories, dreams, confrontations, and arguments, all of which make up the last 24 hours of Willy Loman's life. Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman addresses loss of identity and a man's inability to accept change within himself and society.
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