Happy (who's not always so happy)

I felt so sorry for Happy throughout the entirety of the play. He is constantly shoved into the background behind Biff not only in high school, but also when they are grown men. In high school, Biff was the star athlete, and Happy was just the younger brother who got to carry his gear. Biff was always in the limelight and his father's sight, where Happy had to constantly draw awareness to himself so his father would notice him. When the boys grew up, Willy was still concerned with Biff. Ever since Biff found out that Willy had been cheating on his mom, Willy had been trying to get his forgiveness and make up with his son. He wanted Biff to be successful, rich, and have a better life than he did. He wanted that life for Happy too, but he never expressed those feelings. At one point in the play, Happy announces that he's getting married, and no one even says congratulations or acknowledges it. Happy was always just Biff's younger brother.

Suspense

Dramatic suspense is present throughout the play. Just by looking at the title Death of a Salesman, I couldn't wait to find out who dies (or if someone even dies). Then, Willy's suicide attempts are hinted to when Linda informs Biff about Willy's accidents and how the insurance people said it wasn't an accident, but an intentional act. After this point in the play, Willy's mind is portrayed as more unstable which adds to the dramatic suspense to see if he is going to succeed in killing himself. Once again, Linda discovers another fact that hints to the supposition that Willy wants to die. She finds a hose attached to the furnace or some utility machine in the cellar which could not be good for one's health. I think Linda knows Willy will eventually become successful, and she does everything in her power to stop him. In the end, Willy takes his life by getting into an accident and there is no more suspense in the play.

realistic?

Throughout this play, there were aspects of both realism and unrealism. The lives of the characters and some of their experience can be seen as real, while the flashbacks and visuals experienced by Willy are not realistic at all. The Loman family in the flashbacks to when the boys were in high school can be compared to real life families at that time in history. They had a father who worked, a mother who stayed at home and took care of the house, and two boys who liked to be boys and play sports. Even when Happy and Biff left after high school, the family can still be seen as normal. Biff and Willy had their problems, and were unable to sort them out. Problems like that exist in reality.
The unrealistic parts of the play were when Ben would appear to Willy at parts in the play. Willy had no idea that Ben was just an imaginary character and would carry on a conversation out loud with him even when there were people around. I guess the unrealistic parts were there scenes with Willy's messed up mind that kept trying to live in the past.

Tom

To me, I really like how this play is very informal. At the beginning, Tom comes out and directly addresses the audience. He says, "I am the narrator of the play, and also a character in it." In a regular Shakespeare play, no actor would come out and talk like they are carrying on a conversation with the audience. There might be soliloquies or speeches that sum up an act or something in the play like Iago in Othello, but never would there be a character like Tom. I feel like this would add an extra dramatic effect to the work as a whole. Here you have a character that addresses you, but also interacts with the other characters on stage. Tom is sort of like the mediator between the audience and the stage characters. He helps us to be more in touch with Amanda and Laura to feel more emotions (and at times to feel more emotions with Tom).

Imagination

When reading the play, there are a lot of side notes and stage directions. The author specifically writes what he wants the actors to do and what he wants the stage to look like. Being said, the stage is not exceptionally decorated. There are a few props and the writer repeatedly makes note of the fire escape and landing, but other than these things, there is not a lot of exquisiteness. I think the author did this so that the audience would focus more on the meaning of the play rather than the stage. Although in some plays a stage is essential, in this one, the author moves beyond it. In certain scenes, like in scene 2, some spotlights illuminate certain objects. In scene 2, the picture of the father is lit up to so a significant value and to make Tom's point stronger. I think that seeing this play acted out would be really enjoyable.

Realistic? yes.

As far as I have gotten in the play (Scene 5), everything about it has been realistic. From Tom having to work at a warehouse to support his family to Amanda's almost crazy actions, the play is able to be related to and therefore, in my eyes, realistic. Even the conversations between the characters seem real. Amanda has trouble with her son and in Scene 1 feels deceived that her daughter lied to her about not going to college. In real life, parents at one point have trouble with their children. Since the emotions can be related to, at times, readers can be sympathetic or angry or whatever towards the characters. I cannot wait for the gentleman caller to come to dinner because I am very anxious to see how Laura acts. I think that in the two scenes to come, the actions of the characters will continue to mirror reality.