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Abstract
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Reading William Shakespeare's The Life of Timon of Athens and Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, it is possible to make a meaningful comparison of the response of tragedy to economic pressure in different historical periods. Although the two plays are written more than three centuries apart, the two plays share a common concern for a principal character whose sense of identity relies heavily on social approval and material stability. When that approval fails, the outcome is not only financial loss, it's moral and psychological breakdown. This study is needed because it unites two major dramatic works that do not usually hang together, even though they are preoccupied with the same problems of economic pressure, social recognition, and personal collapse. The Life of Timon of Athens and Death of a Salesman are separated in time, culture, and theatrical tradition, but both portray tragedy as the outcome of a world where human value is judged by systems of exchange. A comparative study is helpful for understanding the differences in the way these systems operate over the periods, while inevitably leading to the same tragic results. The main objective of this study is to make a comparative analysis of William Shakespeare's The Life of Timon of Athens and Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman so as to explore the issues in which economic systems influence the relationships between people, personal identity and tragic results in various historical times.
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