Emotional Release

• Emotional Release: Catharsis

  The Requiem can be seen as providing the emotional release for the audience (required in a tragedy) in its reflective tone.
• Aristotle

  • For Aristotle, the climax of a tragedy should act as an emotional release for an audience, help to purge (relieve them of) the emotions of pity and fear built up through the tragedy.
• The Requiem

  • Miller’s short closing scene (the Requiem) can be seen as providing such a release for audiences in its reflective tone.
  • The characters have had the opportunity to reflect on Willy’s life and death and therefore offer judgements which help characters such as Biff, and so audiences, to move forward.
• Resolution

  • But as many commentators have argued, there is no ‘neat’ resolution at the end of the play.
  • Both of Willy’s sons are in conflict while Linda still cannot comprehend Willy’s death.