Essay 4/29/13

     In the Death of a Salesman, the morals and psychological well being of the main character comes as a result of his cultural surroundings. The character's value of money, life, and family are shaped by the culture of Suburban America. These values, or lack there of, contribute to the theme of the flaws in the American dream and to the ultimate demise of the main character.
     The first moral value to b effected by the culture of Suburban America is the character's value of money. Money is valued above all else and money is what drives life in Suburban America. The main character finds that he lacks the money to fore fill his cultural necessity. Without money you are nothing. This monetary downfall is used by the author to highlight the enormous value that Suburban American culture lives by: the money is always right.
     The next moral value also brings the main character's psychological health into question, the lack of value of human life. In the novel the main character is willing to killing himself for the life insurance money. Not only is he willing to die but he spends nearly all of his life devoted to everything else other than a life worth living. The American dream is that if one works hard enough and gets enough money then you will achieve happiness. The main character is a perfect example of how this cultural idea falls flat, he worked all of his life and in the end it brought him nothing but sorrow and suffering.
     The final cultural value bestowed upon the main character is the lack of value on family. Throughout the novel the characters forgo family and relations in favor of their occupations or advancement in the world. Family is forgotten when jobs are concerned. People lie and pretend to their own family to demand respect in their professional lives. One of what is considered the most misplaced value of the American dream. The value of occupation as opposed to family and relationships.
      Death of a Salesman is a perfect example of the morals of a culture resulting in the morals and psychologic being of a character. This culture shows the flaws of the American dream, the misplaced values of money, life, and family. The culture of Suburban America eventually results in the demise of the character.