Essay | Missing Father Figures in "Death of a Salesman" and "The Glass Menagerie"

Willy's brother, Ben, and Tom's father, Mr. Wingfield, create greater insight in the plays "The Glass Menagerie" by Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman" by affecting characters by abandoning them. As missing characters, they illustrate the lifestyle of individuals who withdraw from the despondency of their family to create greater opportunities for themselves. Ben captures a chance to gain a fortune in Alaska while Mr. Wingfield simply deserts the Wingfield family to start a better life. In turn, the choices made by these characters influence the members of their family. Willy aspires to imitate the fortune and wealth of his brother and Tom becomes desperate, like his father, to escape his unsatisfying life. The missing characters play a vital role in the transformation of the protagonists and ultimately influence the choices each individual makes at the end of the play.

As Willy's life deteriorates, he reminisces...
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