Describe how Death of a Salesman is an "anatomy" of the American dream

Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman is an anatomy of the American Dream. The American Dream is what Willie Loman is trying to achieve. He believes that if one works hard enough, he will be rewarded. His brother Ben is a perfect example, having owned large sections of forest land and a diamond mine when he was alive. Willie believes that he, too, should be rewarded; however, this play is not about achieving that dream, but failing to realize it. In reality, Willie's American Dream is a "myth." He believes that this dream can be achieved through "material wealth," but it cannot be, and because of Willie's tunnel vision, he loses touch with those around him—losing sight of what really makes a man "successful."

Through his main character, Willy Loman, Miller examines the myth of the American Dream and the shallow promise of happiness through material wealth.

The American Dream is like a false façade on a movie set: underneath the surface, there is nothing. For Willie, the dream that his brother Ben realized is what Willie wants, but all we know is that Ben was materially successful. The promise of wealth and happiness is an illusion. This illusion drives Willie's downward spiral in the play. As Willie continues to fall apart, it only supports Miller's assertion of the emptiness of the dream. There is no American Dream, Miller demonstrates, for the average man. There are only disappointments, "missed opportunities" and "compromised ideals."

Much of [the play's] success is attributed to Miller's facility in portraying the universal hopes and fears of middle-class America.

In trying to achieve the "dream," Willie becomes distanced from his wife, Linda, who is completed devoted to him. Willie has a mistress for a time, and Biff accidentally stumbles upon the secret—which further isolates this father and son. The disillusionment, frustrations and failures that Willie experiences are the true elements of the dream for most Americans.The harder Willie tries, the more disappointed he is.

The play is an anatomy of the American Dream as it demonstrates one man's destruction in putting the dream before all else, and losing everything. Willie never quite accepts that the dream is "an empty promise." He fails…

...to honestly face the facts of his life.

He takes the blame, as he sees it, upon himself, and in the end takes his life in the hope that his insurance money will help his family—serving them with his death, as he feels he could not in his life.