A Comparison and Contrast of Hamlet and Death of a Salesman, Essay Example

William Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman are both literary works noteworthy for theme, plot and characters. The two main characters, Hamlet and Willy Loman, face trials and tribulations relating to family, society and despair. Both works of art detail the trials and tribulations of the two main characters. Both are driven to death by the events of life and the authors vividly detail the experiences and circumstances pushing them both into their own painful abyss.

Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is an American tragedy. “It is a compelling drama about an American family whose members are unable to communicate the love that they feel for each other or the existential despairs that each of them experience” (Murphy and Abbotson, p. 1) The character of Willy Loman is the typical success-driven American who lives for his work and the material things it affords him. His persona depicts the portrait of American society. Miller’s tragic drama shows Loman to be a simple salesman who although mundane, wants greatness and a superior status. His career is failing but he continues to live the lie of pretending to work after he is fired. Willy wants the ‘American Dream’ and perceives himself to be a hero of sorts. In reality he is just a middle-class aging man who cannot accept consciously that he is just an ordinary man who will never achieve greatest. Miller uses realism to show his audience how desperation and the desire for something can drive a person to madness and suicide.

Miller brings out a sense of tragedy in the story evoking in his audience a sagacity of sadness for Willy and for a society so driven on success. “It is also a pointed critique of the society it depicts and a rejection of some of the basic values that its author saw being lived out in the United States  of the 1940s” (Murphy & Abbotson, p. 1). He writes this story of everyday life and the endless search for status, wealth, self worth and happiness. His wife realizes he is not a ‘great’ man but that he deserves attention just as much as anyone else. Decision making is difficult for him and his wife is the one constant in his life. Willy thrives to life the American dream; a façade he created in his own mind after being abandoned by his father and brother. His psyche has constructed the ‘ideal’ life and expects his wife and sons to follow suit and be stellar and perfect.

Willy’s fear of abandonment leads him to adultery which only further distances himself from his family. His constant search for recognition and superiority only creates havoc and chaos for his life and those around him. Willy has lived his life boasting about his greatness and the potential successfulness of his sons. This theme of reality versus illusion is constantly portrayed throughout Miller’s work until the end. Willy’s son Biff realizes the façade his father has created and understands his true potential.

William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a story of revenge within the circle of family. Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, murder’s his father so he can marry Hamlet’s mother so he can prevail as the King of Denmark. “The young man seeks vengeance for his father’s murder but somehow feels conflicted, as if he himself were complicitous in that murder rather than purely and simply his father’s avenger” (MacCary, p. 11).

Hamlet’s sole purpose in life centers on a planned plot of revenge against the uncle and his crimes. Throughout the play Hamlet is melancholy and bitter; he is filled with hatred and is cynical in his demeanor and interactions with others. Hamlet is confronted by his dead father as a ghost. He commands Hamlet to avenge his death and set order right. However, Hamlet is indecisive and attempts to verify his uncle’s guilt before taking action.

Throughout the play Hamlet’s obsession drives him to erratic and questioning behavior. The appearance of the ghost has left him angry and ready to strike out at his uncle. However, he also questions his own death. His query is mixed with distrust for how to form an action plan. He struggles with acting out rationally versus irrationally. His purpose is to avenge his father but he is unable to decide on an action. Hamlet considers death by suicide but worries about his soul and everlasting life. Although Hamlet has a purpose in seeking revenge, he still is ambivalent and continually anticipates the outcome of every thought and decision he makes.

When Hamlet has the opportunity to kill Claudius, he cannot commit the act as his uncle is kneeling in prayer.  He chooses not to kill him at this moment, fearing his forgiveness by God if he is killed during prayer. Later, Hamlet stabs Polonius, thinking it is Claudius, and the act creates overt violence, releasing his angry and anguish of his plight. At this moment he is lost in the act and commits himself to an act of violent revenge. His uncle then plots Hamlet’s demise. “When he actually kills his uncle, it is not in vengeance for his uncle’s having killed his father, but rather for his uncles having plotted to kill Hamlet himself” (MacCary, p. 12).

The two main characters in Hamlet and Death of a Salesman have similar and contrasting characteristics and themes. Both men are weak-willed. “Strong wills are ordinarily required to create conflicts and make the play interesting” (Thomas, p. 91). However, the compensating features of the characters and events of both plays provide the drama and interest in reading and studying these plays. These two main characters are also similar in the devotion to their value system they each have. “As a traveling salesman, Willy deeply believes in the traditional values held by many Americans during the period following World War II” (Thomas, p. 92). Hamlet also demonstrates his value system as he struggles with making sure his uncle is guilty of murdering his father before acting out his vengeance.

The women in the lives of these two characters also demonstrate a common theme. Willy “wants his sons to love him and he wants to deserve the love of his wife, whom he feels he has failed” (Simon, para. 14). Although this couple loves each other, he still takes a mistress on the road. This indicates his continual search for ‘something’ to make him noticed and worthy of attention and recognition. For Hamlet just the opposite is seen in his refusal to love or marry, although he and Ophelia have a romantic involvement early in the play.  Shakespeare also touches on a theme of incest by the marriage of his mother to his uncle. This seems to turn him against female figures. Ophelia turns against him after she learns of her father’s murder. Both men seem to view women with a level of belittlement bordering on distrust and disgust.

The level of self awareness is hidden for both characters by focusing on self-deceptions and delusions.  Willy finally realizes that he is not extraordinary but he makes an extraordinary act by believing his death will provide insurance money to enable his son’s success. Hamlet contemplates death from his disappointment in family and the state of affairs of his life.  His reasoning is more focused on the afterlife and what happens to the soul after death.  Whereas Willy is more focused on the good his death could provide to the living.

Obsession is a common dominator between Hamlet and Willy. Hamlet is obsessed with his father’s murder and vengeance towards the murderer. His obsession drives him to act impulsive and carelessly. His original plan was to devise a methodical and carefully planned retaliation, however, his passion moves him to lose control and act swiftly and irresponsibly, ending in a wrongful killing of Polonius. His erratic behavior and wild speech demonstrate his possible mental decline. Willy’s fixation with fulfilling the American Dream also borders on madness and delusion.

Both men can also be seen as a tragic hero. A tragic hero is typically seen as a man who is of noble stature and not an ordinary man. He would be a man of greatness with a self destructive greater principle. Hamlet is a prince and of royalty but Willy is ordinary. Both men become ‘heroes’ as they both eventually realize their own flaws and the root of their shortcomings; demonstrating a classic literary tragedy.

Willy makes the crucial sacrifice of suicide in his earnest desire to have his son accomplish what he was not able to in his own lifetime. He sees himself as old and a failure and believes that his suicide will give Biff inheritance money to achieve the American Dream. He realizes the disappointment his life has been in not achieving the American Dream. Hamlet also dies at the end of the play, but his death is a result of murder. Although he did consider suicide by disappointment in the murder of his father and what he sees as his mother’s betrayal by hastily marrying his uncle. Both characters however, act out based on the events of family and friends and the influence they have over each character.

The element of tragedy in both plays evokes emotion from the audience and prompts the viewers to identify with each character with sympathy and empathy. Hamlet is dressed in black, representing his mood and attitude. Willy considers himself old and fat. The mood of the characters also implies the tragic theme of the plays. Hamlet is a prince; however, he does not behave as a prince. His station in life is forgotten as he contemplates the expectation of his father’s ghost. Willy’s station in life is ordinary but he behaves as if he is of royalty and has a level of certain entitlement.

Hamlet and Willy both fell from grace, per se.  Hamlet through his acts of vengeance and Willy through his affair and inept ability to provide more solidarity for his family. Their death appears to be the factor which provides the way for order to be restored.  Willy commits suicide for a greater purpose, thereby ending his suffering and demonstrating his love and dedication to his son. Hamlet and family members die, ending the incestuous marriage of his mother and uncle and leaving his status as King to Fortinbras, Jr. The deaths of these two tragic heroes provide re-establishment and order in both worlds.

Both men also had difficulty moving on with life. Hamlet was a grown adult but still attended school. He also grieved his father’s death and resented his mother’s remarriage incessantly. His character seemed to be stagnant and unable to make firm decisions. This can also be seen in his relationship with Ophelia and the length of time they dated and never married. Willy likewise had difficulty being productive.  He was a mediocre salesman who spent his life dormant believing he was something he was not. Both men were procrastinators and tended to question their actions.

Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Miller’s Death of a Salesman are literary tragedies famous for the characters. Hamlet and Willy Loman are heroes in the plays with similarities and distinctions of their own.  Both men harbor secrets, lies and distrust. Their tragic lives personify the difficulty of society and expectations. Hamlet is expected to avenge his father’s death. Willy places an expectation on himself but does not have the drive or perseverance to achieve his dreams. Both literary works are considered tragedies and the characters are seen in direct contrast to each other divided by station in life and era. However, they also share the commonality of heroism by tragedy with personal struggles and inner turmoil.

Works Cited

MacCary, Thomas. “Hamlet: A Guide to the Play.” 1998. Greenwood Press.  Web. December 12, 2009.

Murphy, Brenda & Abbotson, Susan. “Understanding Death of a Salesman.” 1999. Greenwood Press. Web. December 12, 2009.

Thomas, James Michael. “Script Analysis for Actors, Directors and Designers.” 1999. Elsevier Science.  Web. December 12, 2009.

Simon, Scott. “Salesman Willy Loman: A Towering Little Man.” NPR. Feb 2, 2008. Web. December 12, 2009