One of the few similarities between Death of a Salesman and Pick Up Ax is that fact that they are both plays. Other than that, there isn’t really much to compare the two by. The differences lie beneath the obvious ones though (the different setting, time, and number of characters). The main distinctions between the two plays are the characters.
Unfortunately, Pick Up Ax only contained three characters. I was expecting a few more just to shake things up a bit, but only three characters ever surfaced. I suppose though, only three characters were needed to tell the story. Any more and it would have gotten cluttered and taken away from the stories of Keith, Brian, and Mick.
Each character in the play is unique. Keith, especially, intrigued me. He is this computer genius, creating wonderful programs, yet he acts as if he is a teenager. He cuts off Brian when he is talking about the business, saying he doesn’t understand it at all and does he want to get high and play Dungeons and Dragons. His mind is constantly all over the place, never focusing on anything other than a computer program too long. His random comments reminded me of an ADD toddler. I wondered how a man of such apparent knowledge acts so dumb. Then, at the end when Keith sabotages Mick and another company, I realized that it might have all been an act. Sure, he might still be a little flighty, but I don’t think Keith is as scatterbrained as Mick and the audience comes to believe. He knows what to do and how to do it, yet chooses to just focus on his programs instead. Keith lets Brian take care of the business aspect because he probably, at one time, enjoyed it. Besides, since he didn’t do the designing, it was the only thing for him to do.
None of the characters of Pick Up Ax resemble Willy, Biff, Happy, or Linda from Death of a Salesman. No one is self-loathing, having flashbacks, or trying to commit suicide. While a similarity can be made between Keith and Brian’s business and Willy’s firing, the way the situation is handled differs. Keith and Brian try to keep going regardless, and are not suicidal over it. The ways the characters act in situations are not similar between the two plays.
See, I don't think Keith acted very scatterbrained. He didn't come off as dumb to me; it was more of a strange kind of wit. I actually have some friends that talk/act similarly to Keith, which is why I really liked his character. I couldn't believe the fast one he pulled on Mick at the end, though. Genuis.
And you're right; this play is NOTHING like Death of a Salesman. I liked it, though. I'm about to go...purchase...one of the songs from it now, actually...
Posted by: Valerie Masciarelli at April 8, 2005 12:02 AMI agree with you, Val: Keith didn't seem scatterbrained much at all. It seems like he usually knew what he was doing, carefully encouraging Brian and Mick to believe that he was helpless when it came to business, only to later turn the tables on Mick and use his own tricks against him.
I disagree, however, when you say this play is nothing like Death of a Salesman. Mick, the slick businessman, seems at least slightly similar to Willy; he shares the same drive for success, and even uses some of the same underhanded methods (tricky, tricky, tricky).
Posted by: ChrisU at April 8, 2005 04:59 PMWell Chris, prior to today's conversation, I guess I did not really think much into connecting the plays, which is why I said they were nothing alike. Now that I've thought about it more, I do see more similarities between the two-- especially in the management of business.
Posted by: Valerie at April 8, 2005 09:39 PMI had to read this for my Media Aesthetics class, and I completely agree that having more than the three characters would have taken away from the play. I was actually happy there were only three (it would have probably been more confusing without them). Even though there were only three characters, they speak of other people so much, such as Prescott and the board members, that it's almost as if there are more than three characters who speak.
I also think that Keith was just acting dumb throughout the whole thing to get what he wanted in the end. Also, I think the author wanted the reader to be surprised when they came to the conclusion of this play. I have to admit, it did work. I never expected Keith to turn out to be the smartest one of the bunch.
Posted by: Anne Stadler at April 9, 2005 01:04 AMOk, I see a few similarities (stupid class discussions...kill my genius blog entries. haha) but I the two plays are hardly parallel. And apparently it is all loosely based on Dungeons and Dragons? Ugh. Figures. Chris or Micah, you'll need to fill me in.
Posted by: Nessa at April 10, 2005 07:06 PM