Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

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The tragedy of a typical American--a salesman who at the age of sixty-three is faced with what he cannot face; defeat and disillusionment.

Willy Loman: The disillusioned and unstable salesman who hangs all his hopes on his son, Biff.
Linda Loman: Willy's faithful wife. She accepts and even sympathizes with his outbursts and irrationalities because she recognizes him as the good but cheated man he is.
Biff Loman: Willy's son. He chafes under his father's expectations of him, and the tension between them is increased by the knowledge Biff has of Willy's former adulterous affair. He strikes out for rual life away from the passive city jobs he hates.
Happy Loman: Willy's second son and Biff's brother. He is a womanizer and has very low morals. He likes to put on shows and disguise the reality of things if it suits him.
Charley: Willy's neighbor. He understands Willy and his pride, but consistently offers him a job.
Uncle Ben: Willy's brother. He got rich from diamond mining in the jungle, and he represents the missed oppurtunities and exciting life Willy feels he is missing.

“Yeah. He was a happy man with a batch of cement.”
Charley
“Nobody dast blame this man. You don't understand: Willy was a salesman. And for a salesman, there is no rock-bottom to the life. He don't put a bolt to a nut, he don't tell you the law or give you medicine. He's a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back--that's an earthquake. And then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you're finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory.”
Charley