Death of a Salesman: Reader Response Criticism

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller is short play that somehow manages to draw sympathy from the audience for multiple characters at a time. Though Willy is, at his heart, the character most affected by his cracking & unstable mental state, we see his flaws reflected on his family through Happy, Biff, and Linda. Therefore, a unique atmosphere for compassion is created; while we want to feel bad for Willy, we also see how devastating his behavior can be, and thus we hate him. At the end of Act II, we are sad to see Willy's successful suicide attempt, but we are also relieved to hear Linda's response: "We're free... we're free... we're free..."
We, as the reader, witness many events that occur in the Loman family that cause us to feel one way or another. Although Willy is undoubtedly the main character, there are points in which the narrative is shifted against him-- pitting the audience against the "sympathetic" character. This is most evident in Act II, in which we see Biff's reaction to Willy's mistress. Willy reaches for his son, to which Biff responds "Don't touch me, you--liar!" Through this outburst, we can see the impact Willy's actions have on his family. It is at this point that we feel overwhelmingly sorry for Willy; he is perhaps at his lowest point, and although he is flawed, we want him to succeed and make amends with his son.
This narrative is directly reflective of how the Loman family feels. It is clear that "there's no more spite in it anymore..." but they also love Willy deeply. This is reaffirmed multiple times by all members of his family, though at his funeral, Linda cannot find it in her to cry for her deceased husband. Though they would definitely preferred if Willy could have pulled through, there is a certain freedom-- for both the audience and the characters-- at Willy's death. As the audience, we are burdened with speculation about the resolve of the story; even the title implies there is imminent death. When it finally occurs, the audience reaches a moment of catharsis, as do the members of the Loman family.