Death of a Salesman and Fences- Symbolism
In Arthur Miller 's Death of a Salesman, there are symbols such as the stockings, and seeds that help us understand Willie Loman a bit better. In August Wilson's Fences, the fence, and the seeds tell us how Troy and Rose deal with their relationship as a married couple. These plays are riddled with symbols and many of them help us learn more about the main characters.
Through out the book we read about Willie's past, and we are constantly reminded that he had cheated on his wife. He would go on business trips for weeks at a time and he would sleep with a secretary. He would be with her and buy her presents and she would often order products that he sells. He would buy her stockings, which were expensive at the time, rather than save his money, because we must remember that he is not a successful as he claims to be.
Actor Dustin Hoffman with Lee J. Cobb, who origina...
Death of a Salesman (1951 film)
willie nelson @ fresnoBy using his money to buy stockings for another woman, he misspends his low salary, which leads to future disappointments such as his inability to provide for his family.
In the beginning of this play, Rose asks Troy to build a fence around the backyard. She wants the fence built to keep her family in, so she can take care of them and keep them together. Bono thinks that the fence is being built to keep people out, and he is referring to Troy's infidelity towards Rose. Troy keeps on delaying the completion of the fence, which suggests that he doesn't care very much for his marriage anymore. When he and Cory get into the fight he ends up kicking Cory out, and he throws Cory's belongs over the fence. By doing so, he has pushed Cory...