Why Are Our Best Plays About Losers?

In a country known by the world for its pride of success, materialism and optimism, why are the most celebrated plays about what she calls ‘losers’? Think about it. Willy Loman, Blanche DuBois, O’Neill’s own barely disguised family. Even the most beloved commercial comedies – think about the schlumps in Neil Simon’s earliest hits – are organized around types that, outside our boundaries, would hardly be identified as winning Yanks.” Compare that to Hollywood movies and the heroes they portray.