<Death of a Salesman>과 <The Crucible>에 나타난 여성인물 연구

Abstract

This research paper examines the major works of Arthur Miller from a feminist perspective, and relates each work in term of the major female characters. This research projects focuses on Death of a Salesman from the 1940s and The Crucible from the 1950s, and reflects upon the way in which each piece provides a representative image of Miller's perceptions of women during each time period. As shadow, there are four main types of women in Miller's plays; the ‘Good Wife’, the ‘Temptress’, the ‘Ingenue’ and the Independent Woman'. But this research paper examines only ‘Good Wife’ and ‘Temptress’ and see how they function in two plays. So, This research compares Between Linda Loman of Death of a Salesman and Elizabeth Procror of The Crucible as a Good Wife . Also this research examines Boston Woman of Death of a Salesman and Abigail of The Crucible as a Temptress in order to find What Miller's limitations is when he portrays female characters. As society has progressed over the course of the last fifty years, women have transformed from wives and mothers in the early post- World WarⅡ era, to businesswomen, politicians, and forceful members of society. But Miller appears unable to create female characters that are multi-dimensional and reflect a deeper understanding of female psycho social development and the progression of feminist ideology that is inherent in American culture. Because Miller's work is obsessed with the idea of what it means to be a Man as Herbert Blau said. The overpowering impression of Miller's works is that, for Miller's heros, the most important thing is to bond successfully with other men. And Miller's female characters fit clearly into a few stereotypical female characterizations, even as his literature progress toward topics more representative of the latter half of the 20th century. In his works, The women who function as whores have almost characterization and mothers and wives are necessary but ineffectual for men. Even though Arthur Miller is undoubtedly a great playwright, his understanding of women is very slight, and the tendency of much of his work to focus on the inner thoughts of one male protagonist gives little opportunity for the development of female characterization in his work. Moreover, his reduction of the infinite variety of the female personality to only a few basic types limits the potentials for his characters to grow. In short, Miller is clearly unable to imagine a woman completely apart from her relationship to a man; and this is a significant liability in his work.