Specific and Societal GapsGaps, whether they relate to a person, a society, a situation, or a nation, are often revealed through literature and the media. In Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman, specific flaws in American life are explored, with a focus on social, economic, and personal problems. Willy Loman could be seen as a possible embodiment of all of these flaws, but it could also be argued that he is an innocent victim, due to the problems inherent in all societies, but particularly American life. impressive. His frequent public outbursts are embarrassing to those around him and also inappropriate for someone his age. In public, his sons feel the need to act as if he “was just a guy” (Miller 115). His outbursts, first at his former employer's office and then later at a restaurant, continue to escalate, causing awkward feelings between him, his friends, his family and the general public. Socially acceptable behavior is certainly not one of the elder Loman's strong points. Over time, America has moved further and further away from this aforementioned acceptable behavior. Those before Loman's time would have described even his most normal actions as, especially "in the world of business..., crazy", and because of all his added "crazy" actions, he feels that those of the world business “does not seem to matter to [him]” (61; 36). He fears that his sons are "a worm like Bernard", and his obsession with these impressions they would make on people eventually backfires and virtually ruins the rest of Biff's life (40). However, it could be argued that Willy is simply a product of his environment. Everything that happens to him I...... middle of paper...... the fall too. Many personal issues in American society are also explored through Miller's account of Willy Loman's life, or rather, his path to death. These factors interact and combine, causing greater and greater problems; his precarious economic and social situation is both a factor and a product of his unstable family life. In a country riddled with debt and where the divorce rate is fifty percent, it is obvious that the "American dream" is not necessarily a reality. Obsession with the "American dream" and the obsession with trying to achieve it will almost always lead to the revelation of the reality of American life: all that glitters is not gold. Even a seemingly perfect nuclear family can have the biggest problems. In some cases these problems are completely hidden, in others they are quite obvious, and still others may fall somewhere in between...