The Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller as an Epic Tragedy Aristotle's Poetics defines the making of a dramatic or epic tragedy and presents the general principles of construction of this type. Surprisingly, over the centuries, authors have remained remarkably close to Aristotle's guidelines. Arthur Miller's 20th-century tragedy Death of a Salesman is an example of this adherence to Aristotle's prescription for tragedy. It is important to test Aristotle's definition and requirements of tragedy by comparison and contrast with a contemporary tragedy and to make observations about the influence that society and culture can have on gender. This discussion will, however, be limited to the area of ​​plot and the more notable aspects of the construction of tragic incidents due to the complexity of this element. Aristotle's attention in much of the Poetics is directed to the demands and expectations of plot. The plot, “the soul of tragedy,” says Aristotle, must be the imitation of a noble and complete action. In Death of a Salesman, Miller proposes a complete action, that is to say, it includes what Aristotle identifies as a beginning, a middle and an end. These divisible sections must, and must meet in the event of the Death of a Seller, the criterion of their respective placement. However, whether Miller proposes a Nobel action is a question of culture. Willy Loman ultimately commits suicide so that his son Biff can benefit from the insurance money he will receive. The question then is: according to our culture, is his suicide noble? Since Willy's suicide is carried out for Biff's benefit, we could consider this act to be a sacrifice. Sacrifice is a pious and admirable quality in our culture, one of the... middle of paper ......ath of a 20th century literature salesman. January 1972. 19-24. Rep. in world literary criticism. Ed. Frank Magill. “Arthur Miller” Detroit: Gale Research, 1992. 2366-2368. Hayman, Ronald. Arthur Miller. New York: Frederick Ungar, 1972. Hoeveler, DJ “Ben's Influence.” Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman: Modern Critical Interpretations. Ed. Harold Blum. Philadelphia: Chelsea House, 1988. 72-81. Magill, Frank. “Death of a Salesman.” Master plots. Englewood Cliffs: Salem, 1976. 1365-1368.Miller, Arthur. Death of a seller. New York: Penguin, 1949.---. Conversations with Arthur Miller. Jackson: Mississippi UP, 1987. Parker, Brian. “Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman Perspective.” Arthur Miller: A Collection of Critical Essays. Ed. Robert Corrigan. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1969. 98-107.