The Limitations of Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman

A man's limitations define his existence, and circumstances dictate his destiny. Necessity regulates every instinct, as the Darwinistic instinct to kill or be killed motivates him to conform to the realities of his situation. A man's entire lifetime is spent searching for, testing, and coming to terms with his limitations. A man's limitations are defined by his social, financial, and emotional failures. The boundaries man establishes in his interactions with others indicate the extent of his destiny. A man will not achieve any status he believes he is incapable of attaining. His destiny conforms to his boundaries. Thus, his destiny is determined by reality.

Literature throughout history has reflected man's struggle to understand his inadequacies and to come to terms with reality. The text Composition and Literature: Exploring Human Experience examines many facets of the life cycle. Chapter Five of the text, entitled "Coming to Terms with Life", examines man's need to understand his boundaries. In Chapter Five, Jones remarks that in William Hazlitt's essay "On the Feeling of Immortality in Youth" Hazlitt "maintains that only gradually, through 'time and experience' does one come to acknowledge personal mortality - a realization and admission of what the Roman poet Vergil called 'the tears of things'" (Jones 232). A prominent figure in literature who is included in this chapter and who epitomizes the essence of man's search for his limitations is Willy Loman in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman. Loman acknowledges his mortality but refuses to acknowledge his limitations and fails to consider "the tears of things" (Vergil 232). Throughout the play, Loman's confrontations with others color how he perceives himself and serve to establish his limitations. Loman's attempts to achieve the American dream are hindered by the boundaries of his existence.