THTR1170 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Tragic Hero
Document Summary
Miller talks about tragedy as a quest to preserve dignity. Just like willy- he tries to save his dignity and pride, not really the money itself. There has to be a possibility of success- part of the tragedy. Character"s unwillingness to be passive unwilling to lay down. Miller doesn"t see this as a negative- it"s what drives the tragedy. Willy doesn"t necessarily inspire you- purpose of character is willing to push back and not be subject to a challenge. tragedy is to teach us. It is to inspire us to challenge our own situations. In the presence of a character who is willing to lay down their lives in a challenging situation. Willy has a very diluted sense of self. Biff actually asks the questions and says it himself that he had the wrong dream. American dream: notion that there is no systemic boundary.
