‘Salesman’ Revival

Regarding “Miller’s Undying ‘Salesman,’ ” Feb. 5: The late Noel Coward, being an Englishman, didn’t “get” “Death of a Salesman” when he saw the original production in 1949. He called it “a glorification of mediocrity.” It’s not an invalid point.

Arthur Miller’s play makes Willy Loman’s failure seem somehow noble: He is a martyr to the American Dream. The same way that we learn from comedies that pain and cruelty are desirable if they’re funny, maybe being a loser isn’t so bad as long as you’re properly dramatic about it. But that’s postwar angst for you. (“The Catcher in the Rye” came along a few years after “Salesman,” ushering in the era of the crazy mixed-up kid. Teenagers haven’t been the same since.)

Isn’t dysfunction bad enough without making it fashionable?

KEVIN DAWSON

Sunland