There seems to be a lot of debate around which character is the protagonist. Personally, I see it two ways: First, the play is a tragedy, and in all tragedies, the protagonist is destroyed by his or her fatal flaw. Therefore, Willy is the protagonist. He is the titular character, after all. And he is destroyed by his obssession with success. Second, the protagonist is the character who changes and the antagonist is the character who causes the protagonist to change. Therefore, Bif is the protagonist. Willy and Happy are the antagonist, because they bring about all the change that Bif has to face. Even time could be an antagonist, because as Bif grows older, his views and opinions change. However, time has also changed Willy. So... Screw it, there is no protagonist...
Anyway, all character confusion aside, the play is very interesting. It presents a take on the dark side of the American Dream, the people who failed to be the Great Gatsby, if you will. Willy is a picture of someone who worked hard and long, and for what? A run down house, a history of domestic violence, an affair, and a kid who doesn't love him--barely respects him. It's dark, gruesome (in the sense that the American Dream is slaughtered before our very eyes). It's a true picture of America. Reminds me of Watchmen, the scene where Nite Owl and the Comedian are fighting rioters--American citizens--and Nite Owl asks "Whatever happened to the American Dream?" to which the Comedian replies "It came true. You're looking at it."
Powerful stuff.
I think Willy's JOB is he protagonist, if one believes that the protagonist is the person or entity which is the cause for the storyline. I see times changing (they always do!) as the antagonist. Now I am talking here about Willy and Willy only...he was so obsessed with losing and regaining respect and going back in time and remembering all the respect he got (and the boys) that he cannot understand that times have changed and he needs to change as well.
ReplyDeleteHe has all kinds of ideas but no thought of putting one foot in front of another. This has not changed in the 50 or so years since the play was written...today, someone's profession can go south and you have to change with the times.
Maybe it is an obscure way of thinking about the protagonist but it seems pretty clear to me...if nothing else, food for thought.