ABSTRACT
Tragedy is one of the oldest and most common forms of drama. For a long time, it had been an accepted rule that the tragic hero must be the kings, nobles or protagonists with high rank. However, Arthur Miller boldly extends his reach to ordinary working people. Miller states his unique view of tragedy, which both inherits and develops the theory of traditional tragedy. Typically, Miller’s tragic view is presented in his masterpieces-Death of a Salesman. The tragic hero Willy Loman in the novel has long been the focus of literary criticism. This paper first analyzes the embodiment of the tragedy in Death of a Salesman: the tragic fate of the hero, then explores the causes of his tragic fate in three aspects: the internal and external causes, and Miller’s tragedy theory. In this way, this paper tries to help the readers to have a more profound and comprehensive understanding of the play.
Key words：tragedy; Death of a Salesman; Willy Loman
Contents
1. Introduction 1
2. Embodiments of the tragic fate of the hero 2
3. The causes of the tragic fate of the hero 3
3.1 The internal causes 4
3.2 The external causes 6
3.3 Miller’s tragic view in Death of a Salesman 9
4. The practical significance of Death of a Salesman 10
5. Conclusion 12
Acknowledgements 13
References 14
